Critical Analysis
While poaching threats receive justified attention, a more insidious danger remains virtually unrecognised: the dismemberment of contiguous forests by industrial and commercial projects with Government of India's tacit approval.
Letter to Indian Board for Wildlife
While the threat to India's wildlife from poaching has received justifiable attention, a more insidious and potentially permanent threat remains virtually unrecognised. I refer to the dismemberment of contiguous forests by industrial and commercial projects that have the Government of India's tacit approval.
Destructive Projects Include:
- Mines
- Dams & Canals
- Polluting Industries
- New Highways
- Thermal Plants
- Tourism Projects
- Townships & Resettlement Sites
- Illegal Timber Industries
10,000+
Saw mills operating in Madhya Pradesh
More than half are illegal
40%
Saw mills in Tripura are licensed
60% operate illegally (86 total)
Virtually all commercial use of forests is categorised by planners as 'development'. However, it is the mandate of the Indian Board for Wildlife to draw focus on the hidden, but exceedingly high, cost of such infrastructures of commerce.
Key Recommendation
In your capacity as Chairman of the IBWL it is imperative that you ask for a White Paper to be prepared on the true State of India's Environment, particularly its impending loss of wildlife species and habitats.
"Our permanent infrastructures of survival - rivers, wetlands, grasslands, forests, mountain slopes and coastlines - are losing out to the short-lived infrastructures of commerce. If this trend continues unchecked, we will be forced to confront water famines and food crises of unthinkable dimensions."
Planners currently treat the Sanctuaries and National Parks we wish to protect with scant respect. They believe these to be of little value to the nation other than to house exotic but 'useless' species of plants and animals. These are, in fact, our water banks and genetic vaults... all that stands between India's ecological food security and widespread famines of the kind so common in sub-Saharan Africa.
Current Crisis: Daily Losses
1
Tiger/day
National Animal
1
Elephant/day
2
Leopards/day
+
Rhinos, Lions,
Lesser Cats, Birds
Note: Killed by poachers working with international traders
Call to Action
The actual extinction of India's endangered wildlife species, however, is more likely to come about thanks to the rapacity of developers, than the avarice of poachers.
The enclosed map and its explanatory notes plot selected wildlife areas, highlighting those threatened by commercial projects. The visual is intended merely to underscore the dismemberment of India. The marked projects represent only those that have come to public notice.
Letter Signature
Bittu Sahgal
Member, Indian Board for Wildlife
Editor, Sanctuary Magazine
602, Maker Chambers V, Nariman Point, Mumbai 400 021
Fax: 022-2874380 | Email: bittu@giasbm01.vsnl.net.in
India - Wildlife Hotspots Under Threat
To be read together with the map submitted to IBWL Members during the Twentieth Meeting of the Indian Board for Wildlife - July 11, 1997
Years of timber felling, coupled with indiscriminate road building through Jarawa lands and the resettlement of refugees on rain forest soils has taken a vicious toll of the island ecosystem.
- More timber being extracted today, rather than less
- Plans to introduce exotic fish species
- Red oil palm plantations leaching toxic pesticides on to coral reefs
The Andhra Pradesh State Highways Project threatens several wildlife reserves including Nagarjunasagar Tiger Reserve.
30-40
Tigers in affected habitat
MoEF granted clearance
No monitoring mechanism
- Road passes through reserved forests in Nandyal and Atmakur Range
- Massive bamboo extraction for paper mills
- Several canals and rail lines cut through forested areas
- If habitat dissected, future of Nallamalai tigers is bleak
- No environmental impact analysis conducted
- Seismic zone with several dams planned in Brahmaputra valley
- Each dam will result in destruction of irreplaceable biodiversity
Last home of the one-horned rhino. CITES downlisting of elephant places reserve in even more danger.
Multiple Threats:
- Pesticides: Organochlorines released directly into swamps by tea estates
- Food Chain Destruction: Long-term impact on breeding success
- Monoculture Fisheries: Reducing biodiversity of water bodies, unknown aquatic ecology consequences
- Fund Diversion: Past budgets diverted elsewhere by State Department
World Heritage Site in Danger
Insurgency has virtually wiped out rhinos. Land grabs supported by populist movements further threaten the park.
