Bengaluru—The Standing Committee of the State Wildlife Board (SBWL), chaired by Environment Minister Eshwar Khandre, convened on Wednesday and recommended a proposal to divert a small parcel of forest land from the Sharavathi Lion-tailed Macaque Wildlife Sanctuary for final approval by the National Board for Wildlife (NBWL).
The controversial proposal seeks the diversion of 0.976 hectares of forest land, following its submission to the State government via the Parivesh portal last September.
Key Decisions on Wildlife and Development
In addition to the Sharavathi Sanctuary land diversion, the committee addressed several infrastructure projects and conservation directives:
The committee granted approval for various road construction and widening proposals linked to three key protected areas: the Sharavathi Lion-tailed Macaque Sanctuary, the Ranganathittu Bird Sanctuary Eco-Sensitive Zone, and the Someshwara Wildlife Sanctuary.
Minister Khandre strictly conditioned these approvals, directing that all project plans must ensure there is no harm to wildlife and must mandatorily include measures to reduce risks in forest and sanctuary areas.
Mr. Khandre instructed officials to conduct a field inspection and submit a detailed report on the proposal to establish a leopard conservation reserve in Chittapur.
Following the recent death of two persons in the Kerekatte range of the Kudremukh Wildlife Division on October 31, the Minister directed officials to radio collar the captured elephant near Kerekatte in Chikkamagaluru district before releasing it back into the forest.
Mr. Khandre instructed the Principal Chief Conservator of Forests to invite former Indian cricket team captain and Karnataka Forest Department ambassador for wildlife conservation, Anil Kumble, to attend future meetings.
CID Probe Ordered Over Filming of Tiger Cubs
In a stringent move against illegal wildlife disturbance, Minister Khandre ordered a CID investigation into a report that a group of individuals filmed and photographed three new-born tiger cubs.
The incident occurred in the Bedaguli forest area of the Punajanur range, within the Biligiri Ranganatha Tiger Reserve in Chamarajanagar district, with the group reportedly using vehicle headlights to capture the images. The Minister noted to the Additional Chief Secretary of the Forest, Ecology and Environment Department that some individuals involved are allegedly connected to an organization that had a forest-crime case filed against it back in 2015.
The decisions highlight the delicate balance the State Wildlife Board is attempting to maintain between infrastructure development and the urgent need for stringent wildlife protection in Karnataka’s critical biodiversity hotspots, particularly the Western Ghats region, which is home to threatened species like the Lion-tailed Macaque and the Tiger (Gubbi et al., 2015).
References
Gubbi, S., Mukherjee, K., Swaminath, M., & Poornesha, H. C. (2015). Providing more protected space for tigers Panthera tigris: a landscape conservation approach in the Western Ghats, southern India. Oryx, 49(3), 464–471. doi:10.1017/S003060531500007X