Overview
- The project has received in-principle (Stage-1) clearance with final approval pending compliance, including conditions that the land remains deemed forest and planting occurs along both sides of the line.
- Forest officials estimate 1.41 lakh trees will be affected and about 1.24 lakh cut across roughly 404 hectares in Indore and 46 hectares in Khargone on the Mhow–Sanawad section.
- Mitigation plans include tunnels to reduce felling and compensatory afforestation on 916 hectares in Dhar and Jhabua at 1,000 saplings per hectare, with maintenance funded for 10 years.
- The narrow-gauge route is being converted into a 156-km broad-gauge line that officials say will shorten the Indore–Mumbai distance and strengthen links to southern India.
- Work is underway with completion targeted for 2027–28, as environmentalists warn of local climate impacts and rising human–wildlife conflict and urge alternative designs such as more tunnels or overbridges.