Cabinet approves revised estimate for Yettinaholay project

Bengaluru: After a long break from any news on the project, the Karnataka cabinet has approved revised estimates of the Yettinaholay project. The project was earlier called Netravati River Diversion project envisioned in 2001 by former Chief Engineer of the state, Late Paramashivaiah.

This project had received heavy criticisms and protests from people of Hassan and Dakshina Kannada districts as their beloved river, Nethravati would no longer be the same. The project was initiated to lift 24 TMC of drinking water from the river and supply it to Kolar and Chikkaballapur districts.

Sources say that eight dams will be set up in the Western Ghat forest areas along with 250 kilometers of canals, 80 and 50 kilometer long raising mains and a reservoir around 1,200 hectares of land.

The Western Ghats area has been declared by the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) to be one of the world's biodiversity hotspots. For years, several NGOs and wildlife activists have been asserting to the State Government regarding the negative impact that the project will have on endemic wildlife. The government however, has turned a blind eye to the environment conservation aspect.

Now, the Karnataka Cabinet has revised the estimate of this project to a whopping Rs. 23,251 crores. According to the State Law Minister, J C Madhuswamy, the revised estimate for the project has seen a hike due to high cost of land that are proposed to be acquired.

Speaking about farmlands being used to build water tanks on, Madhuswamy said, "Farmers in Tumakuru district are demanding for higher remuneration for their lands. The Government has planned on building water tanks in these lands for the Yettinaholay project."

Reliable sources claim that over 5,800 acres of land has been marked in Tumakuru and Doddaballapura areas where water will be stored in tanks.

Due to the nature of this project to destroy nature in the Western Ghats and Eastern Plains regions of Karnataka, environment and wildlife activists are expected to resume their protests against the project soon.