‘Bhimashankar tribal people safe from eco-sensitive tag’

PUNE: The Junnar division of the state forest department said on Tuesday that the central government order declaring Bhimashankar wildlife sanctuary and surrounding areas as eco-sensitive zone will not affect the livelihood of tribal communities in the area.
The declaration by the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC) came on August 5, which notified Bhimashankar, encompassing parts of three districts — Pune, Thane, and Raigad — and covering around 101 square km, as eco-sensitive zone.Environmentalists welcomed the move owing to vanishing forest cover in the region and increasing conflict between human and wildlife.
Declaring a region eco-sensitive prohibits a set of activities within the protected area or in an area within ten km of its boundary.
These activities are commercial mining and quarrying, new encroachments or regularising them, releasing untreated effluents into rivers or on land, and setting up of hydroelectric projects and polluting industries.
Eco-tourism facilities are allowed only if they are temporary in nature, such as tents or prefabricated structures. Permanent hotels and resorts are not allowed within the protected zone.
Tribal communities living in the area said that they were not consulted regarding their concerns for such a notification, including potential loss of livelihood, and a possible erosion of their rights as notified under the Forest Rights Act. The 2008 law was enacted to ensure tribal communities living in notified forested areas are able to gather forest produce, engage in farming activities and continue to live in the area.
“We recognise that there are apprehensions among tribal communities in scheduled areas and panchayats in the Bhimashankar region about their livelihood and forest rights. We want to assure those communities that none of their rights will be affected in any way. Under the Forest Rights Act, they will be able to live in the area, they can farm on the land and continue to gather forest produce,” said Jayaramegowda R, deputy conservator of forest, Junnar.
There are certain restrictions on setting up commercial establishments, but if they are for bonafide livelihood purpose, there are no issues with that either. A lot of these communities depend on eco-tourism, and facilities such as tents or small eateries can be set up using temporary materials or prefabricated structures,” he added.