The 106.4 MW Andhra Lake Wind Farm project, set up at a cost of ₹850 crore, has been a persistent source of flooding problems for the local communities spread across 14 villages of the Khed and Mawal talukas of Pune District, Maharashtra. The Wind Energy project, comprising 133 Wind Turbine Generators (WTG), is situated atop a hilly area within the biodiversity hot-spot of the Western Ghats, covering 194.66 hectares of its reserve forest land.
Diversion of forest land for the project was approved by the Ministry of Environment, Forest, and Climate Change (MoEFCC) on December 10, 2009. The project was promoted by Indo-German enterprise Enercon, in partnership with Wind World India. Later it was sold to CLP India, the Indian subsidiary of Chinese Energy Syndicate CLP Group, and Apraava Energy, a power company jointly owned by CLP Group and Canadian investment group CDPQ. The entire project was commissioned in 2012, and has an expected lifetime of 20 years.
However, ever since the project’s inception, activists have protested against governmental grants of permission for the project warning about the potential hazards of situating a project of this size and nature in close proximity to the Bhimashankar Wildlife Sanctuary (BWS). A Pune-based NGO, Kalpavriksh, wrote a letter to the Principal Chief Conservator of Forest, Maharashtra in 2011 detailing the various irregularities and illegalities present in the grant of Forest Clearance (FC) to the project.
Speaking with LCW, Pradeep Chavan, member of Kalpavrish, stated that their objections were primarily because significant portions of the project area were within a 10-kilometre radius of the ecologically sensitive BWS, which would therefore be in violation of the Wildlife Conservation Strategy 2002, which prohibits Wind Energy projects in such close proximity to Wildlife Sanctuaries. Further, consent from certain affected Gram Sabhas, as required per the Forest Rights Act, 2006, was also not obtained. Chavan further alleged that the FC was granted based on misrepresentation of ground realities by higher authorities in the forest department. However, the project commenced regardless.
The wind farm has been constructed atop a hilly area in the Western Ghats, with an access road covering an area of 3541 hectares constructed leading up to the wind farm. The residents of the area claim this access road has led to perennial flooding problems, especially for the farmers of adjoining villages whose rice-fields are often inundated with rainwater and debris flowing from the hill-top down the access road.
Kharpud village, which is around 3.5 kilometre from the boundary of BWS, having routinely witnessed flooding of their rice-fields. Residents of this village told LCW they protested against the wind farm’s agricultural impact in December 2022, demanding compensation for their loss of produce and damage to fields.
The Sarpanch of Kharpud village Shri Tanaji Bhopte, said "compensation was infrequently provided to the farmers, but the flooding has become a routine and persistent issue for the local rice-farmers". He claimed that the noise from the WTGs is adversely impacting local wildlife, and complained of a lack of employment opportunities given to the local communities by the wind farm, despite promises of such being made during the project’s initial stages. “They should at least supply our villages with electricity, power cuts are still often felt for 6-8 hours a day” added Bhopte.
Despite these facts, the project was registered under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change Clean Development Mechanism (UNFCCC CDM) project, with effect from August 10, 2012, and has since been monitored by the UNFCCC.
A public Interest Litigation (PIL) was filed by one Mr. Dattatray Kale against the project, which led to a stay against the project being issued by the Bombay High Court on the 16th of December, 2010. However, the PIL was ultimately disposed off in 2014 by Bombay High Court vide order dated 9th September 2014, wherein the Court observed that the matter was being disposed off due to death of the Applicant, but “the issues raised (were) kept open”. No further litigation against the project has thus far taken place.
As of May 2023 community members continue to await the jobs that were promised to them and electricity supply from the wind farm.
Demand/Contention of the Affected Community
Opposition against environmental degradation
Demand for employment
Complaint against procedural violations
Demand for compensation
Other Demand/Contention of the Affected Community
Region Classification
Rural
Type of Land
Common
Forest
What was the action taken by the police?
How many people did the police detain or arrest?
What is the current status of the detained/accused persons?
Did the person face any violence while in police custody?
If any arrests took place, were the accused persons produced before a judge within 24 hours of the arrest?
If the accused was not produced before a magistrate within 24 hours, or not produced at all, what were the reasons?
Legislation under which the accused was charged
Was the accused person informed of their right to legal representation? Did the accused person have access to legal aid?
In cases where the accused person approached the court for bail, was bail granted?
Why was bail granted or rejected? If granted, what were the bail conditions and quantum of bail?
Details of sources (names of accused, names and numbers of any lawyers, names of any police officers contacted)
Status of Project
Original Project Deadline
Whether the Project has been Delayed
Significance of Land to Land Owners/Users
Agricultural land, Other environmental services
Whether the project was stalled due to land conflict
No
Source/Reference
Total investment involved (in Crores):
₹
850
Type of investment:
Cost of Project
Year of Estimation
2011
Has the Conflict Ended?
When did it end?
Why did the conflict end?
Categories of Legislations Involved in the Conflict
Legislations/Policies Involved
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Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Whether claims/objections were made as per procedure in the relevant statute
No
What was the claim(s)/objection(s) raised by the community?
What was the Decision of the Concerned Government Department?
Legal Processes and Loopholes Enabling the Conflict:
Non-implementation/violation of FRA
Violation of environmental laws
Violation of free prior informed consent
Legal Status:
In Court
Status of Case In Court
Disposed
Whether any adjudicatory body was approached
No
Name of the adjudicatory body
Name(s) of the Court(s)
Bombay High Court
Case Number
PIL 223 of 2010
Main Reasoning/Decision of court
Major Human Rights Violations Related to the Conflict:
Whether criminal law was used against protestors:
Reported Details of the Violation:
Date of Violation
Location of Violation
Government Departments Involved in the Conflict:
Forest Department, Maharashtra
PSUs Involved in the Conflict:
Did LCW Approach Government Authorities for Comments?
No
Name, Designation and Comment of the Government Authorities Approached
Corporate Parties Involved in the Conflict:
Enercon GmbH; Wind World India; CLP India Pvt. Ltd.; CPDQ; Apaarva Energy
Did LCW Approach Corporate Parties for Comments?
No
Communities/Local Organisations in the Conflict:
Paschim Ghat Bachao Samiti
What was the action taken by the police?
How many people did the police detain or arrest?
What is the current status of the detained/accused persons?
Did the person face any violence while in police custody?
If any arrests took place, were the accused persons produced before a judge within 24 hours of the arrest?
If the accused was not produced before a magistrate within 24 hours, or not produced at all, what were the reasons?
Legislation under which the accused was charged
Was the accused person informed of their right to legal representation? Did the accused person have access to legal aid?
In cases where the accused person approached the court for bail, was bail granted?
Why was bail granted or rejected? If granted, what were the bail conditions and quantum of bail?
Were there any other notable irregularities that took place, or other significant details?
Maitreya is an independent environmental law practitioner having secured a B.A.LL.B. (Hons) from Hidayatullah National Law University.
Initiating his legal practice at the chambers of ex-President of the NGT Western Zone Bar Association Adv. Asim Sarode, Maitreya has gone on to work with the 2021 Right Livelihood awardee 'Legal Initiative for Forest and Environment' (LIFE) before commencing independent environmental law practice before various benches of the National Green Tribunal in 2022.
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