The State Wildlife Board has decided to recommend diversion of 231.84 hectares of forest land in Chatakonda Reserve Forest in Kothagudem for a coal mining project by Singareni Collieries Company Ltd.
The area in the Khammam district is proposed for the Koyagudem Open Cast-II (Phase-II) mining project by the State-owned company.
Coal mining activity is a site specific where coal is available and the proposed open-cast project is located at minimum and maximum distances of 4.163 km and 5.50 km respectively from the boundary of Kinnerasani Wildlife Sanctuary.
The meet chaired by the Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister, N. Kiran Kumar Reddy, also decided to recommend to the National Wildlife Board diversion of 0.55 ha of forest land in Tirumala Reserve Forest of Sri Venkateshwara Wildlife Sanctuary. This is for laying additional pipeline from Papavinasanam dam to the forest check-post, to Tirumala by Tirumala Tirupathi Devasthanam, for drinking water purpose of pilgrims at the Tirumala hills.
In the past five years, water consumption at Tirumala has increased from 25 lakh gallons a day to 32 lakh gallons a day. In order to meet the water demand it has become very essential to lay the additional pipeline.
The Minister for Forests and Environment, Satrucherla Vijayarama Raju, Principal Chief Conservator of Forests, Hitesh Malhotra, and top officials and members of the board attended the meet, according to a press release.