Ashwini Vaishnaw says GMRT won’t be shifted for Nashik-Pune rail route, Kohle opposes decision

The GMRT is set up by the National Centre for Radio Astrophysics-Tata Institute of Fundamental Research (NCRA-TIFR).

The Indian Express had reported that GMRT officials were caught off guard at the time. A senior official had explained how the noise and interference from the proposed Narayangaon railway station was worrisome. “The radio noise from the moving electric train, as well as the signalling equipment which will be used for communications purposes, will be a major threat to the quality of data from GMRT. For some distance, the route even runs parallel to the existing antennas, which is unacceptable,” the official had said.

Vaishnaw further said, “If we see the area and go towards the Arabian Sea in the west, we have ghats. If we move there, the project will get difficult. The other side is between the Manmad-Ahilya Nagar route. The Manmad-Ahilya Nagar-Daund route is already there. There is an option of a parallel alignment along this route.” The second option, Vaishnaw said, was the Nashik-Shirdi-Ahilya Nagar-Pune high-speed route, adding that teams were working on these routes and their results would be out soon.

Amol Kohle opposes move

Shirur MP and NCP(SP) leader Amol Kohle wrote to Vaishnaw on Monday insisting that the railway line be built on the originally planned route as changing it would deprive farmers of the region of economic opportunities. He wrote, “..if this railway line is constructed according to the previous DPR [Detailed Project Report] without altering the project route, it will create development opportunities for the previously neglected talukas of Ambegaon and Junnar.”

As the GMRT prevents projects or industries coming to the area, agriculture is the sole livelihood of farmers in the region, said Kohle. “As a representative of the people of this area, my clear stance is to implement this semi-high-speed rail project without any hindrance to the GMRT project,” he added. Kohle also claimed that it was possible to construct the railway line using modern technology ‘without disturbing the prerogative of the GMRT’.

Scientists react

Dr Yashwant Gupta, Centre Director at NCRA-TIFR, told The Indian Express, “We have made our position clear that we are ready to work with any options which protect the GMRT. So we appreciate that the Railway Minister has taken cognizance of the significance of GMRT, because it is an international facility. It is the pride of the nation and, as he said, many countries use it. It is definitely not easy or practical to shift it anywhere. But on the other hand, any solution that is mutually acceptable, which protects the GMRT and allows for growth and development to happen, is what we are looking for. We have always believed in a coexistence model.”

Professor Debarati Chatterjee from the Inter-University Centre for Astronomy and Astrophysics in Pune, also appreciated the sentiment expressed by Vaishnaw. She told The Indian Express, “The announcement by the Union Minister of Railways of its decision to not shift the GMRT is an important move in support of science in India and its importance as a global player. It is good to see that the government has heard out the plea on the recent concerns from the scientific community and taken necessary steps to ensure that its prime facilities are not disturbed.”

She also stressed the importance of the telescope, explaining why it must be protected, “It (GMRT) provides a window to observe the universe at radio frequencies, which sheds light into astrophysical phenomena…It plays an important role in understanding cosmology.”