No move to declare Wayanad Wildlife Sanctuary a tiger reserve: officials

E. M. Manoj
KALPETTA,  
The Hindu, August 29, 2014 

Senior forest officials have denied a report on the alleged move of the State government to submit a proposal to the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) to declare the Wayanad Wildlife Sanctuary (WWS) a tiger reserve.

Principal Chief Conservator of Forest and Chief Wildlife Warden G. Harikumar told The Hindu on Thursday that the news was ‘fabricated and misleading.’

The Forest Department was yet to submit such a proposal to the NTCA or the Ministry of Forest, Environment, and Climate Change, he said.

Some leading news channels reported that the Union Ministry had taken measures to declare the WWS a tiger reserve and it created apprehension among villagers, especially those living on the forest fringes.

It was also reported that Union Minister for Environment, Forests, and Climate Change Prakash Javadekar had responded positively to the proposal.

Benefits of plan

However, N. Badusha, president of Wayanad Prakrithi Samrakshana Samiti, said this was the time to sensitise the public to the significance of setting up a tiger reserve, and its benefits.

Some vested interest groups had already misled the public that if a reserve was set up, a lot of restrictions would be enforced on them, he said.

Same norms

The Wildlife Protection Act applied equally to a sanctuary and tiger reserve. So, no new norms would be imposed.

On the other hand, setting up of a tiger reserve would be beneficial to the villagers as a huge fund would be allotted to the reserve for the conservation of tigers.

It would also help expedite the ongoing voluntary relocation project for settlers inside the sanctuary, he added. Moreover, projects would be initiated to tackle the escalating man-animal conflict, he said.

A camera-trap programme undertaken by the Forest Department in 2012 concluded that the sanctuary harboured at least 67 adult tigers and 11 cubs, an impressive number for a sanctuary spread over just 344.44 km.

 

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Environment Ministry dumps Gadgil report on Western Ghats

Meena Menon
NEW DELHI,  
The Hindu, August 27, 2014 

After being directed to take a clear stand, the Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF) on Wednesday informed the National Green Tribunal (NGT) that it was “not processing” Madhav Gadgil’s Western Ghats Ecology Expert Panel (WGEEP) report for any further action.

In an affidavit filed in response to a petition by the Goa Foundation, the Ministry said all future activity would be based on the report of the high-level working group (HLWG) headed by K. Kasturirangan, the then member of the Planning Commission. The HLWG report was a subsequent report to the WGEEP report and the Ministry was examining and further processing the HLWG report, the affidavit said.

The affidavit comes in response to an August 25 NGT order where the Ministry was asked to explain its position vis-à-vis the Gadgil report.

The affidavit said the Ministry had constituted the HLWG on August 17, 2012 to examine the WGEEP report in a holistic and multidisciplinary fashion keeping in view the comments received from State governments concerned, Central ministries and stakeholders. The HLWG submitted its report on April 15, 2013. The Ministry issued a direction under Section 5 of the Environment Protection Act on November 13, 2013 ordering immediate protection to the Western Ghats and maintaining its environmental integrity. A draft notification was published on March 10, 2014, declaring ecologically sensitive areas in the Western Ghats to which objections had been invited.

Raj Panjwani, counsel for the Goa Foundation, said the area which was declared ecologically sensitive came down from 1.29 lakh sq km to 56,825 sq km in the Kasturirangan report. He contended that the area which was left out also needed protection. The tribunal asked him to file objections to the draft notification delineating the eco-sensitive zones as per the Kasturirangan report. Mr. Panjwani said he had no objection to file the same. He said the concern was a large area was left out which needed protection.

Counsel for the Ministry said the government was open to considering extension of areas to be declared eco-sensitive and sought time to get back on whether this was possible. The next hearing will be held on September 9.

An Environment Ministry official later said the Gadgil report was not jettisoned and it was the basis for the Kasturirangan report.

