A wildlife activist has taken the environmental clearance for a Rs 12,000-crore power plant expansion to India’s top green court, alleging officials approved the project after suppressing critical facts about tiger habitat just kilometres from the site.
Adil Khan, president of the Satpura Biodiversity Conservation Society, filed a petition before the National Green Tribunal (NGT) challenging the 2023 clearance granted to Madhya Pradesh Power Generating Company Limited (MPPGCL) for a new 660-megawatt unit at the Satpura Thermal Power Plant in Betul district, Madhya Pradesh.
Corridor That Wasn’t There
The environmental impact assessment (EIA) submitted for the project concluded that no tiger corridor existed within 10 kilometres of the site. The Expert Appraisal Committee (EAC), led by the Chief Wildlife Warden, directly contradicted this, recording that the Satpura-Melghat river corridor lies approximately 2.4 kilometres from the existing plant.
The petition calls the EIA “spurious, concocted and prearranged.” It listed only the peacock as a Schedule-I protected species in the study area, despite internal MPPGCL correspondence that allegedly refers to tiger and leopard movement on and around the plant premises.
Forest department records show documented cases of human-wildlife conflict in the area, including livestock predation by leopards.
A Reservoir Being Erased
The petition alleges that approximately six acres of the Satpura reservoir are being filled to create level ground for the new unit — directly violating the project’s own terms of reference, which stated no waterbody would be disturbed or realigned.
The forest department transferred land to MPPGCL in 2013. Illegal tree-felling, the petition alleges, has continued “in a surreptitious manner” since then. The petition seeks cancellation of the clearance, citing a clause in the approval itself that allows withdrawal if material facts were concealed.
Madhya Pradesh Forest Department Chief Shubranjan Sen said no permission for the project was sought from or granted by his department.
‘Large-Scale Destruction’
Advocate Sanidhya Jain, appearing for Khan, said the NGT petition aims to enforce environmental safeguards upheld by India’s courts.
“The Supreme Court has repeatedly emphasised the importance of preserving India’s green heritage. Despite such clear directives, authorities are allegedly proceeding with large-scale destruction of trees in the Satpura region,” Jain said.
Khan contends MPPGCL had a viable alternative. Units one through nine of the plant are already shut down, freeing land where the new unit could have been installed — at a projected cost saving of 20 to 30 percent, without touching forests or the reservoir.
“Since 2009, I have been working for the protection of the rich biodiversity of the Satpura region. The expansion is being carried out by concealing crucial facts, the tiger corridor, the reservoir filling, the tree felling,” Khan said.
MPPGCL has not publicly responded to the allegations. The contract was awarded to Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited in October 2025. The NGT is expected to hear the case in the coming weeks.
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