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.