The NGT on Monday asked the Ministry to clarify its stand on the Gadgil report which was opposed by most of the seven State governments since it restricted development in much of the Western Ghats region and had declared about 1.29 lakh hectares eco-sensitive. The NGT headed by Justice Swatanter Kumar had hauled up the Ministry for not taking a clear stand on the fate of the Gadgil report. 

 

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Giant squirrels get a lifeline

Radhakrishnan Kuttoor
PATHANAMTHITTA,  
The Hindu, August 12, 2014 

The Forest Department has launched a project to protect the Grizzled Giant Squirrel, the smallest of the giant squirrels in the Indian subcontinent.

This endangered species is found in Kerala only at the Chinnar Wildlife Sanctuary in the Munnar wildlife division, G. Prasad, Wildlife Warden in Munnar, said on Monday.

The Grizzled Giant Squirrel population in southern India is estimated to be around 300.

Mr. Prasad said the department launched the squirrel protection project at the Chinnar Wildlife Sanctuary, considering its rarity due to habitat loss and poaching.

They are usually 50-90 cm long, including its long tail, and feed mainly on fruit of the Calf Buffalo plant, which is abundant in the riparian forests along the Alampetty stream leading to the Pambar near Marayur.

The Munnar-Udumalpet highway splits the Chinnar Wildlife Sanctuary into two. The giant squirrel habitat along the stream is further divided by a bridge at Alampetty, endangering its movement. Mr. Prasad said the squirrels had to cross the highway for food and mate, which made them vulnerable to predators and vehicle hits. “Eagles and other aerial predators prey on the squirrels. Hence, they need more protective cover and wider areas for movement,” he said. Mr. Prasad said forest officials at Munnar erected a bamboo canopy bridge for the squirrels, facilitating a free passage through the canopy across the road. The 10-metre bridge was fastened to tall trees on both sides of the Alampetty stream.

The squirrels had nests on nearby trees and feed on fruits, nuts, tender leaves, insects, bird eggs, and bark of some trees.

He said steps were being taken at the sanctuary to plant more Calf Buffalo plants near the river.

Mr. Prasad said the squirrel species had been listed on Appendix-II of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species, preventing international trade in this species without a permit.

 

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Nilgiri tahr population on the rise at Eravikulam

Radhakrishnan Kuttoor
PATHANAMTHITTA,  
The Hindu, August 11, 2014 

The population of Nilgiri tahr, the only mountain goat in south India, at the Eravikulam national park in Munnar is on the rise.

G. Harikumar, Chief Wildlife Warden, and G. Prasad, Wildlife Warden in Munnar, told The Hindu that the annual census conducted by the department, along with certain non-governmental organisations, from April 21 to 28 had put Eravikulam’s tahr population at 894. The figure was 879 last year.

Mr. Prasad said the census was carried out by the Munnar Wildlife Division of the Forest Department. The counting was done using Bounded Counts, a statistic tool developed in 1984 by Rajan Varghese, chief co-ordinator of the census. This method necessitated simultaneous scanning and survey of 13 blocks, based on identified tahr home ranges, repeatedly for five days by various teams comprising volunteers, forest officials, and expert Muduvan trackers, said Mr. Prasad.

The NGOs that participated in the census include Munnar Environment and Wildlife Society, Green Cap Nature Club at Chalakudy, National Green Corps, UPASI Tea Research Institute, and the High Range Wildlife and Environment Preservation Association in Munnar.

Besides Mr. Prasad, P.O. Nameer attached to the Department of Wildlife at the College of Forestry; Mohan Alambath and James Zacharias, both former Wildlife Wardens at Munnar, and Mohan Varghese, general manager of Kannan Devan Hill Products in Munnar, trained volunteers and investigators of the tahr census.

Geographical Positioning System (GPS) was used for the first time in data collection, eliminating error to a great extent. Mr. Rajan Varghese, and M.P. Sanjayan, assistant wildlife warden at the Eravikulam national park, checked the data provided by various census teams.

