Karnataka forest department wakes up as planters’ dues hit Rs 2k cr

Karnataka Forest Minister Eshwar B Khandre has ordered officials to recover a whopping Rs 2,000 crore owed by planters, including the Tatas, who were leased over 5,000 acres of forest land as a decades-long issue that has led to man-animal conflict is now coming to a head.

Bengaluru: Forest Minister Eshwar B Khandre has ordered officials to recover a whopping Rs 2,000 crore owed by planters, including the Tatas, who were leased over 5,000 acres of forest land as a decades-long issue that has led to man-animal conflict is now coming to a head.

But squeezing the planters for money after years of inaction is easier said than done as the matter is in courts.

Khandre talked tough as he held an emergency meeting of senior officials on Tuesday to understand the issue.

"Some of these lease agreements have taken place before Independence," Khandre said. "Companies were paying about Rs 2 to 4 per acre till 1997 when it was increased to Rs 5,000 per acre. However, several of them have not made the payment and challenged the government's decision in the court. The pending amount and the interest together has now reached over Rs 2,000 crore," he said, adding that Rs 1,601 crore is pending from other planters in Kodagu district.

Studies have shown that plantations have affected natural forests, a key element that is fuelling the man-animal conflict. Over the years, plantations have been blamed for the floods and droughts in Kodagu, as the loss of shade-tree diversity has affected soil fertility and resilience of natural systems.

Of the 5,500 acres leased to planters in Karnataka, over 4,500 acres is in the Virajpet division, which has seen a high number of man-animal conflict cases.

Virajpet has been reporting more than 1,000 cases of crop damage every year, which peaked at 2,122 cases in 2021-22. Nine persons and 21 cattle have been killed in conflict situations from 2020-21 to 2023-24.

The minister read out the names of six companies (see box) that have been given 4,824 acres on lease. Of the six, officials are yet to calculate the amount to be received by some companies for the years since 2015.

Special team

Khandre said the department has formed a special team led by Principal Chief Conservator of Forests and Principal Secretary (Environment) B P Ravi to look into the matter. "There are two issues before us: to recover the pending amount and reclamation of land in cases where lease has expired. Considering the legal issues involved, the special team will consult the legal experts to expedite the cases in the courts," he said.

Officials will now begin digging into files going back to the pre-Independence era as well as documents related to court cases, in which the planters have challenged the department's notice seeking the lease fee. "This is an exercise that requires time and effort. We want to recover the money and utilise it for forestry activities," he said.

The department is staring at a tough task.

For example, Thomson Rubber Pvt Ltd, which holds a lease of 625 acres, had shown it as revenue land and pledged it in a bank. The bank had auctioned the land after the company failed to service the loan.