The process of drawing up a protective layer around Shettihalli Wildlife Sanctuary in Shivamogga has thrown light on a four-decade-old mistake — that the boundaries notified were more than double what was being protected on the ground.
In 1977, Shettihalli Wildlife Sanctuary was notified over an area of 395 sq. km. However, its boundary description stretches till Shivamogga city, overall covering an area of 695.608 sq. km. For instance, the north-east boundary starts from Shivamogga town and proceeds along B.H. Road towards Ayanur. This brings in much of Shivamogga, including the Superintendent of Police’s office and the planned residential areas, within the sanctuary limits.
“[An] area of more than 300 sq. km comprising townships, villages and agricultural lands was included inadvertently,” the Forest Department has said in a petition to exclude these areas from the sanctuary.
S.J. Chandrashekhar, Deputy Conservator of Forests (Shivamogga), said: “These are dense human habitations and there have been legal problems when enforcing forest laws as there is a mismatch between stated area and marked boundaries. We felt there needed to be a rationalisation of boundaries to sort the matter.”
The 40-year-old mistake came to light when the department was attempting to draw up the Eco-Sensitive Zone (ESZ) mandated around protected areas to regulate developmental activities. “By merely looking at the boundaries, we would have to include Shivamogga town itself under the ESZ. This is not practical. So, we decided to redraw the Shettihalli boundary to its actual extent and rectify the mistake,” said C. Jayaram, Principal Chief Conservator of Forests (Wildlife).
This matter was taken up at a National Board for Wildlife meeting in September, and again earlier this month. The board has given in-principle approval on the condition that the department submit a draft notification after the formation of a committee to look into the alteration of boundary. “Based on this, we have formed a committee of forest officials, NGO representatives and local officials to demarcate the boundary. We hope to have this report soon,” Mr. Jayaram said.
This problem of boundaries may not be particular to Shettihalli. According to officials, Sharavathi Wildlife Sanctuary and other protected areas declared in the 70s have similar issues as arbitrary lines (like major roads) were taken to define them.
Notifications on ESZs lapse
The protective layer for five key wildlife habitats, which “regulate development” on 2,500 sq. km around forests of the Western Ghats, have lapsed after the State government failed to confirm the notification.
Of the 30 sanctuaries, national parks and tiger reserves, Eco-Sensitive Zones have been declared only across 18. ESZs ensure implementation of a buffer zone through local area committees while setting up a list of prohibited and restricted activities.
For at least five others, new notifications have been issued after the original draft notifications lapsed. The draft notifications for Bhimgad, Kali Tiger Reserve, Someshwara Wildlife Sanctuary, Kudremukh National Park, and Bhadra Wildlife Sanctuary lapsed as they were not finalised and a new notification not issued within 545 days (1.5 years) of the original notification. While these protected areas are spread over 2,420.284 sq. km, the proposed ESZ covers nearly 2,587.29 sq km.
This was confirmed by the Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF) in a response to an RTI application filed by activist Giridhar Kulkarni. “In order to ensure the integrity of the wildlife corridors around sanctuaries and national parks, notification of the ESZ is important. Without this, there has been much development happening here, in the form of infrastructure and resorts,” he said.
C. Jayaram, Principal Chief Conservator of Forests (Wildlife), said it was only the MoEF’s ESZ committee which could approve fresh notifications. “There are numerous ESZs across the country to be declared, and not many can be taken up during ESZ committee meetings. But as [the notifications] have lapsed, they will be reissued soon by the MoEF,” he said.