Concern over depletion of forest land

Friday, June 19, 2009

Green cover in the Eastern suburbs has been shrinking rapidly over the last few decades. Something has to be done urgently, feel environmentalists

The buildings are getting taller, roads are getting wider and the trees are vanishing near the forest land near the area of Bhandup, Mulund and As a result of this, the area of forest is decreasing everyday, according to nature lovers. Says Sunish Subramanian, founder secretary and animal welfare officer from PAWS, "In the past few years the forest cover has depleted at a fast rate. There is large scale urbanisation and cutting of trees in the area." Adds Arvind Singh, resident of Bhandup, "I shifted to this area 15 years back and the rapid construction activity has changed the area totally with forest area shrinking each passing day."
The forest cover in this area is shrinking rapidly according to a survey done by Ministry of Environment. The urbanisation of Malad, Bhandup, Vikhroli and on the fringes of the Sanjay Gandhi National Park (SGNP) has also seen the buffer zone vanishing.

This buffer zone, though not a protected forest, was an extension of the park. "The areas around the forests are seeing rapid urbanisation. More importantly, the buffer zone is lost. This has led to a decrease in grazing areas, which has a direct impact on the herbivores," said Deputy Conservator of Forest (DCF) Dilip Gujar.

According to PN Munde, Conservator of Forest, "Also the road widening in the area, though an important aspect of infrastructure development, has disturbed the natural animal corridors and their moving in the forest land and if by mistake they venture on roads they get killed. Also with increased illegal tree-cutting adding to the depletion of forest cover, SGNP has approached the Mumbai Metropolitan Regional Development Authority (MMRDA) to fund its protection and conservation plan but till date things have not been finalized."

Environmentalists have angrily denounced the state government for spending crores of rupees on plantation drives. Also they have projected that by 2011 the green cover in the entire suburbs will be reduced by 40 per cent.

'For the government, it is only the votes of those encroachers that count. If the government was so serious about greenery, why is it not encouraging the encroachers from taking up the alternate homes provided as per the High Court order. Of the 63,000 'tribals' living in forest land, only 12,000 tribals have paid the amount so far for getting the pitches,'' said a senior environmentalist.

The depleting forest cover is also responsible for the monkey menace in the area. Says Nita Chitale, resident of Mulund colony, "The depleting forest cover around Mulund has given rise to this man-animal conflict. Monkeys resort to venturing towards human settlements in absence of food in their natural habitat."

Concludes Subramanian, "In order to save and protect the depleting forest cover in the area, the government should consider the enforcement of mandatory plantation for the residents by earmarking open spaces in the two wards for the purpose."