Shivamogga MP urges Karnataka to trim ESA limits, cites Kerala model

Shivamogga MP B.Y. Raghavendra has welcomed Karnataka Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar's announcement of a special legislative session on the Ecologically Sensitive Area (ESA) notification, while urging the state government to commission a physical survey of the notified regions.

Speaking to reporters in Shivamogga on August 29, Raghavendra insisted that no additional land beyond the already notified forest areas should be brought under the ESA framework. He called for a clear demarcation between natural forest landscapes and cultivated or cultural landscapes, noting that plantations of arecanut, rubber, pepper, and ginger must be separated from forest land before the notification is finalised.

Raghavendra pointed to the Kerala model as a reference, stating that Kerala reduced its ESA coverage by over 3,000 sq. km. after conducting a physical survey. He suggested Karnataka could similarly lower its notified extent from roughly 20,000 sq. km. to about 15,000 sq. km., while keeping the buffer zone at zero to protect villages around national parks and wildlife sanctuaries.

Responding to criticism that the Union government was responsible for the repeated drafts, Raghavendra noted that the committees dealing with the ESA notification were constituted during the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) era. He argued that if the current BJP-led Centre were anti-farmer, it would have cleared the notification in its first or second draft itself. The Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change has now issued the draft for the seventh time.

Raghavendra urged the state government to direct district administrations to hold joint meetings of revenue and forest department officials to assess the ground situation before the special session convenes. Legislator S.N. Channabasappa was present at the press conference.