United Conservation Movement, a citizens’ group for the conservation of forest and water, alleged Sunday that the Karnataka government is spreading false propaganda against the Union environment ministry’s draft notification on ecologically sensitive areas (ESA) in the Western Ghats.
“The state’s machinery is tirelessly working to spread false propaganda in contravention to the draft notification on ESA issued for the Western Ghats. This has been the sixth such attempt at finalising the eco-sensitive areas, each time vehemently opposed by the incumbent ruling parties of the concerned states,” said Joseph Hoover, president of United Conservation Movement and former member of the Karnataka state wildlife board.
The Karnataka government recently decided to oppose the draft notification on ESA in the Western Ghats, issued in July.
“The draft notification clearly states there are no restrictions in the change of ownership of property in eco-sensitive Areas. For Karnataka, only 33 per cent of the total villages within the listed taluks in the Western Ghats were designated as ESA villages. Several state forests (Jenkalbetta, Anekkadu and Attur forest, Devamachi, Bandipur district and state forests, Churchugude Kaval) have been included in the ESA list. They are anyway protected under Forest Conservation Act 1980,”
The statement from United Conservation Movement clarified that ongoing agriculture and horticulture commercial cropping/ plantations, construction and repair of residential houses of people who are currently living in these villages, vehicular movement, including for commercial purposes and running of hospitals and healthcare centres are not prohibited.
Hoover also demanded that ecologically destructive activities like mining and large infrastructure projects be stopped. “In a small district like Kodagu with 4,100 sq km, we do not need five national highways widening and two railways that are planned to serve the state of Kerala. Prohibit highly polluting industries in our Western Ghats that can drain and contaminate our sources of drinking water for locals and millions of people living downstream. Prohibit unscientific and illogical large power projects like Sharavathy/Varahi pump storage plants and nuclear power plants that could completely decimate our beauty,” he said.
Hoover said that the Union government should translate the ESA draft notification into vernacular languages of Kannada, Malayalam, Tamil, Konkani, Marathi and Gujarathi, and publish it immediately at its own cost.
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