The Hindu : Karnataka / Mysore News : Caught between `development' and `conservation'

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Saturday, Jun 05, 2004

Karnataka

Karnataka - Mysore

Caught between `development' and `conservation'

By Our Staff Correspondent

Construction around the Chamundi Hills will spell doom to the environment of Mysore.

MYSORE, JUNE 4. As the city gets set to observe World Environment Day on Saturday, non-governmental organisations here feel that the authorities concerned should adopt and incorporate an ecological approach to urban planning to arrest environmental degradation.

Public awareness about environment and conservation is growing and this has resulted in efforts to revive major lakes in the city. But the authorities have failed to realise that environmental conservation is entwined with development. Many are of the opinion that the Mysore Urban Development Authority (MUDA) and the Mysore City Corporation (MCC) display a lack of sensitivity in their approach towards town planning.

The MUDA recently announced that it would carve out over 10,000 sites and new residential layouts, some of which will come up around the Chamundi Hills. The authorities have paid little importance towards the conservation of open spaces and greenery around the hills, which is a repository of flora and fauna.

Both the MUDA and MCC claim that conservation is the responsibility of the Forest Department, while the Forest Department complains of the lack of their representation in the committee that finalises plans.

The MUDA has ignored the concept of buffer zone around Chamundi Hills proposed by environmentalists and the Forest Department. The buffer zone was mooted to curb the process of rapid urbanisation and land encroachment around Chamundi Hills. The Government's move to relax the land use pattern will now encourage realtors and developers to step into the scene and environmentalists fear that this will spoil the beauty and environment of the hills.

While the Forest Department supported a green belt around the hills up to a radius of one km, where they wanted to restrict all construction activities, the Mysore Agenda Task Force (MATF) submitted a detailed plan to the Government that went dealt with the finer aspects of conservation.

The MATF report reiterated that 500 metres around Chamundi Hills should be conserved and be declared as a protected area to prevent further erosion and denudation. It also suggested that at least 300 metres of the area around the hills should be acquired by the Government and declared as a "Core Conservation Area." In a bid to prevent ugly concrete structures, the MATF also mooted the idea of having a transitional zone for the remaining 200 metres with stringent restriction on the land use pattern.

The environmentalists are against the sanctioning of infrastructure for developments on the hilltop under the pretext of "development" and providing "facilities for pilgrims."

The MATF has called for a "Special control area" status to Chamundeshwari temple and the Devikere village adjoining it and wants a ban on any new construction. But Government continues to fund "developments" unabated around the hills.

The Government constituted the Mysore Area Heritage Task Force (MAHTF) headed by Vijaybhaskar, to protect the heritage of Mysore and Srirangapatana. The NGOs argued that environmental heritage cannot be ignored and forced the MAHTF to take up the conservation of Chamundi Hills.

A leading architect of the city had predicted the horizontal urban sprawl in Mysore that was inevitable due to population pressure.

He said the growth on the eastern ride of the hills would spell doom to the eco-system. But MUDA has already acquired land and carved out sites around Lalitadripura. The hills are now caught in a tug of war between "development" and "conservation," both funded by the State.

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