Mr. Prasad said separate teams were deployed in five new locations of Meeshappuli-Mala, Kundala, Edalimottappara, Kambakkallu and Mangappara to enumerate tahr population there.

He said future efforts for the tahr census would be made under the guidance of the Chief Wildlife Warden in Thiruvananthapuram, the Field Director (Project Tiger) in Kottayam, and the Conservator of Forests (Wildlife), Olavakode.

 

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Researchers unravel more of Western Ghats diversity

T. Nandakumar

Thiruvananthapuram,  

The Hindu, August 8, 2014  

Scientists have reported a new fish species and rediscovered a rare tree, turning the spotlight on the rich, unexplored biodiversity of the Western Ghats.

While the new species of freshwater fish was reported from the Kabani river in Wayanad, Kerala, by a researcher, the rare tree was rediscovered from the Muthikulam High Value Biodiversity Area by a team of scientists from the Centre for Medicinal Plants Research (CMPR), Arya Vaidyasala, Kottakkal, and the Kerala Forest Research Institute, Thrissur.

Named Pristolepis pentacantha, the new fish species was discovered by Mathews Plamoottil, Assistant Professor in Zoology at the Government College, Chavara, Kollam, from Bavali, near the Karnataka border, in January 2012. Based on scientific studies and comparison with other fishes of the same species found in Kerala, it was found that Pristolepis pentacantha was a new species.

Known as Aattuchemballi in local parlance, fish of the Pristoledipae family are edible. They can also be reared as an ornamental fish.

The name pentacantha is derived from two Greek words, pente meaning five and akantha meaning thorn, referring to the five spines in the anal fin of the fish. While the body is grayish green, the dorsal fin is reddish orange in colour. The findings have been published in the International Journal of Scientific Research.

The tree Gnidia glauca var. sisparensi, was rediscovered after a gap of 148 years by a team led by K.M. Prabhukumar, CMPR, and V.B. Sreekumar, KFRI. Known as Nanju in Malayalam, the common variety of the genus Gnidia glauca var. glauca is considered a powerful vesicant (producing severe blisters) and hence used as fish poison. The stem, leaf and flowers also possess anti-diabetic properties.

The tree is found only in upper grassland areas above 2,000 m. It produces yellow flowers from September to December.

The team could observe only three plants of the tree during field studies. This, according to Mr. Prabhukumar, makes it eligible to be classified as a critically endangered species. The finding has been published in the Webbia Journal of Plant Taxonomy and Geography.

The two discoveries are expected to give a fillip to conservation efforts in the Western Ghats.

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State to take over three estates at Nelliampathy

P. Venugopal
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM,  
The Hindu, August 8, 2014 

The government is taking over three estates of leased forestland having a total area of 751.75 acres of coffee and cardamom cultivation in Nelliampathy from the companies running them.

A top Forest Department official told The Hindu on Thursday that these estates—Alexandria Group 1 Estate (250 acres), Alexandria Group 2 Estate (251.75 acres) and Brookland Estate (250 acres)—were being resumed by the government for violations of the Kerala Grants and Leases Act and the Forest Conservation Act.

The order on the resumption of the leased estates said the Forest Department would henceforth run these estates and the workers engaged by the company would continue to work there. There are 15 workers in Alexandria Group 1 Estate, 11 workers in Alexandria Group 2 Estate, and 15 workers in Brookland Estate.

The companies/individuals running these estates were served notice earlier charging them with violations of the lease conditions and also the Forest Conservation Act.

State stance

The government’s stand is that leased out government forestland had the status of ‘reserved forest’ and hence attracted the provisions of the Forest Conservation Act of 1980. The original lessees had transferred their ‘limited leasehold rights’ over such land to others (subsequent to 1980). The 1980 Act stipulated the prior permission of the Union government for such transactions. This was not done. The lessees also did not have any right to fragment these properties.

