Sindhudurg forests inside Western Ghats allegedly ravaged by illegal quarrying

A fourkilometre stretch inside the Western Ghats forest in Kolzar in Dodamarg taluka of Sindhudurg district which is a part of an Ecologically Sensitive Area ESA has allegedly been heavily quarried stripped of tree cover and left badly damaged raising serious concerns over environmental violations and ecological lossEnvironmentalist Stalin D from NGO Vanashakti has complained about this to the principal chief conservator of forest wildlife of the Maharashtra Forest Department the head of forest force additional principal chief conservator of forest wildlife west collector of Sindhudurg deputy conservator of forest Sawantwadi principal secretary of the Maharshtra Pollution Control Board Environment Department and the director general of forest Ministry of Environment Forest and Climate ChangeIn his letter Stalin D has alleged that massive deforestation hill cutting and quarrying are taking place inside the SawantwadiDodamarg wildlife corridor ldquoWe are particularly concerned with unprecedented largescale destruction in Kolzar village of Dodamarg We have visited the site and were horrified to see that almost 4 km of forest has been excavated quarried and a fresh vehicular access path created by pushing trees down the slopes and excavating the hillsrdquoNature and wildlife lovers from Kolzar have also alleged that the forests on the other side of the hills have been flattened and cleared for construction ldquoVillagers of Kolzar were caught unawares as the destruction unfolded deep inside the forests They have protested and also lodged complaints with relevant authorities We have attached videos of the site which clearly establish the illegal excavation destruction of forest trees and creation of paths inside the forests Though the forests may not be owned by the government they need to be protected inside this fragile pristine wildlife corridorrdquo Stalin DAbout Kolzar villageKolzar is protected as an ESA in the final judgement the Bombay High Court passed in Public Interest Litigation PIL 198 of 2014 read with PIL 179 of 2012 There is a treefelling ban in Dodamarg imposed by the high court and the task force constituted by the court has the responsibility of protecting this wildlife corridor While the sale and purchase of land is not illegal but tree felling inside the crucial wildlife corridor SawantwadiDodamarg is not permitted It is anticipated that the alleged massive tree felling will only cause more disturbance to the wildlife habitats and it will increase humanwildlife conflictImplement HC judgementLocals and nature lovers have appealed to authorities to take steps for the implementation of the HC judgement in letter and spirit Stalin in his letter also demanded the prohibition of all environmentally destructive activities inside the wildlife corridor and steps to demarcate it physicallyldquoWe call upon you to register offences under all applicable laws and also for contempt of court An action taken reply beyond the imposition of a fine for illegal excavation and mining is expected Also please start efforts to restore the areas that have been severely damaged due to the illegal actions by socalled lsquoinvestorsrsquordquo said Stalin DWhat villagers sayKolzar village resident Devendranath Purushotam Desai said ldquoAwareness boards should be installed to clearly warn that the area is protected from tree felling and forms a vital wildlife corridor Villagelevel committees must be constituted to safeguard the regionrsquos forests Local communities have coexisted with wildlife in harmony until now but the growing menace of deforestation to carve out bungalow plots within dense forests must be stoppedrdquoAnother villager Hirba Aanaji Desai said ldquoWe are deeply concerned over the unprecedented largescale destruction in Kolzar village During a site inspection we were shocked to see that nearly 4 km of forest land had been excavated and quarried We hope that authorities take a serious note as even though it is a private forest it comes in the ESZ and destruction will impact biodiversity and the wildlife corridorrdquoOfficial SpeakVaibhav Borate secretary of the SawantwadindashDodamarg Task Force said ldquoFollowing complaints from villagers the forest department has taken cognisance of the issue and is investigating the matter A task force meeting is scheduled towards the end of the month where the issue will be discussed further and the actions taken will be reviewedrdquoSindhudurg District Collector Trupti Dhodmise said ldquoThe tehsildarrsquos office has received a complaint The land is privately owned and the owners have stated that they were unaware of the tree felling The matter is under investigationrdquoSawantwadi and Dodamarg wildlife corridorThe region is home to a rich diversity of endemic and endangered flora and fauna several of which are protected under Schedule I of the Wildlife Protection Act 1972 and also functions as a crucial wildlife corridor for large mammals such as the endangered tiger and the Asiatic elephant