Six states surrounding Western Ghats push for declaration of region under ESA

A draft notification was issued in October 2018 mentioning the areas to be notified in the ESA. (Source: Wikipedia)

States surrounding the Western Ghats have pushed for the quick declaration of the region as an Ecologically Sensitive Area, in an interaction with Union Minister for Environment, Forests and Climate Change Prakash Javadekar.

Chief Ministers, cabinet ministers and state government officers of six states – Kerala, Karnataka, Goa, Maharashtra, Gujarat and Tamil Nadu made this appeal to Javadekar in a video conference to discuss issues relating to notification of Ecologically Sensitive Area (ESA) pertaining to Western Ghats.

“The interaction was fruitful as every state expressed its desire to expedite early notification while protecting interests of ecology and environment,‘‘ Javadekar said.

To conserve and protect the bio diversity of Western Ghats while allowing for sustainable and inclusive development of the region, the government had constituted a High Level Working Group under the Chairmanship of Dr. Kasturirangan.

The Committee had identified geographical areas falling in the six States of Kerala, Karnataka, Goa, Maharashtra, Gujarat and Tamil Nadu as Ecologically Sensitive Areas. A draft notification was issued in October 2018 mentioning the areas to be notified in the ESA.

The states were of unanimous view that there is a need to ensure protection of the western Ghats. However, the states expressed their views as regards activities and extent of area mentioned in the said notification. It was decided that state specific issues shall be further deliberated so as to arrive at a consensus on the issue. The states expressed their desire to expedite early notification while protecting interest of ecology and environment.