MARGAO, April 29 -- Team Herald

A petition promoted by environmental groups including the Goa Foundation and the Save Mollem campaign is gaining traction, calling on the Goa government to revoke permissions for a proposed 'eco-tourism' project on the Surla Plateau. The campaign warns that the plan, which is to be located within the Mhadei Wildlife Sanctuary, threatens to destroy a highly sensitive laterite ecosystem that supports several endemic species and protected wildlife, including the tiger. Citing scientific research and court directives, the petition accuses authorities of greenwashing and urges that the plateau be conserved instead of developed.

The petition, which has attracted a large number of signatures, stresses that high-...