HETTUR (HASSAN DISTRICT): A four-day padayatra organised by Malenadu Janapara Horata Samithi in association with various environment groups from across the State in Sakleshpur taluk in protest against a Karnataka Power Corporation Limited (KPCL) plan to implement the 300-MW Gundia Hydel Power Project and also the more than 10 mini hydel projects in the Western Ghats region ended here on Thursday.

Addressing the gathering, Sri Vidya Prasanna Tirtha Swamiji of Subrahmanya Math said any harm caused to the Western Ghats in the name of development would lead to natural calamities such as drought and floods and in view of this it was imperative for the concerned to safeguard flora and fauna of the region for maintaining ecological balance.

He noted that living in harmony with nature would help mankind in various forms and any attempt to disturb it would be lead to its peril. He called upon the heads of maths to participate in the movement to protect ecology.

He said the Government, which had no concern for the Western Ghats, had no moral right to destroy it.

The impact of destruction of the region's biodiversity would have a cascading effect on the people, he said.

Admitting that electricity was necessary, he said KPCL should generate power not at the cost of nature. It could generate power by opting for non-conventional forms of energy, he observed.

It was the moral responsibility of the implementing agency to provide every detail sought for by the affected people, he said and added that transparency would help create confidence in the agency's activities among the people.

It was also the responsibility of the agency to rehabilitate evacuees properly. The previous efforts to rehabilitate the affected people were far from satisfactory creating anxiety among the people, he said.

Convenor of Vriksha Laksha Andolana Ananth Hegde Asisar said it was regrettable that the Government, which had admitted in its 2003 report on environment that the Western Ghats was one of the eco-sensitive spots in the world, was now planning to implement hydel projects.

He said Western Ghats, which was a major watershed area, was facing the danger of human intervention in the name of development in the recent days.

The development projects, including the hydel projects, would result in large scale cutting of wood.

Shankar Sharma, a consultant, observed that it was true that the State was facing shortage of power but it was not necessary to set up hydel projects to meet the shortage at the cost of ecology. The problem could be solved by opting for non-traditional forms of energy.

Recalling the impact of destruction of forest cover in various parts of the world, leader of the "Appiko" movement Y.B. Ramakrishna cautioned that the failure to learn a lesson from the previous experiences would prove costly.

During the padayatra, an effort was made to create awareness among the people on the impact of the hydel projects in the region. Volunteers shouted slogans against the hydel projects. They presented street-plays and sang songs about saving the ecology. The padayatra turned out to be a major attraction in the region as villagers got to see it for the first time in the recent years.

A man, said to be a contractor, who tried to distribute pamphlets in favour of the hydel projects had to face the wrath of the villagers. However, the police intervened to defuse the situation. Interestingly, it was women who participated in more numbers in the padayatra.

Samagra Vikasa Vedike, Zilla Vanya Jeevi Sangha, Janamukhi Sanghatane, Kodagu Sene, Zilla Pakshi Veekshakara Sangha and Stree Shakti Self-help Groups extended support to the padayatra.

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