The official said the workers of the estates would receive regular work. The Forest Department was managing the cultivation in a few other estates also in Nelliampathy, which were taken over by the government for similar reasons.

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Western Ghats: five States yet to submit reports

Divya Gandhi
Bangalore

The Hindu, August 7, 2014 

The six Western Ghats States have just two days to meet the August 9 deadline to submit their “ground-truthing” reports on Eco Sensitive Areas (ESA).

However, barring Kerala, none of the States has responded to the Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF), which, according to some environmentalists, betrays more than just bureaucratic inefficiency.

MoEF letter

The MoEF letter was sent out two months ago asking States to corroborate at the village-level, the findings of the Kasturirangan committee report (which had relied largely on satellite imagery).

The Kasturirangan report last year had identified 59,940 sq.km (37 p.c.) of the Western Ghats as ESA: regions where activities such as mining and thermal plants should be banned.

Not formed panels

Karnataka, which has the largest share of the Western Ghats identified as ESA, has not even formed the committees that will conduct surveys at district-level, according to sources in the State’s Environment Department.

As for Goa, the Chief Minister has written to the MoEF asking for more time citing the “rainy season” for their inability to conduct the exercise, said Joint Secretary MoEF, Ajay Tyagi.

Gujarat, Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu have not yet submitted their reports, he added.

According to environmentalist Madhav Gadgil, “States are deliberately avoiding the exercise of ground-truthing because it will not serve vested interests.”

Prof. Gadgil chaired the expert panel that authored the 2012 report on Western Ghats ESA, which the government rejected in favour of the Kasturirangan report in 2013. “This just makes it clear that vested interests dominate State governments as much as they do the Union government,” he alleged.

The concept of ESAs in the Western Ghats has been a contentious one. Kerala, for instance, had expressed its objections to the Kasturirangan committee recommendations that brought 13,108 sq.km under ESA. In its draft notification of March 10, MoEF reduced the geographical area of ESA in Kerala to 9,993.7 sq.km.

The draft notification identifies 56,825 sq.km as ESA in total, with Karnataka accounting for 20,668 sq.km.

In its response to the draft notification, Karnataka agreed to ban mining in ESA, but not quarrying or sand extraction as “a total ban will affect local development and livelihoods very adversely”. The State also called for a reduction in the extent of ESA.

 

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Conservation drones for Nilgiri tahr count

K.S. Sudhi
The Hindu, KOCHI, August 5, 2014 

Conservation drones will soon hover over the Eravikulam National Park clicking pictures of the Nilgiri tahr.

The Wildlife Institute of India, Dehradun, is drawing up a plan to introduce the unmanned aircraft for population estimation and tracking the movement of the endangered mountain goats. The drones will be equipped with high-resolution mapping cameras that can click pictures for a pre-set period. The images can be stitched to obtain a picture series of the animals, K. Ramesh, scientist at the institute, said.

This will be the first time that the drones are engaged in the State for conservation of wildlife. Researchers expect to fly the drones over the park in three months.

The drones will be introduced in 10 bio-geographic zones in the country, including the Sundarbans and the Himalayas. Three of the four drones will be deployed in the Western Ghats region. The population estimation of the tahr using conservation drones will replace the more than a quarter-century-old ‘block count’ method.

The habitat of the animals is divided into 13 blocks, and the population is estimated based on direct sightings. In this method, the same animals can be sighted by different groups leading to duplication of data, P.O. Nameer, a wildlife expert, said. Conservation drones would help in arriving at scientific population figures for the animals, he said. The tahr population at Eravikulam is estimated to be 870.

Mohan Alampat, former wildlife warden of the park, said the present technique of the tahr count could be affected by poor weather conditions that may hamper the visual search of animals. Conservation drones would evolve as the preferred tool for census in areas like Eravikulam in another five years.

  

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