Timesnownews.com spoke with the Coorg Wildlife Society President Col. C.P. Muthanna about the incident wherein 100 fully-grown trees were felled in Coorg the upcoming visit of Karnataka Chief Minister HD Kumaraswamy citing security reasons.
A shocking incident came to light this week wherein 100 fully-grown trees were felled in Coorg (officially renamed Kodagu) for the upcoming visit of Karnataka Chief Minister HD Kumaraswamy citing security reasons. Coorg is one of the most beautiful and lush districts falling in the Western Ghats and feeds nearly 50% of the total inflow into the Cauvery, which is mainstay of South India for water. Considering the highly sensitive and pivotal role that the region plays, Timesnownews.com spoke with the Coorg Wildlife Society President Col. C.P. Muthanna about the negligence that led to the callous cutting of trees.
Akrita Reyar: How old were these 100 trees – how long does it take to grow them and how do they contribute to the delicate ecosystem of the area?
Col. Muthanna: For any mature tree of that species in that section of the Western Ghats, it takes a good 40 odd years to mature. That’s true for any fully-grown tree. And definitely, they contribute to the ecosystem because they belong to the Western Ghats hill forest. So, it is a loss no doubt.
Akrita Reyar: Apparently the Deputy Commissioner (DC) had given orders for pruning of trees but these were cut allegedly by the timber lobby? Would you have any details about the same?
Col. Muthanna: Yes, I believe that. What the DC had given orders was only for chopping of the branches and pruning. It clearly looks like somebody has taken advantage of the situation. Whether it was the timber lobby - it is a matter of investigation to find who was actually responsible. Apparently some agency or individual was given the task of pruning, that person should be booked.
Akrita Reyar: Are there any laws that make such an offence punishable - has any action been taken in this case?
Col. Muthanna: Definitely this is an offence. Because this is a violation of the order given by the Deputy Commissioner. The quantum of punishment, I would not be sure. But the person should be dealt with sternly and made an example out of.
Akrita Reyar: Congress leader Brijesh Kalappa said that earlier too trees were cut in two areas in Coorg when Prime Minister Narendra Modi had come visiting - is it true?
Col. Muthanna: I am not aware of that.
Akrita Reyar: Is the Coorg Wildlife Society planning any campaign against the felling?
Col. Muthanna: We will be asking the Deputy Commissioner to act against whoever is the offender and has violated the orders.
Akrita Reyar: You had earlier written to PM Modi after listening to ‘Mann Ki Baat’ - asking for help to preserve Kodagu from land sharks and to conserve River Cauvery. Did you get any response?
Col. Muthanna: No, we haven’t got any response on that. And now our battle is to prevent railway lines from being laid to Kodagu and also the multi-lane national highways.
Akrita Reyar: Can you tell us something about the type of ecosystem Coorg has and its place in the Western Ghats?
Col. Muthanna: Actually Kodagu has a total area of 4,108 sq km of which we have about 30% under forest. And an equal amount of area under coffee and about 10 % to 12% under wetland i.e. paddy cultivation. Now, the point about coffee estates is that we have a large density of indigenous trees there. It is a combination of the forest, coffee plantations, and the paddy fields that contribute to the inflow of major tributaries of Cauvery in Kodagu where we have three tributaries. So it is very important to protect the overall ecosystem of Kodagu and not just forests, but also coffee plantations and wetlands so that there is a good inflow into the Cauvery tributaries.
Akrita Reyar: The area is known for its beauty and its greenery and that is one of the reasons that it is a popular tourist spot. What is its impact?
Col. Muthanna: See there is one point about tourism - while tourism is welcome from all over the country or the world, we feel that in Kodagu tourism has well crossed the carrying capacity. We have about 15 lakh tourists a year whereas the total local population here is hardly 6 lakhs, so it creates its own problems of garbage, traffic and so on. We have given certain recommendations on how tourism should be regulated and we hope those recommendations are accepted by the government.
Akrita Reyar: Thank You.
(Source: Times Now)
A shocking incident came to light this week wherein 100 fully-grown trees were felled in Coorg (officially renamed Kodagu) for the upcoming visit of Karnataka Chief Minister HD Kumaraswamy citing security reasons. Coorg is one of the most beautiful and lush districts falling in the Western Ghats and feeds nearly 50% of the total inflow into the Cauvery, which is mainstay of South India for water. Considering the highly sensitive and pivotal role that the region plays, Timesnownews.com spoke with the Coorg Wildlife Society President Col. C.P. Muthanna about the negligence that led to the callous cutting of trees.
Akrita Reyar: How old were these 100 trees – how long does it take to grow them and how do they contribute to the delicate ecosystem of the area?
Col. Muthanna: For any mature tree of that species in that section of the Western Ghats, it takes a good 40 odd years to mature. That’s true for any fully-grown tree. And definitely, they contribute to the ecosystem because they belong to the Western Ghats hill forest. So, it is a loss no doubt.
Akrita Reyar: Apparently the Deputy Commissioner (DC) had given orders for pruning of trees but these were cut allegedly by the timber lobby? Would you have any details about the same?
Col. Muthanna: Yes, I believe that. What the DC had given orders was only for chopping of the branches and pruning. It clearly looks like somebody has taken advantage of the situation. Whether it was the timber lobby - it is a matter of investigation to find who was actually responsible. Apparently some agency or individual was given the task of pruning, that person should be booked.
Akrita Reyar: Are there any laws that make such an offence punishable - has any action been taken in this case?
Col. Muthanna: Definitely this is an offence. Because this is a violation of the order given by the Deputy Commissioner. The quantum of punishment, I would not be sure. But the person should be dealt with sternly and made an example out of.
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| Trees cut in Coorg for HD Kumaraswamy's visit | Image courtesy: BJP Karnataka / Twitter |
Col. Muthanna: I am not aware of that.
Akrita Reyar: Is the Coorg Wildlife Society planning any campaign against the felling?
Col. Muthanna: We will be asking the Deputy Commissioner to act against whoever is the offender and has violated the orders.
Akrita Reyar: You had earlier written to PM Modi after listening to ‘Mann Ki Baat’ - asking for help to preserve Kodagu from land sharks and to conserve River Cauvery. Did you get any response?
Col. Muthanna: No, we haven’t got any response on that. And now our battle is to prevent railway lines from being laid to Kodagu and also the multi-lane national highways.
Akrita Reyar: Can you tell us something about the type of ecosystem Coorg has and its place in the Western Ghats?
Col. Muthanna: Actually Kodagu has a total area of 4,108 sq km of which we have about 30% under forest. And an equal amount of area under coffee and about 10 % to 12% under wetland i.e. paddy cultivation. Now, the point about coffee estates is that we have a large density of indigenous trees there. It is a combination of the forest, coffee plantations, and the paddy fields that contribute to the inflow of major tributaries of Cauvery in Kodagu where we have three tributaries. So it is very important to protect the overall ecosystem of Kodagu and not just forests, but also coffee plantations and wetlands so that there is a good inflow into the Cauvery tributaries.
Akrita Reyar: The area is known for its beauty and its greenery and that is one of the reasons that it is a popular tourist spot. What is its impact?
Col. Muthanna: See there is one point about tourism - while tourism is welcome from all over the country or the world, we feel that in Kodagu tourism has well crossed the carrying capacity. We have about 15 lakh tourists a year whereas the total local population here is hardly 6 lakhs, so it creates its own problems of garbage, traffic and so on. We have given certain recommendations on how tourism should be regulated and we hope those recommendations are accepted by the government.
Akrita Reyar: Thank You.
(Source: Times Now)
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