Guardian of the forest lands

Through consistent efforts and legal battles, Girish Achar has protected lakhs of forest land in Shivamogga

A humble man from Shivamogga, Girish Achar spends six months a year working as a tipper lorry driver. The rest of the time, he takes on political and official giants in court, resolute in his aim to protect his district’s forests. So far, he has been instrumental in saving over 3 lakh acres of forest land from illegal encroachment and denotification in Shivamogga district.

His journey in legal activism began in 2017, when he filed a complaint with the Lokayukta about illegal stone quarrying at Masagalli village in Hosanagar taluk. The quarrying was stopped soon after. In a bid to halt illegal mining and encroachment, he also began collecting documents under RTI and filing cases in the Karnataka High Court in 2019.

Of the 11 cases filed in the high court so far, four have been ruled in his favour. Of the 19 cases registered with the Lokayukta, officials have cleared encroachment and halted illegal stone quarrying in six. 

In addition, 2.5 lakh acres of forest land is currently in the possession of the revenue department, awaiting transfer to the forest department pending on the Lokayukta’s verdict. 

It was a forest fire that first led him to start his campaign. Recalling the incident, he says that after the Forest Rights Act of 2006 came into existence, people began cutting trees and sowing ginger seeds in the forests, hoping to claim ownership of that piece of land. One such incident was reported at Punaje in Hosanagar taluk in 2016.

"I rushed to the spot and saw decades-old trees turning to ashes,” he says. After the issue was brought to their notice, the forest department dug trenches and fixed boundaries. 

Girish Achar

Explaining his first case, filed in the high court in 2019, he recalls how an official from the forest department alerted him about the denotification of 9,934 acres of forest land by the state government. This land was to be allocated to Sharavathi project evacuees, without obtaining environmental clearances. Over 3,500 acres of land had already been allotted to people.

While around 1,200 families had given away their lands for the construction of the Linganamakki dam, now 8,000 families — which included second and third-generation descendants — were seeking land for rehabilitation. Girish notes that there is no legal provision for this.

He was seeking an advocate who would fight this case in the high court. “At that time, an official of the forest department told me about Veerendra Patil, a practising advocate in the high court. We began working together on the legal front in 2018,” he says. 

The court directed the government to cancel the denotification of the forest land in 2021.  “I had spent over Rs 30,000 on this case from my pocket,” he says. 

However, the district administration did not implement the court's order and the government was held in contempt of court in 2022. The government issued a gazette notification in 2023, directing revenue department officials to classify the  9, 934 acres of land in Shivamogga district as forest land. 

The case pertaining to the allotment of 3,500 acres of land is still pending in the court.

In another case, the change of ownership in title records (mutation) of 2.67 lakh acres of notified forest land has not been carried out in the district. The records still classify the land as belonging to the revenue department, allowing people with political influence to cut down trees and convert the land into areca and ginger plantations. 

A case was filed in 2022 in the high court, and eventually, the court issued a direction to the government to change the 2.67 lakh acres of land from revenue to forest.

Additionally, 30,395 acres of forest land had been allocated illegally to bagair hukum cultivators in the district. (Bagair hukum refers to farmers without official land titles who have been cultivating on government land for long periods.) In several cases, these cultivators are allocated land by the government. The Court, in 2022, dismissed the case pertaining to this land, citing that all encroachers had to be made party in the case. 

The journey has come with several threats to his life. In 2024, four men on bikes chased Girish when he was heading towards Byndoor from his home. They stopped his bike and abducted him. It was later ascertained that the people who lost illegally acquired land in a denotification case were behind this attack. "They assaulted me with sticks and recorded the entire attack on their phones. They also released the video on social media,” says Girish. The video actually helped him gain support from the community. 

Following this, there were also failed attempts to file a case against him. “I had also filed a case against the people who attacked me. They appealed to me to withdraw the case. I did this, as my focus was directed more towards conserving forest land," he says.

Those involved in illegal mining activities took him by force to the police station, when he was buying medicines at a shop. 

Girish Achar

"They asked me to withdraw the case in the Lokayukta. But I did not give in and said I would abide by the Lokayukta's report. After a few days, I learned they had been plotting to kill me. At that time, I submitted a memorandum to the police commissioner seeking security. The superintendent of police strengthened patrolling near my house," he says. 

With the assistance of anti-corruption activist S R Hiremath, he learned how to leverage the RTI Act to fight encroachers, many of whom were politically influential.  

First, the activist collects documents under the RTI Act. Then, he submits a memorandum to the district administration, seeking action. If there is no progress after a month, he files a case in court.

He has no formal network of RTI activists, but instead, he has friends who extend moral support. "People in the region contact me when there is encroachment of forest land or illegal mining activities. If it is a genuine case, I take it up," he says. 

Ganapathi Gowda, a native of Punaje village in Hosanagar, says, “The forest can still be seen in the Malnad region due to the sincere efforts of Girish Achar. If not, the forest areas would have become areca plantations. People of the region think twice before encroaching on forest land, fearing him and his sincere fight to save the forest.” 

Veerendra Patil, who has been handling the cases filed by Girish in the high court, says that his fight for the welfare of present and future generations has earned him more foes than friends. “Many people fail to understand that Girish is fighting for the greater good, not for personal gain,” he says. 

The advocate adds, “I do not handle his cases free of cost. But I charge a lower fee, as I am aware of his commitment to forest conservation.”  

Girish Achar

Girish’s wife Nagaratna says, "Initially, I was against this as I felt it was a waste of time, money and energy. But when the court gave a judgment in favour of his fight, I saw hope and felt that I should support him morally. Now, I am happy that his fight has saved vast acres of forest land."

Ananth Hegde Ashisara, former chairman of the Western Ghats Task Force, says Girish’s commitment to saving the forest from encroachment is unquestionable. “He must be careful while waging legal battles though, as the court's judgments could have an adverse impact on small and marginal farmers too,” he adds. 

Acknowledging Girish’s work, a forest department official says, “I have found that many have ulterior motives. But this man stands out from the rest, as his commitment to save the forest is genuine. He has risked his life to save the forest from encroachers.”

On expenses, Girish says, “I use my tipper lorry to load and unload soil and other materials. On farming lands, I dig the ground to lay irrigation pump sets in my wife’s place in Byndoor , for six months a year.” 

“I use around 40 per cent of my income for the legal battles. My two sons are working now and they contribute towards the family income. My elder son works as a cab driver in Bengaluru and my younger son works in a private finance company at Ripponpet in Hosanagar taluk,” he says.