{"id":126412,"date":"2026-09-27T10:54:12","date_gmt":"2026-09-27T05:24:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/?p=126412"},"modified":"2026-09-27T12:58:44","modified_gmt":"2026-09-27T07:28:44","slug":"western-ghats-esa","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/western-ghats-esa\/","title":{"rendered":"Western Ghats ESA: Why Karnataka Opposes the Kasturirangan Report"},"content":{"rendered":"<h2><b>Western Ghats ESA Latest News<\/b><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Recently, the Karnataka Legislature unanimously passed a resolution <\/span><b>rejecting<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> the <\/span><b><i>K. Kasturirangan Committee report<\/i><\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> on the Western Ghats in its current form.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">This came in response to the seventh draft, published in July 2026, by the Ministry of Environment, Ecology and Climate Change, proposing to declare parts of the Western Ghats as an Ecologically Sensitive Area (ESA). The draft gave states a 60-day window to file objections.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">This marks the <\/span><b>seventh time<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> Karnataka has rejected the draft since it was first published in 2014.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Successive governments have acknowledged the ecological importance of the Western Ghats but have repeatedly flagged the ESA&#8217;s impact on lives and livelihoods.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Of the six Western Ghats states, Karnataka has the largest area proposed for ESA notification, spread across 10 districts.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2><b>Background: Kasturirangan Report<\/b><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Space scientist K. Kasturirangan chaired the High Level Working Group (HLWG), tasked with reviewing the earlier Western Ghats Ecology Expert Panel (WGEEP) report by Prof. Madhav Gadgil.<\/span>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"2\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">WGEEP (Gadgil Committee): Submitted its report in 2011.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">It was also tasked to recommend fresh protective measures for the Western Ghats \u2014 recognised by UNESCO as one of the world&#8217;s ecological hotspots.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Set up in 2012, HLWG submitted recommendations in 2013. Of the 1.64 lakh sq. km Western Ghats area, the Kasturirangan Committee recommended declaring 59,940 sq. km \u2014 covering 4,156 villages across six states \u2014 as ESA.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2><b>How Much Area Is Involved, State-Wise<\/b><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The committee identified natural landscape covering about <\/span><b>41% of the Western Ghats<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, of which <\/span><b>37% (\u224859,940 sq. km) was biologically rich<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, with low fragmentation, low population density, and containing protected areas, World Heritage Sites, and tiger\/elephant corridors.<\/span><\/li>\n<li aria-level=\"1\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/vajiramias.sgp1.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/wp\/current-affairs\/2026\/09\/27085753\/Original-State-wise-area.jpg\" alt=\"Original State-wise area\" title=\"Original State-wise area\" class=\"my-image my-image-size-full my-image-align-none\" style=\"width: auto; height: 308px;\" \/><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3><b>Current Status<\/b><\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The area proposed for notification has <\/span><b>reduced to 56,825 sq. km,<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> mainly because Kerala conducted a ground survey and brought its area down to 9,993 sq. km.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Meanwhile, the number of villages has increased in Maharashtra and Goa, but decreased in Karnataka.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The latest draft covers 4,402 villages in total. Final area demarcation <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">depends on state government recommendations, stakeholder views, and the ESA Expert Committee<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2><b>Key Recommendations of the Report<\/b><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The Kasturirangan Committee proposes a mix of <\/span><b>outright bans<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> and <\/span><b>regulated activities<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">:<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Banned entirely:<\/b>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"2\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Mining, quarrying, and sand extraction<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"2\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Setting up red-category industries<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"2\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Thermal power plants<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"2\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Construction of buildings beyond 20,000 sq. metres<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"2\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Township and area development projects<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Regulated (not banned):<\/b>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"2\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Infrastructure and development projects \u2014 subject to environmental clearances<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"2\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Hydroelectricity projects \u2014 allowed with conditions<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"2\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Any project within <\/span><b>10 km<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> of the ESA requiring clearance \u2014 regulated under the <\/span><b>EIA Notification, 2006<\/b><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The report also recommends financial incentives for &#8220;Green Growth&#8221; in the region and a decision-support and monitoring centre.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2><b>Kasturirangan vs Gadgil: The Key Difference<\/b><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li aria-level=\"1\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/vajiramias.sgp1.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/wp\/current-affairs\/2026\/09\/27085722\/Kasturirangan-vs-Gadgil.jpg\" alt=\"Kasturirangan vs Gadgil\" title=\"Kasturirangan vs Gadgil\" class=\"my-image my-image-size-full my-image-align-none\" style=\"width: auto; height: 244px;\" \/><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The Gadgil approach was broader and more stringent; the Kasturirangan approach is narrower but still contentious in the areas it does cover.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2><b>Karnataka&#8217;s Specific Objections<\/b><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Scope should be narrower:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> ESA should cover only notified forest areas and other forest areas \u2014 not plantations, agriculture\/horticulture fields, or residential and public areas.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Methodology flaw:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> Areas were demarcated using satellite data, not a joint physical survey.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Land classification gap:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> No accurate bifurcation exists between revenue and forest land.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>No livelihood alternatives:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> The draft provides no reference to alternative livelihood arrangements for affected people.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Unaddressed legal categories:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> Issues like Bagair Hukum (unauthorised cultivation claims), forest rights, deemed forest status, land grants, and pending legal appeals need examination.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Village-level objection:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> Karnataka opposes including <\/span><b>entire villages<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> under ESA merely because one-fifth of the village area might be forest.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2><b>Karnataka&#8217;s Way Forward<\/b><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Both Houses of the Karnataka Legislature have:<\/span>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"2\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Sought <\/span><b>one year<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> to conduct a <\/span><b>physical survey<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> of the area.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"2\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Demanded that Karnataka&#8217;s portion of the ESA <\/span><b>not be finalised<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> until this survey is complete.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"2\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Announced a <\/span><b>high-level committee headed by a retired judge<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, comprising all stakeholders, to review the report&#8217;s shortcomings and recommend modifications.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Cutting across party lines, legislators have urged the government to follow the <\/span><b>&#8220;Keralam model&#8221;<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> \u2014 where physical verification was conducted on the ground and submitted to the Centre, resulting in a reduced ESA footprint for that state.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><b>Source:<\/b> <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.thehindu.com\/news\/national\/karnataka\/what-is-karnatakas-objection-to-the-esa-explained\/article71512650.ece\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">TH<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Karnataka opposes Western Ghats ESA proposals over land classification, livelihoods, satellite mapping and the need for physical surveys.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":18,"featured_media":126442,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[18],"tags":[60,22,59,8273],"class_list":["post-126412","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-upsc-mains-current-affairs","tag-mains-articles","tag-upsc-current-affairs","tag-upsc-mains-current-affairs","tag-western-ghats-esa","no-featured-image-padding"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/126412","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/18"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=126412"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/126412\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":126443,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/126412\/revisions\/126443"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/126442"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=126412"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=126412"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=126412"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}