{"id":80035,"date":"2025-12-28T10:53:06","date_gmt":"2025-12-28T05:23:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/?p=80035"},"modified":"2025-12-29T12:01:28","modified_gmt":"2025-12-29T06:31:28","slug":"great-indian-bustard-conservation-why-supreme-court-ordered-safeguards-against-power-lines","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/great-indian-bustard-conservation-why-supreme-court-ordered-safeguards-against-power-lines\/","title":{"rendered":"Great Indian Bustard Conservation: Why Supreme Court Ordered Safeguards Against Power Lines"},"content":{"rendered":"<h2><b>Great Indian Bustard Latest News<\/b><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Recently, the Supreme Court of India delivered a landmark judgment to strengthen conservation of the <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/gib-upsc\/\" target=\"_blank\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Great Indian Bustard<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, focusing on preventing bird deaths caused by collisions with overhead power lines linked to renewable energy projects.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Acting on recommendations from an expert committee, the Court demarcated priority conservation areas for the <\/span><b>critically endangered species<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> and laid down a mechanism to reroute or manage overhead power lines in these zones.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2><b>Background: What the Supreme Court Was Examining<\/b><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">A retired bureaucrat and environmentalist approached the Supreme Court of India seeking urgent protection for the Great Indian Bustard (GIB).<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The petition flagged rising fatal collisions with renewable energy transmission lines in Rajasthan and Gujarat.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Poor frontal vision and heavy body make GIBs highly vulnerable to overhead wires.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3><b>Key Supreme Court Directions (2021\u20132024)<\/b><\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>2021 order &#8211; <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Ban on new overhead power lines across ~99,000 sq km of GIB habitat; Assessment of undergrounding high-voltage lines; Mandatory bird diverters<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>March 2024 modification &#8211; <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Withdrawal of blanket ban on overhead lines; Following concerns raised by the Ministry of Power, MNRE, and MoEFCC over feasibility and sector-wide impact.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3><b>Balancing Conservation and Clean Energy<\/b><\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Court acknowledged the need to balance:<\/span>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"2\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Climate commitments and renewable energy expansion, and<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"2\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Protection of a critically endangered species<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"2\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Held that undergrounding alone is insufficient for conservation.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">It constituted an expert committee of wildlife and power-sector specialists.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3><b>Basis of the Final Judgment<\/b><\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Expert committee recommendations guided the Court\u2019s latest ruling.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The judgment introduced targeted safeguards for the GIB while accommodating India\u2019s renewable energy goals.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2><b>Measures Ordered by the Supreme Court<\/b><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Acting on recommendations from an expert committee, the Supreme Court of India approved a package of measures across three pillars:<\/span>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"2\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">redrawing conservation zones;<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"2\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">voltage-based mitigation for power lines (rerouting or undergrounding);\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"2\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">creation of dedicated powerline corridors to reduce collision risk.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3><b>Revised Priority Conservation Areas<\/b><\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Rajasthan<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">: Priority areas expanded from 13,163 sq km to 14,013 sq km.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Gujarat<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">: Priority areas increased from 500 sq km to 740 sq km.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">These zones represent core habitats and breeding areas identified by the Rajasthan Forest Department and the Wildlife Institute of India (WII).<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Contestation<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">: Petitioners opposed the exclusion of 657 sq km (eastern Rasla\u2013Degray Oran), arguing it is a vital wintering and stopover corridor between Pokhran and Desert National Park.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Critical sites prioritised include<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">: Desert National Park; Salkha\u2013Kuchri; Sanu\u2013Mokla\u2013Parewar; Pokhran Field Firing Range (PFFR) and its buffer\/eastern periphery; Dholiya; Khetolai; and Chacha.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3><b>Dedicated Powerline Corridors<\/b><\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Rajasthan<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">: New powerline corridors up to 5 km wide, placed \u22655 km south of Desert National Park, to carry rerouted overhead lines.