19 endangered species including:
- Hispid Hare
- Golden Langur
- Pygmy Hog
- Tiger & Elephant
Dalma Sanctuary - World Bank Dam
- ₹1,500 crore Chandil dam (World Bank financed)
- Subarnarekha irrigation canal cuts across sanctuary
- Several thousand trees already cut
- Critical elephant habitat & migratory routes disconnected
Palamau Tiger Reserve - Mining
- Horilong U/G Mine Project seeks 11.92 hectares inside reserve
- DCF asked to redraw boundaries to exclude area
- 794.19 hectares of dry sal forests to be mined
- Area also threatened by Kotku Dam submergence
- State Government lax in enforcing Wildlife Act
Valmiki Tiger Reserve - Railway, Flooding
- Railway embankment built without environmental clearance
- 5,300+ trees lost to flooding from blocked water courses
- New roads and Nepal border bridge threaten sanctuary
- Poaching: forest staff hopelessly outnumbered and outgunned
- Illegal mineral and timber extraction commonplace
Hazaribagh National Park - "1,000 Tigers Ecosystem"
Gir National Park and Lion Sanctuary
- Mining proposal by Ambuja Cements within 5 km of boundary
- Excessive tourism including five-star facility in heart of forest
- Temple complex attempting to regularise encroachment
- Railway takes regular toll of lions (must be closed)
- Girnar forests losing tree cover - ropeway project threatens trees
Marine National Park, Gulf of Kutchh
- Cement factories and Tata chemical plant nearby
- Deadly toxins released into marine ecosystem
- Water discharge 6-10°C higher than ambient sea temperature
Narayan Sarovar Sanctuary
Rann of Kutchh Wild Ass Sanctuary
- Army field firing range
- Deforestation of bets (islands) - food/shelter for wildlife
- Uncontrolled salt works expansion
- Shrimp ponds, chemical factories proliferating
- Narmada canal network will cut animals off from food supply
Dal Lake - Dying Ecosystem
- Lake size reduced by over one-third in past decade (siltation)
- 4,000+ trees cut in Salim Ali National Park for golf course
- Sewage from Srinagar city and houseboats pollutes lake
- Encroachment by people and government agencies
- Red bloom (Eulena rubra) covers vast portion
- Nagin Lake degraded with duckweed in spring
Dachigam National Park - Hangul Deer Crisis
- Government sheep farm & trout hatchery still operate (should be moved)
- Security forces reportedly hunted Hangul till recently
- Armed insurgents had free run 3-4 years ago
- Bears and leopards status unknown (presumed similarly affected)
Kadur Forests, Chikmagalur - Stone Quarrying
Forests denotified in 1992 for large-scale stone quarrying created man-animal conflict. Leopards unable to hunt left forest. Forest Department responded with killing spree. Tiger killed near Nagarhole in March 1997.
Karwar Forest Division - Kaiga Nuclear Plant
Kudremukh National Park - Iron Ore Mining
- Bhadra river badly polluted - waters unavailable downstream
- Kudremukh Iron Ore Company Ltd. resuming at Nellibedu (310 ha)
Sualkadu Block Reserved Forest - Mulki Dam
State violated FC Act, then sought clearance. PCCF stated "No [significance]. But tiger and panther are present."
Eravikullam National Park
Despite Kerala High Court ban on wattle plantations within 3 km, fresh proposal for eucalyptus on vital grasslands has emerged. Critical elephant corridors threatened. Pooyamkutty Dams submergence threatens pachyderms.
