Karnataka - Madikeri   

‘Ban mining in Western Ghats’

Madikeri: The Chairman of the Task Force for Conservation and Protection of the Western Ghats, Ananth Hegde Ashishara, said here on Thursday that they had recommended to the State Government ban on all major mining in the Western Ghats.

Mr. Hegde told presspersons that the task force had submitted the report to the Government three months ago and hoped that the Government would not accord permission for carrying out any mining activities in the State. Certain “illegal” activities that are being carried out in the Western Ghats to augment revenue to the State exchequer should be checked, he added.

The task force, according to Mr. Ashishara, was collating information on the research conducted for protection of the Western Ghats. He added that non-governmental organisations that had conducted research on the Western Ghats would be invited for a discussion.

Mr. Ashishara said nine districts of the State were in the Western Ghat region. Work on protecting the forests was ineffective because of the shortage of staff in the State Forest Department. There was about 50 per cent vacancy in the department and the Government proposes to appoint about 800 personnel for the department this year. The task force has taken up the issue of shortage of staff in the Forest Department with the Government, Mr. Ashishara added.

In reply to a query he said measures taken to protect forest would not displace locals. He, however, agreed that there was lack of coordination between the personnel of the Forest Department and members of several other agencies including non-governmental organisations when it came to protection of forests.

Emphasising on the need for the conservation of the devarakadu (sacred groves) in the three districts of Kodagu, Shimoga and Uttara Kannada, Mr. Ashishara said the State Government had earmarked a sum of Rs. 2 crore for the purpose in the last budget and more funds would be sought this year.

He said if village forest committees (VFCs) were strengthened, conservation of forests would be a success.

Referring to the ‘Bio-Diversity Committees’ that are non-existent in many districts, including Kodagu, Mr. Ashishara said constituting such committees to conserve bio-diversity in the respective gram panchayats was imperative. All activities would be recorded by the committees and they would function under the control of the zilla panchayat. The role of the social welfare officers too would assume importance in this context, he said.

On the demand of the farmers to accord rights over trees grown by them in Kodagu on their own lands, Mr. Ashishara said such matters would be sorted out at the higher level. “Policy decisions need to be taken to solve such issues”, he said.

When his attention was drawn to the ‘Jamma Malai’ land issue in Kodagu, he said it would have to be examined thoroughly after taking the views of all stakeholders before drawing any inference.

Assistant Conservator of Forests N.T. Vijaya Kumar was present.

Earlier, inaugurating a Vriksharopana Abhiyana at a school in Kadagadal, near here in the morning, Mr. Ashishara said that one crore saplings would be planted across the State under the abhiyana by the end of August.

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