Kasturirangan report on Western Ghats: Follow Kerala model, say worried MLAs

Even as Karnataka has repeatedly rejected the report, the NGT wants the Centre to finalise the notification by December 31, 2020

BJP legislators mounted pressure on the government to draw inspiration from Kerala on stalling the K Kasturirangan Committee report on conserving Western Ghats with the National Green Tribunal’s December 31 deadline for its implementation approaching fast.

The Kasturirangan Committee has recommended that 20,668 sq km spread across 11 districts in the Western Ghats cradling 1,592 villages, be declared as an Ecologically Sensitive Area (ESA), which will come with restrictions that MLAs believe will hamper developmental works.

Even as Karnataka has repeatedly rejected the report, the NGT wants the Centre to finalise the notification (based on the Kasturirangan report) by December 31, 2020.

During a discussion in the Legislative Assembly, BJP MLAs feared that the final notification could trigger “bloodshed” and “naxalism” in villages located in the Western Ghats region. The Opposition benches were empty during this debate.

Primary & Secondary Education Minister S Suresh Kumar, responding on behalf of the government, said a Cabinet sub-committee will submit its report to the Centre before the end of this month.

Virajpet MLA K G Bopaiah pointed out that petitioning the Centre was of little use as the issue was with the NGT. To this, Kumar said that the government was “seriously looking” for a chance to implead in the case to clarify Karnataka's stand.

Earlier, Karkala MLA V Sunil Kumar urged the government to resurvey the villages identified in the report as per the Kerala model. "We are not opposed to the report. But, the government should withdraw elements that affect people residing in the region," he said.

Thirthahalli MLA Araga Jnanendra said that implementing the report in the current form could trigger bloodshed in villages. "Kerala compiled a report identifying various zones in villages as soon as the report was filed, reducing the eco-sensitive area from 13,108 sq km to around 9,000 sq km," he said, blaming the state government for laxity. “If the state had followed the same model, the 20,668 sq km area could have been reduced to around 13,000 sq km,” he said.

Bopaiah also feared that implementing the report would trigger anti-government sentiment. "People will take to naxalism," he said.

Mudigere MLA MP Kumaraswamy noted that the many villages have announced boycott of gram panchayat elections over the implementation of the report.

Even Speaker Vishweshwar Hegde Kageri expressed concern on the fallout of the report’s implementation.

Kumar assured the House that the government will not allow any village to be “forcibly extinguished” and “we are committed to protect all the villages.”