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Gujarat<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">: Dedicated corridors of 1\u20132 km width to evacuate power from wind\/solar projects in coastal Kutch.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Route optimisation mandate<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">: Where multiple green-energy pooling stations terminate at a common grid station, authorities must converge routes into a common stretch wherever feasible.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3><b>Project Restrictions in Priority Areas<\/b><\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">No new overhead power lines within revised priority areas except via designated corridors (lines \u226411 kV exempt).<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">No new wind turbines in priority areas.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">No new solar parks\/plants &gt;2 MW, and no expansion of existing solar parks, within priority areas.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3><b>Voltage-Based Mitigation (Undergrounding &amp; Timelines)<\/b><\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li aria-level=\"1\"><b>Rajasthan:<\/b>\n<ul>\n<li aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Immediate undergrounding of 80 km of 33 kV lines (of 104 km identified earlier).<\/span><\/li>\n<li aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">All burying\/rerouting to start immediately and finish before 2028.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li aria-level=\"1\"><b>Gujarat:<\/b>\n<ul>\n<li aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Immediate undergrounding of 79.2 km of 33 kV lines in priority areas.<\/span><\/li>\n<li aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">64.9 km of 66 kV lines earmarked for immediate undergrounding.<\/span><\/li>\n<li aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">WII-identified 250 km of critical lines to be buried within 2 years.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3><b>Bird Flight Diverters: Evidence-Based Pause<\/b><\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The Court did not issue blanket directions on installing bird flight diverters.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Instead, it directed the committee to assess their effectiveness in reducing collision mortality and submit findings to the Centre.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2><b>Conservation Measures Directed by the Supreme Court<\/b><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The apex court endorsed a mix of general and State-specific measures to strengthen conservation of the Great Indian Bustard (GIB), alongside the ongoing Project GIB.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3><b>Measures for Rajasthan<\/b><\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li aria-level=\"1\"><b>Grassland Restoration and Consolidation &#8211; <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Priority on restoration, conservation, and consolidation of grassland ecosystems, the GIB\u2019s primary habitat.<\/span><\/li>\n<li aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In-situ Habitat Management<\/span>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"2\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">To support survival in the wild, the Court directed:<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"2\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Enclosure improvements to secure breeding and foraging areas<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"2\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Predator management, including control of free-ranging dogs and reptiles that prey on eggs<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"2\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Food and water management to stabilise resources<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"2\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Community engagement to reduce human-wildlife conflict and support local stewardship<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3><b>Measures for Gujarat<\/b><\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li aria-level=\"1\"><b>\u2018Jump-Start\u2019 Breeding in the Wild<\/b>\n<ul>\n<li aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Adoption of a \u2018jump-start\u2019 method: transferring fertile eggs from Rajasthan to Gujarat.<\/span><\/li>\n<li aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Technique involves swapping an infertile egg with a fertile one, enabling the female to incubate and raise the chick in natural conditions.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li aria-level=\"1\"><b>Technology-Enabled Monitoring<\/b>\n<ul>\n<li aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">GPS tagging of birds to track movements and support the jump-start breeding process and post-release monitoring.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><b style=\"font-size: inherit;\">Source:<\/b> <strong><a style=\"font-size: inherit;\" href=\"https:\/\/indianexpress.com\/article\/explained\/supreme-court-order-safeguards-great-indian-bustard-power-10441540\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">IE<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Supreme Court ordered new safeguards to protect the Great Indian Bustard from power line collisions, balancing renewable energy expansion with conservation needs.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":18,"featured_media":80174,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[18],"tags":[4459,60,22,59],"class_list":{"0":"post-80035","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-upsc-mains-current-affairs","8":"tag-great-indian-bustard","9":"tag-mains-articles","10":"tag-upsc-current-affairs","11":"tag-upsc-mains-current-affairs","12":"no-featured-image-padding"},"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/80035","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/18"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=80035"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/80035\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/80174"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=80035"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=80035"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=80035"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}