SHIVAMOGGA
Shivamogga MP B.Y. Raghavendra has urged Chief Minister Siddaramaiah to conduct a joint survey of forest areas in 10 Karnataka districts before holding a meeting on the Kasturirangan report. He said the survey should establish the actual status of forest and non-forest land and prevent farmers from facing unnecessary restrictions.
Addressing reporters, Raghavendra said the seventh draft notification of the Kasturirangan report has caused concern among farmers and agricultural labourers in 1,439 villages across the state. The affected villages include 146 in Shivamogga, 137 in Chikkamagaluru, 53 in Kodagu, 30 in Hassan, 48 in Mysuru, 20 in Chamarajanagar, 566 in Uttara Kannada, 43 in Dakshina Kannada, 34 in Udupi’s Kundapura and Baindur areas, and 42 in Belagavi.
Raghavendra said Karnataka has around 20,668 square kilometres of forest area, the highest among states mentioned in the context, followed by Maharashtra with 17,360 square kilometres. He warned that implementing the Kasturirangan recommendations could have a greater impact on people living in the Malnad and Western Ghats regions.
He urged the state government to direct district administrations to conduct joint meetings and appoint adequate officials to examine the forest areas. He also called for a zero-buffer-zone approach, limiting protected restrictions to wildlife sanctuaries, reserved forests and other notified forest areas. Farmers should be assured that revenue, village administration and municipal laws would not adversely affect their land, he said.
Raghavendra alleged that satellite-based surveys by the Forest Department were sometimes showing farmers’ lands as forest areas. He demanded a physical survey to establish ground realities and said only notified forest land should be included in the eco-sensitive area.
He said farmers in Malnad were already awaiting solutions to deemed forest, Sharavathi project rehabilitation and Bagair Hukum issues. The Kasturirangan recommendations should not create further difficulties for them, he added.
