Mangaluru: Students know about the Shola forests, grasslands and the Western Ghats after reading their textbooks in the four walls of their classroom but they hardly get a chance to go to these places and get a real-life experience.
Considering the need to provide practical knowledge to students about the Western Ghats and bridge the gap between nature and youth, Sahyadri Sanchaya Trust has decided to take up ‘Paschima Ghatta Arivu Abhiyan,’ (Western Ghats Awareness Programme) for college students.
A few months ago Sanchaya had started a cleanliness drive in all the trekking spots in Western Ghats. “Awareness of Western Ghats is very important for the younger generation. They need to know the importance of Western Ghats to ensure that it is not harmed by projects in future. Western Ghats is part of our life. Any damage will directly affect us,” Sanchaya convener Dinesh Holla told Deccan Chronicle. “College students would be taken to some selected spots like Charmadi, Kudremukh or Kodachadri in Western Ghats to show them the Shola forests and the grassland (Shola-Grassland complex). Their importance in nature, the mechanism by which they conserve water and how river water originates in the Western Ghats will be shown and explained to the students. They would be introduced to the flora and fauna of the Ghats,” he said.
He added that bridging the gap between the younger generation and Western Ghats was very important. “Awareness is important among the youth to ensure that no harmful projects come up in Western Ghats in the future. We have seen that one of the reasons for lack of support for Yettinahole or Netravati diversion project is lack of awareness among people. Once people are aware about the importance of Western Ghats and the greenery there, they will be keen on protecting the environment and also oppose harmful projects like river diversion, power plants or mining,” he said.
Already about five colleges have approached Sahyadri Sanchaya.
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