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Uncertainty engulfs Wadhawan port as Australian company goes off radar

Maharashtra Chief Minister Manohar Joshi stated P&O, the Australian company authorised to construct the Wadhawan port in Dahanu taluka of Thane district, had not contacted the state government after the Dahanu Taluka Environment Protection Authority declared the project illegal.

Joshi told reporters during his post-cabinet meeting press briefing that ports were exempted from the coastal regulation zone notification, hence it was not a hurdle in the construction of the Wadhawan port. The only problem was obtaining the no objection certificate from the environment committee.

The chief minister clarified that Justice C S Dharmadhikari, head of the Environment Protection Authority, had only looked into the legal and environmental aspect. He deemed the project illegal because it violated the CRZ notification of 1991, and the Dahanu notification which terms the area as ecologically fragile.

Meanwhile, the state government has also not renewed its letter of intent dated February 17, 1997. Joshi said he would know the status of the project after the state government renewed the letter of intent.

UNI