And When The Last Tree is Cut…
Imagine a landscape covered with deep valleys and
dense forests, imagine a silence where the primeval bounty of nature abounds,
imagine an administrative district with more than 7000 sq. km. under the thick
blanket of trees. Imagine an exhilarating mosaic of habitats that support a
bewildering variety of biological diversity of birds, insects, various flora
and fauna wherever you choose to walk. Imagine a state as blessed as Karnataka
which is home to one of the largest contiguous patches of forests anywhere in
the country. Imagine that we are blessed to be alive in a generation where Uttar
Kannada in the heart of the Western Ghats is a paradise that it still used to
be.
This land also happens to be the birthplace of
the Appiko movement, where commoners shrug their complacency, fought through
reams of apathy and struggled to protect their forests. This perhaps gave rise
to the birth of the environmental movement of Southern India and from September
1983 when the first tree was hugged till date, the movement to conserve and
preserve nature inspires millions of Indians who strive to protect the ecology
of our nation.
But the struggle to save the district has not
been easy. Paper mills, plywood factories, a nuclear power plant and a chain of
hydroelectric projects have had a drastic effect with the forest cover
considerably reduced over the past few decades. It took Appiko and the
corresponding determination of committed officials that the decline exploitation
of these forests could be reversed. What we see today in Uttar Kannada is also
perhaps the remnants of the once even more impressive forest ecosystems for the
district had more than 81 % forest cover when India got its independence.
However, this ancient land where a casual walk in
the still untamed wild can reveal more than 1741 species of flowering plants,
419 species of birds, an amazing assortment of mammals, zoo planktons,
reptiles, insects and a wide-ranging diversity of the forest family in a single
composite zone of 10,291 km² is under its gravest threat ever.
A proposal to lay a 168 km long railway track by
cutting more than 2,00,000 trees through this fragile land belies all established
environmental ethics. It also begs a question to the tired activists gearing up
for the fight as well as the interests who seek to push the project no matter
what. How did the totally unwarranted and archaic form of development get a go
ahead from our policy makers, even as the ill effects of deforestation are now acknowledged
worldwide. And even more importantly, at what stage in the quest for
development did we lose track of our deep rooted connections with nature.
An article published in an online news journal
mentioned that according to a site inspection report submitted to the Ministry
of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC), nearly 80% of the proposed
railway line passes through the dense forest lands. The total land required is
995.64 hectares, including 595.64 hectares of forest land, 184.6 hectares of
wetland, and 190 hectares of dry land, says the report. However, the proponents
of such linear infrastructure projects fail to acknowledge that in addition to
the trees, an untold number of fauna will also be exterminated.
Even by the lofty standards of the Western Ghats
which is a globally recognized UNESCO world heritage site, the patch of forest being
spoken about can perhaps lay claim to be amongst the most pristine in the
entire world. In its report to the state government, the Indian Institute of
Science (IISc) had stated that a frog species that had gone extinct was
rediscovered on the proposed railway stretch and the stretch spreading across
the Dharwad, Yellapur and Karwar forest division is known to host more than 29
species of mammals, 256 varieties of birds, 8 species of reptiles and 50
species of butterflies. As observed, the ecological importance of the landscape
is not in question, however the intentions behind destroying this habitat is.
With much of the coastal landscape so well
connected and the coastal highway exponentially increasing transport
alternatives, it is convenient for the government to utilize the rapidly
developing Mumbai-Mangalore transport hub, rather than slash the forest. If the
state feels that the march towards development will be halted if this project
halts, the state and specifically the people of this landscape can be
compensated as an upstream beneficiary. In this case, the state’s position that
the project links the west coast to the hinterland so as to enable
socio-economic development of the Northern Karnataka region is a praiseworthy
initiative. With the rail corridor, the state hopes to transport iron ore and
other minerals to the upcoming port at Tadri near Ankola and further to ports
such as Karwar, Madgaon and Vasco in Goa. And here lies the stark irony. There
is an existing railway track, merely 65 km longer and substantially
underutilized that connects Hubballi to Madgaon and further to Karwar junction and
Ankola. Additionally, a road network connects Hubballi to the Tadri port via NH
52 and has been used for iron ore transportation for years. There exists
several minor roads which has been used by the local population without any
disruption to their lives and with the proposed rail track planned for only
freight traffic, it is unlikely that locals would be using this railway network
for any time in the foreseeable future.
With despair and a glimmer of hope, the ground
has been set to challenge the decision taken by the government. Several groups
have appealed to the government that this project is bigger than the
aspirations of those who are likely to promote the project for their personal
ambitions. On its part, the government will seek to offset the impacts by
promoting compensatory afforestation. However, compensatory afforestation which
is often touted as an alternative to destroyed habitats requires an infinite time-frame
before they can hope to resemble a portion of this landscape.
Lessons could be learnt from a similar project
that was planned through the Coimbatore-Chamrajnagar landscape. The project was
planned way back in 1922 and went through several years of revival and
rejection, till in the year 1996 when it was finally approved. However, years
of protest led to the scrapping of the project. Much closer, in Coorg, a
sustained citizens protest movement led to the Karnataka High court halting the
Mysore-Kodagu railway project till the Indian railways seeks environment
related clearances. In yet another development, the state government has opened
another window as it has recently constituted a panel to study landslides and
form guidelines for the protection of the Western Ghats. It is hoped that the
panel would study the Yellapur-Ankola region critically and dissuade the
government against taking up any project against the local interests of the
region.
As the world is
faced with an unprecedented pandemic induced crisis and the ability of the
common citizen to register a protest removed, better sense must prevail and
short term development must not be confused with a long lasting ecological
security of the region. If anything, the population here should be commended
for playing their part in saving this unique district and be compensated for
protecting natural heritage. For when the rush of the railway contractor is
over and the remnants of the rusted construction equipment lies thrown, it is
the local populace that will mourn at the loss of their ancestral forests.
