Forests in trouble

At a time when social-networking sites are flooded with photos of the animal kingdom taking back its encroached habitats during the Covid-19 lockdown period, some pockets of Karnataka's forests have fallen prey to poachers and smugglers, and suffered from forest fires.

The state has registered at least 15 cases of poaching since the nation-wide lockdown began. And sources in the forest department fear there could be more cases.

Sources confirm the state has lost spotted deer, hare, jungle cats, barking deer, wild boars and other herbivorous animals. They are trapped or gunned down in and around the protected forest areas of Shivamogga, Uttara Kannada, Tumakuru, Chamarajapet, Kodagu, Chikkamagaluru and other districts.

Most of these cases have been reported from in and around the Bandipur and Nagarhole national parks and Bannerghatta Forest.

Principal Chief Conservator of Forest Punati Sridhar reasons that the forest-fringe dwellers here have little work now and therefore take to hunting.

Forest officials say they manage to ‘recover’ only the meat of wild animals, with poachers gone. However, technology (like camera trapping) has helped officials in arresting five poachers from Bandipur National Park recently.

State Principal Chief Conservator of Forest (Wildlife) Sanjay Mohan says the lockdown is a bane for conservation. Non-availability of meat (like chicken and mutton) and no vehicular movement along the roads near the forests have encouraged the miscreants.

The officials stop short of exact data as the back-end office of the department is closed.

Shridhar adds that cutting down of valuable trees is also on the rise.

Forest Minister Anand Singh has said that Karnataka witnessed more than 2,000 cases of forest fire during the lockdown period. Forest officials suspect numeral foul play.

With satellite mapping and an advance alert system, officials have been successful in containing these forest fires to small patches, adds Sridhar.

Meanwhile...

The wildlife of the Turahalli forest - just off Kanakapura Road – has taken a hit as reports of deer getting caught in snares set up by poachers have emerged from the area.

The forest is home to a decent population of spotted deer, black—naped hare, fowl and peacocks.

RRnagar-I Care, a local environmental trust, recently tweeted a video of a deer injured by a snare.

“This is the second case. The first deer didn’t survive,” says Niveditha Sunkad, a resident of RR Nagar.

The deer have also been wandering close to the roads in the area for over a year due to the fallen and hence ineffective compound wall, built eight years ago for the safety of the deer.

The possibility of rebuilding the wall is stuck in an official stalemate, according to Niveditha, as their proposal to fix the wall using CSR money and to work with officials was approved by the Principal Chief Conservator of Forests but fell flat when it reached other officials.

The lockdown has created a shortage of meat and hence poachers are more desperate, weighs in Joseph Hoover, a city-based conservationist. However, “the more serious threat to the deer are feral dogs, which hunt in packs and are responsible for the deaths of 15 deer. These dogs finish off the deer caught in snares, even before the poachers get to them,” he adds.

Siddaramappa, Deputy Conservator of Forests, Bengaluru Urban Division, says his team is trying its best to control the entry of poachers and feral dogs in the area. But the fact that the forest is surrounded by a populated area makes this difficult.

“We got the first reports of snares sometime around last week. The area was combed and all the snares were removed,” he says.

Acknowledging the condition of the wall, he adds, “The damage is caused by the constant redevelopment of the road. We are aware of the citizen's proposal, and we are working towards finalising an estimate for the same.”