Nueva Delhi: Rahul Gandhi, the opposition leader in Lok Sabha, has written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and urged the center to cancel the tenders issued by Mining on the high seas along the coast of Kerala, Gujarat and Andaman & Nicobar, citing a threat to marine life.
Contenting the decision of the central government to allow mining on the high seas, Rahul Gandhi said that coastal residents have opposed the bidding process, which proceeded without an adequate environmental assessment.
“I am writing to strongly condemn the decision of the central government to allow mining on the high seas along the coast of Kerala, Gujarat and Andaman & Nicobar. coastal communities They have been protesting the way in which tenders for mining on the high seas have been floated without evaluating their Environmental impact. Millions of fishermen have expressed a serious concern about their impact on their livelihood and way of life, “Rahul Gandhi said in a letter.
He stressed that the amendment law of offshore mineral areas (development and regulation), 2023 faced a significant opposition and emphasized the worrying nature of the allocation of mining blocks on the high seas without exhaustive impact studies, citing possible threats to marine ecosystems, coral reefs and fish populations.
“Mining in the high seas will affect the livelihoods of millions of fishermen and will irreversibly damage our diverse marine life. The government must immediately revoke this decision,” Gandhi said in his WhatsApp channel.
“In this backdrop, when the Ministry of Mines invited the license tenders for 13 offshore blocks, the protests bursted against this arbitrary movement. Among the 13 blocks there are three blocks for the mining construction of sand on the Kollam coast, a vital fish breed Vital Biodiversity Biodiversity Biodiversity, the leaders of the core.
“The tenders were floated without any consultation with the interested parties or an evaluation of the long -term socioeconomic impact on coastal communities,” he added.
Rahul Gandhi said that the current survey of the Marine Monitoring Laboratory (MML) of the Department of Biology and Aquatic Fishing of the University of Kerala found that mining on the high seas could have a devastating impact on fish breeding, especially in Kollam.
With more than 11 Lakh people in Kerala depend on traditional fishing practices, their livelihood remains at stake, according to the opposition leader. The various diverse ecosystems and the endemic wildlife species recognized worldwide in Nicobar face possible threats.
“In this backdrop, the government firmly urges to cancel the tenders issued for the mining blocks on the high seas. In addition, the rigorous scientific studies must be carried out to evaluate the environment, as well as the socio -economic impacts of mining on the high seas, but the most important thing, all interested parties, especially our fishing, should be consulted before the important decision of life is made. Gandhi added.