More time for Western Ghats panel as eco-sensitive area deadlock continues
(File Photo)An expert committee constituted in 2022 by the Union environment ministry to examine issues raised by states regarding the demarcation of ecologically sensitive areas (ESAs) in the fragile Western Ghats region was given a year’s extension late last month, The Indian Express has learnt. The extension was given as the committee’s and the Centre’s work on breaking the deadlock on finalising ESAs as demarcated in a July 2024 draft notification, which has lapsed, continues.The July 31, 2024, draft notification, published on August 2—which was a sixth iteration of the Western Ghats ESA demarcation—had declared 56,825.7 sq km of the Ghats as ESA, across Gujarat, Maharashtra, Goa, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, and Kerala. Under the 2024 draft, ESAs demarcated across states included 449 sq km in Gujarat, 17,340 sq km in Maharashtra, 1,461 sq km in Goa, 20,668 sq km in Karnataka, 6,914 sq km in Tamil Nadu, and 9,993.7 sq km in Kerala. It is yet unclear if the ministry plans to renotify a seventh draft notification immediately. The Western Ghats is a 1,500 km long near-continuous mountain chain running from South Gujarat to Kerala, and is one of the world’s eight “hottest biodiversity hotspots”, harbouring unique plants and wildlife. The forests in the Western Ghats are home to nearly 2,000 species of plants, 84 fish species, 87 amphibian species, 89 reptile species, several bird species, and 12 mammals found only in this region. The expert committee is headed by Sanjay Kumar, a former director-general of forests at the ministry, and includes six other members from the fields of ecology, remote sensing, space application, geology, and ministry officials. It is learnt that the committee’s tenure was extended on June 30 till July 2027.Story continues below this ad
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