Chikkamagaluru: Environmentalists have accused the Union govt of creating confusion over the proposed declaration of the Western Ghats as an Ecologically Sensitive Area (ESA), alleging that thousands of public objections have been ignored without acknowledgement.Speaking to TOI, environmentalist Kalkuli Vittal Hegde said more than 10,000 people had sent their objections to the ministry of environment, forest and climate change through registered post. “Not a single person has received an acknowledgement from the ministry,” he alleged.Hegde further claimed that the Centre was “playing with the people of the Western Ghats.” He noted that the govt had informed the Supreme Court in 2014 of its intention to declare the ESA. “Seeking public opinion again is merely an eyewash,” he said.According to Hegde, stakeholders have submitted objections to all six draft notifications issued so far. “Now the govt has issued a seventh draft and is once again seeking public opinion,” he said.He also alleged that authorities were not seriously considering public feedback. “Officials do not even have the courtesy to acknowledge or respond to objections. This shows how much importance they attach to public opinion,” he added.Shivanna, a farmer who said he had submitted objections to four draft notifications, accused the govt of misleading people in the region. He alleged that attempts were being made to weaken the unity of those opposing the proposal. “People cannot continue protesting indefinitely for various reasons, and the Union govt is trying to take advantage of that,” he said.Shivanna pointed out that the latest draft contains a few changes. “The sixth and seventh draft notifications are almost identical. What is the point of seeking public opinion on the same proposal again?” he asked.Like the sixth draft, the new ESA notification allows the Centre to declare the Western Ghats an ESA in a phased manner. The seventh draft states that the proposal will be “taken into consideration” while publishing the final ESA notification after the expiry of 60 days from the date the Gazette notification is made available to the public.The delay in finalising the ESA notification has remained a contentious issue for over a decade, with local communities, farmers and environmental groups repeatedly seeking clarity. The ESA debate dates back to Aug 2011, when the Madhav Gadgil Committee submitted its report recommending that portions of the Western Ghats across six states be declared a protected ecological zone to safeguard the fragile ecosystem.
