Char Dham project-Environment Vs Defence: SC says national security can't be overridden

New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Tuesday said that concerns of national security cannot be overridden while dealing with the army's request to expand the Char Dham project roads leading to the Indo-China border.

A non-profit had opposed the road widening, citing the felling of trees in the wildlife habitat is increasing instances of landslides, while the Union government wants to widen the roads to the border to 10 meters.

Justice DY Chandrachud of a three-judge bench said that if it was for tourism, the court could impose more stringent conditions, but since it is a matter of defending borders, the court has to be more nuanced. The court could not deny that at such a height, the nation's security is at stake, he added. He asked if they could say that environment will triumph over the defence of the nation or defence concerns be taken care of so that environmental degradation does not occur.

Earlier, the SC had said that roads could not be wider than 5 meters. But the Union government told SC that there is a tremendous buildup by Chinese on the other side of the border. Chinese troops are building helipads and buildings there. So, to move trucks carrying heavy weapons and troops, the road needed to be widened. Attorney General KK Venugopal, appearing for the government, said that India does not need the "1962 situation" again.

Senior advocate Colin Gonsalves, appearing for the non-profit Citizens for Green Doon, told the court about the damages caused by landslides in the mountains. He said that he is not arguing that environmental needs trump the nation's defence. The Army never asked for the widening, but someone high up in political power needed highways on the Char Dham Yatra and the Army went along reluctantly, he said. He also mentioned that the SC had frozen 24 hydroelectric projects after cloudbursts in 2013. Around 17 projects in the Himalayas were built so close, and these projects also fed the cloudburst destruction, he added.

Justice Surya Kant asked Gonsalves about any reports on the condition of the Himalayas on the other side of the border where the Chinese allegedly constructs establishments. Gonsalves replied that the Chinese government is not known for protecting the environment, but he will try and get reports on the situation in borders.

The Char Dham highway project connects the four holy shrines of Gangotri, Yamunotri, Kedarnath and Badrinath in Garhwal Himalayas. It stretches through 899 km of road.