Perambikullam Wildlife Sanctuary
- Adirapalli Hydroelectric Project: 23m high dam
- Diverts water through tunnel & penstock pipes
- Affects elephant movements in Vazhachal Forest Division
- One of India's highest elephant density habitats
- Crucial corridor between Perambikulam and Malayattur
Silent Valley National Park
- Saved from hydroelectric project
- Kerala government allowed deforestation of adjacent valleys
- Talk of reviving old hydroelectric project
- Poaching serious problem
- Uncontrolled extraction of medicinal plants/herbs
Bandhavgarh Tiger Reserve
- Sanjay Thermal Power plant dumps flyash into Johila river
- Bandhsagar Dam threatens corridor to Sanjay NP and Mirzapur
- Balco bauxite mining rips apart Maikal range to south
- Coal India disconnects Khetauli-Marjadhgarh corridor to west
- Rampant poaching
- Industrial tourism: Tiger Shows, too many jeeps, urbanisation of Tala
Madhav National Park - Sindh Dam Deception
Panna Tiger Reserve - White Sandstone Mining
- World Bank road widening causes massive siltation into Ken river
- 500+ mines on periphery, none comply with environmental guidelines
Pench Tiger Reserve - Illegal Fishing
Commercial fishing violates Supreme Court orders. 800+ persons entering without ID through 20+ routes (only 300 permitted).
Shastradhara Turtle Habitat, Narmada River
- 35,000+ hectares of forests including tiger/leopard habitat threatened
- Breeding ground destruction affects ecology for kilometers
- Site importance likened to marine turtles in Bhitarkanika
Sitanadi Sanctuary - Wild Buffalo Last Refuge
Bhimashankar Sanctuary - Giant Squirrel Habitat
- Tourism projects in heart of forest threaten arboreal ecology
- Proposed roads through sanctuary
- Development for temple complex pilgrims
Borivli National Park - Mumbai Water Catchment
- Poaching by politically well-connected individuals
- Expanding tourism facilities and temple complex
- Illicit liquor distilling (uses trees as fuel)
Gautala Autaramghat Wildlife Sanctuary
261 sq km sanctuary denotified for commercial development. Supports sloth bear, barking deer, wild boar, nilgai, leopard. Nisarga Mitra Mandal obtained stay (Dec 23, 1996).
Kalsubai-Harishchandragadh Sanctuary - Denotified
Melghat Tiger Reserve
- Chikaldhara Pump Storage project in prime tiger habitat
- 500+ sq km denotified for timber, dam, quarrying, mining
- Sipna and Dolnar rivers reliability threatened
- Tapi river supply to downstream communities at risk
Tadoba Tiger Reserve - Coal Mining
6,548 hectares threatened for Nippon Denro Ispat thermal power coal. Threatens Clonal Teak Seed Orchard (1969, priceless clones). Roads will dissect protected area.
Biodiversity hotspot. Garo Hills already suffering major deforestation destabilization.
- ACC Cement Company limestone mining threatens elephant corridor (Siju Rekwak Sanctuary)
- Uranium mining at Domiasiat: New radiation contamination threat
- Armed timber smugglers working with insurrectionists
Aizwal - Turial Hydroelectric Project
Biodiversity-rich area contiguous with forests harboring clouded leopard, tiger, leopard, elephant.
Dampa Tiger Reserve - Teiri Hydroelectric Project
- Coming up on western part of tiger reserve
- Townships, thousands of laborers, roads, timber, quarrying
- Labour force already deployed without fuelwood alternatives
- Obtaining supplies from tiger reserve (predicted months earlier)
- Local communities jhooming cycles becoming shorter
- Affected: Hoolock gibbons, tiger, panther, clouded leopard
Encroachments primarily by well-connected citizens. Bhatti mines allowed in contravention of wildlife laws.
This forest is one of Delhi's most vital lungs. Restoring its pristinity is crucial to quality of life.
Balukhand Sanctuary - Tourism Mega-Project
₹500 crore project (25+ five-star hotels, commercial complexes, helipads) will irrevocably damage fragile coastal ecosystem. Turtles, horseshoe crabs, wind-break forest at risk.
