As the issues of Jamma Bane and tree ownership rights are yet to find a permanent solution, the ‘plot’ of declaring Greater Talacauvery Wildlife Sanctuary by combining three wildlife zones in the district, appears to be another sword hanging on the people of Kodagu.

Silent efforts are being made to combine Brahmagiri, Talacauvery and Pushpagiri wildlife zones, the significant parts of Western Ghats, into a single “Greater Talacauvery Wildlife Sanctuary,” which may prove costly to the life of hundreds of people who are living under forest limits for centuries together.

The implementation of the project has got major boost after it was discussed comprehensively during a high-level meeting held at Vidhana Soudha on the 18th of last month under the chairmanship of the chief minister.

Following the announcement of Nagarahole forest area as Rajiv Gandhi National Park, the life of tribals there became totally directionless. When that picture is still in front of everybody’s eye, the plot for declaring Greater Talacauvery Wildlife Sanctuary has created apprehensions among the original residents of the region.

How it began

Some of the environmentalists of Kodagu had put forth a proposal of declaring Greater Talacauvery Wildlife Sanctuary during a meeting held on August 4, 2003, under the chairmanship of the then chief minister S M Krishna.

The environmentalists had proposed that if the area beginning from Talacauvery, the place of river Cauvery’s origin, and covering Brahmagiri and Pushpagiri, are protected systematically, there will be no water problem in the future. With this view, the Kadamkal, Pattighat, Padinalkghat and Brahmagiri reserved forests should be combined into Greater Talacauvery.

However, the proposal was pushed behind the screens as it faced a lot of ire from the people. But now the residents have become anxious as the government has once again taken up the issue seriously. Presently, the file is with the CM and he should take a final decision.

CM’s reaction

Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy, during his visit to Kushalnagar on August 19, had told media persons that he would arrange a meeting of the elected representatives and officials of Kodagu, Chikmagalur and Hassan within 10 days to discuss the problems of the three districts, including the Greater Talacauvery project. But he is yet to conduct the meeting.

Forest department wildlife division Deputy Conservator of Forests Shashwathi Mishra has clarified in the recent Zilla Panchayat meeting that no proposal on Greater Talacauvery had been sent to the government from the Forest department.

But he did not brush aside the possibility of environmentalists submitting a proposal to the government. In the meantime, Kodagu Astitva Horata Samiti convener M N Belliappa has announced that a joint meeting of NGOs would be conducted to discuss the merits and demerits of the project.