Karnataka: Mercury soars, black bucks fall to poachers in Haveri

Hubballi: With the  mercury soaring to 42 degrees Celsius and lakes and rivulets drying up,  wild animals from the Kappattagudda forest area of Gadag district are straying into villages in search of  drinking water,  leaving   people petrified and leading to increased man-animal conflict in these parts.

Black bucks too are moving out of their sanctuary in Haveri district in search of water and falling easy prey to  poachers. The sanctuary, spread over 30,000 acres of forests in Haveri district, is home to around 6,700 black bucks, and the Kappattagudda Hills in Shirahatti and Mundaragi taluks are home to peacocks and several endangered species of birds and animals

Although there are some 40 small lakes and streams in these hills, rampant mining and drought has reduced their ground water table, leaving the animals thirsty, say locals.

"The water resources of Kappattagudda have dried up due to the severe drought in Gadag district last year. The forest department needs to build  ponds to save the lives of the animals and prevent them from straying into villages,"says environmentalist, prof. C S Arasanal.  

Kappattagudda range forest officer, Mahantesh Nyamati, when contacted, said lack of  funds was hampering work on building ponds. "We have constructed several percolation trenches and  ponds for soil and moisture conservation in the hills. But they have  dried up due to the failure of the monsoon last year and the soaring temperature is not helping things.  We have sent a proposal for building around 20 cement ponds in the forests," he added.