Chilika Lake
160
Water bird species
Millions of individuals
150+
Dolphins counted
- Tata prawn projects cancelled, but prawn mafia continues threat
- Siltation from upstream deforestation reducing lake size
- Industrial pollution: 40% of brackish fish species from 50 years ago now absent
- Fishing nets and bamboo gheries kill dolphins in Nalaban Bird Sanctuary
Gahirmata Turtle Rookery
- 120 km pipeline for 10 million ton steel plant
- 45m high embankments along Rushikulya River affect Olive Ridley nesting
Jamva Ramgarh Sanctuary
40+ marble mines operate inside sanctuary. Most given permission after sanctuary declared in 1982. State Government track record well below expectation.
Keoladeo Ghana National Park, Bharatpur
- Major pesticide contamination (banned DDT, organochlorines)
- Affecting breeding biology of birds, particularly raptors
- Pesticides enter through water from Ajan Bund
- Industrial tourism: litter, plastic, non-biodegradable garbage threatens water quality
Ranthambhor Tiger Reserve
- Mining, cement factory, ADB-funded roads on border
- Banas river (empties into Chambal) increasingly polluted by industrial effluents
- Virtually no monitoring or control
- Combined with recent poaching may wipe out last remaining tigers
Sariska Tiger Reserve - Industrial-Scale Mining
- Jaipur-Alwar road takes toll, enables poachers to access heart
- Five-star hotels (Birla Group) at Ajabgarh just outside boundary
- Mines and tourism benefit well-connected, while villagers denied fodder/fuel
- Social tensions enhanced
Nilgiris Biosphere Reserve - PUSHEP
- Three protected areas adversely affected including Bandipur Tiger Reserve
- BNHS study: vital elephant corridor already destroyed
- Nilgiri elephant population separated into two sections
- Will lead to genetic decline
- Similar impact on tiger populations expected
- Economic viability now questioned
Kalakad-Mundanthurai Tiger Reserve
Crucial biodiversity vault: tigers, elephants, leopards. Bombay Burmah Trading Corporation commercial estate in heart of sanctuary.
- 10,000+ workers supplied fuelwood illegally from Reserve Forest for decades
- Important shola forests sacrificed violating FC Act
- Legal proceedings launched 1995 (after massive damage)
- Company must desist from activities adversely affecting wildlife
- Examine Land Acquisition Act to take back critical connecting forests
Corbett Tiger Reserve
- Tourism projects proliferated - affecting elephant/tiger movement in periphery
- Poaching at all-time high
- Ganja collection leads villagers to enter Park
- New roads threaten buffer area
- Irrigation department declined to return Kalagadh Complex
- Influx of people seeking land and housing
Though reputed as well protected, park is very fragile. Decades of protection effort could be reversed within few years.
Rajaji National Park - Vital Elephant Corridor
- Chilla Canal: Runs 14 km parallel to Ganges, cuts off elephant migration Motichur-Chilla
- Narrow 1 km corridor still possible to re-establish
- New District Headquarters being set up on border near Haridwar
- Battle between those blaming gujjars/villagers vs. urban demands from Dehra Dun/Haridwar
Action Needed: Move ammo dump, find alternative sites for private land holders
Buxa, Jaldapara and Gorumara - Sankosh Hydro Project
- Most highly endangered species jeopardized: elephants, rhinos (only WB sanctuaries with rhinos), tigers
- Mahananda Sanctuary and Jamduaar Reserve Forest (Golden Langurs) destroyed
- Objective: flushing Calcutta Port - hydrology experts doubt technical viability
- Orange orchards converting natural forests
- Buxa dolomite mining continues unchecked
Sundarbans Tiger Reserve - Inland Waterways
EIA states: "due to dredging activity, a complete change in ecosystem is anticipated"
- "Tiger migration channels disturbed"
- "Increased possibilities of attack by man-eaters"
- "Further pressure on already endangered species"
- Delicate mangrove ecosystem threatened
- One of most secure tiger populations in world at risk
- Prawn cultivators already converted thousands of hectares
Conclusion
"The above examples are only the tip of the iceberg. The death knell of India's wildlife is being heard by those who choose not to ignore the early warning signals."
Systemic Problem
The Ministry of Environment is caught wearing two hats, the larger one being that of a facilitator of development projects rather than that of a protector of India's ecological security.