Centre’s eco list ignores Maharashtra tiger corridor

In a notification released recently by the Centre declaring 17,340 sq km of the Western Ghats in Maharashtra eco-sensitive, the government has left out an entire taluka. The Dodamarg taluka, which finds no mention in the list, houses the Dodamarg-Sawantwadi wildlife corridor, also known as a tiger corridor.

In the state’s share of the Western Ghats, the Dodamarg taluka has one of the richest bio-diversity in the belt. It connects Anshi Dandeli and Bhimgad sanctuaries in Goa with Radhanagari sanctuary in Maharashtra.

The dense rain forest houses animals such as tigers, elephants, leopards, pangolins, sloth bears, civets and state animal — the Giant Malabar Squirrel.

Experts said not getting the protective tag of being an ecologically sensitive area could ring a knell for this corridor.

“Tigers and especially elephants frequent the Dodamarg-Sawantwadi corridor and it is important for the area to be protected so that both the green cover and the rich wildlife in the area are not harmed by mining and other human activities in the vicinity,” said Stalin D, an environmentalist. Kalane mines, which is situated near the corridor, has reportedly been triggering disturbances among the wildlife in the region. “Thousands of dumpers from the Kalane mines move in and out of the area. This scares away animals from the region, thereby causing loss of wildlife in the area,” said Mr Stalin.

Apart from the loss of habitat, intruding into the corridor would also result in increased instances of man-animal conflicts, he said. “Animals such as tigers are extremely territorial. One male tiger requires more than 20 sq km for itself. If human activity in this area increases, not only will it displace the tigers from their territories, but it will also bring them in closer contact with humans thus increasing the chances of conflict,” said Mr Stalin.

As the experts put it, the inclusion of the wildlife corridor in the list of eco-sensitive areas would have protected it from further damage and paved the way for more efforts to save it from being destroyed by human activity.

The draft notification listing the eco-sensitive areas was issued by the ministry of environment on September 4 and the ministry has invited objections and suggestions from the public within the next 60 days.