Shivamogga: The local people are confronting the district administration here for allowing stone quarrying in the Western Ghats which is ecologically fragile. Even though the forest department had prohibited all kinds of mining in the area, the state government had allowed private undertakings to mine stones in the Western Ghats.
The government has permitted stone mining in four of places-Hosanagar taluk’s Hunja village near the famous Hombuja temple in the deep forests.
The area is notified as protected area by the forest department. The area has about six lakes and various other small streams. One kilometer from this area is the source of origin of Billeshwara Kumudvati river. In the valley below, there are hundreds of acres of plantations and fields. Shetty village sanctuary is just 4 km away.
The area is also earthquake prone. The Chakra–Varahi, Savehakkuand and Mani reservoir areas have already witnessed three earthquakes and landslides in this month. The Indian Institute of Science has prohibited all kinds of mining activities in the source of origin of the rivers.
The Huncha Grama Bhoomi Samrakshana Samiti Convener Nagendra said that in the Hosanagara Taluk’s Huncha Village, stone quarrying is about to start. The villagers have stopped the JCBs that came to dig the earth for quarrying. The villagers are ready to give their life to save their forests.
This area was notified as forest even before 2010. The forest department has submitted a report against mining in the area in 2017. Earlier attempts to mine the area illegally was stopped by the locals. The district administration had revoked its order for iron ore mining owing to the locals’ protests in the nearby Karakadu area.
The locals are continuing their vigil against the attempts by the government authorities to mine the area.
