Sub-section 2 of Section 41 of the Karnataka Forests Act, 1969, prohibits any kind of non-forest activities within 100 mts of the reserve forest area.
In flagrant violation of the rule, permits have been granted to as many as eight sites near the two reserve forest areas in the taluk, thereby affecting the movement of elephants.
On a State government directive, a special team was constituted to probe into illegal stone quarrying on the periphery of reserve forests in the district. The team comprising officers of the Departments of Mines and Geology, Revenue and Forest, conducted a joint survey and noted that illegal quarrying was rampant in areas surrounding the elephant corridor.
The team submitted a report to the district administration, a copy of which is with Deccan Herald, recommending that illegal quarrying be banned in the reserve forest area. The Edeyarahalli-Doddasampige Elephant Corridor connects the Kollegal forest area and Biligiriranganathaswamy Tiger Reserve Forest.
Land encroached
In 2007, the Wildlife Trust of India, an NGO, purchased 23 acres of land encroached upon near the elephant corridor and transferred it to the Forest department.
But now, illegal stone quarrying is rampant on three acres of patta land (survey number 64/3) and four-and-a-half acres (survey number 64/5) at Minya village in Edeyarahalli reserve forest limits.
Similarly, illegal stone quarrying is taking place on two acres of government land (survey number 377/2) in Huttur village. Read the full report here.
Source: K.H. Obalesh, DHNS, Deccan Herald, Chamarajnagar.
