Mangaluru: Alarmed by the recent landslides in Shiruru and Wayanad, and in response to persistent campaigning by environmentalists, the state government has decided to take decisive action against illegal layouts, resorts, homestays, and plantations on encroached lands in the Western Ghats.
Following landslides in several areas, activists have been demanding stringent measures against illegal activities within the Western Ghats that not only threaten the region's delicate ecology but also contribute to disasters like landslides. The call for action intensified after the landslides in Shiruru and Wayanad.
In Mangaluru, the National Environment Care Federation (NECF) had urged the Chief Minister, Leader of the Opposition, and the Forest Minister to implement the recommendations of the Western Ghats Ecology Expert Panel, headed by Madhav Gadgil. Similar campaigns were launched by activists across various districts.
On August 2, Karnataka Forest and Ecology Minister Eshwar B. Khandre issued a directive to officials to clear illegal layouts, resorts, homestays, and plantations by encroaching the forest land after 2015.
"Experts have noted that landslides occur due to the construction of homestays, resorts, and coffee estates by cutting into the natural hills and forests of the Western Ghats, as well as by unscientific deforestation and hill cutting. The government has taken this seriously. Increased vehicle movement in the hills and the influx of trekkers have also added to the risk," the minister's note stated.
In light of these concerns, Khandre has instructed officials to clear all illegal layouts, resorts, homestays, and plantations in the Western Ghats across the districts of Chikkamagaluru, Shivamogga, Mysuru, Chamarajanagar, Belagavi, Dakshina Kannada, Uttara Kannada, Kodagu, and Hassan. The directive mandates the removal of encroachments established after 2015 within one month, with a report to be submitted thereafter.
Environmentalists have welcomed this development, urging the government to move forward with the implementation of the Gadgil report.
"This is a positive step by the forest minister. The government should enforce it strictly," said NECF state secretary Shashidhar Shetty to Deccan Chronicle.
"However, this is just the beginning. We strongly advocate for the full implementation of the Gadgil report, which would prevent such harmful activities in the Western Ghats and safeguard the region's ecology," he added.
