Goa government ignored UNESCO on Western Ghats heritage status
KERI/GOA: The apathy of the Goa government has been responsible for five sites in the Western Ghats region of Goa missing out on being included among world heritage sites.
Already, a cluster of 39 sites from Maharashtra, Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu has been inscribed in the heritage list. However, four wildlife sanctuaries and one national park of Goa has missed this year's opportunity of getting world heritage status.
UNESCO delegation members of government of India, the MOEF, had asked Goa for its participation prior to India submitting the proposal to the World Heritage Committee in February, 2010.
The Goa government neither concurred with the application to UNESCO, nor did it supply any information on Goa's protected areas of Mhadei, Bhagavan Mahavir, Netravali and Cotigao to the MOEF.
On September 15, 2011, not a single official from Goa attended the meeting between the delegates and the co-coordinating agencies held in Banglore. On June 28, 2011, the then Union minister of Environment and Forests, Jairam Ramesh, who has led India's nomination process at UNESCO, wrote a letter to the Goa chief minister asking him to take immediate steps on submitting a proposal for the Mhadei Wildlife Sanctuary (WLS) to be brought under the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA).
It was one of the last things the minister did before moving onto the Union ministry of Rural Development.
As per India's Forest Report of 2011, Goa has one National Park at Mollem in Dharbandora taluka with 107 sq km area and six wildlife sanctuaries covering an area of 648 sq km a total of 755sq km area constituting 61.68% of the recorded forest area and 20.4% of the geographical area of the state as under protected area.
The forest cover in the state, based on interpretation of satellite data of February 2009 is 2,212sq km which is 59.94% of the state's geographical area.
In terms of forest canopy density, the state has 543 sq km area under very dense forests, 585sq km area under moderately dense forests and 1,091sq km area under open forests.
Out of six wildlife sanctuaries, Bondla Wildlife Sanctuary is not inside the Western Ghats region of Goa. However, the rest of the four wildlife sanctuaries and one national park with the total protected are of 745.10sq km are lying in the Western Ghats.
Amrutsingh, president of Animal Rescue Squad, said, "It is indeed painful for us that our Western Ghats region is not given a heritage tag, when the region has areas rich in biological wealth."
Goa is bestowed with a relatively rich floristic diversity. Late V D Vartak in 1966 in his 'Flora of Gomantak' has recorded a total of 1,512 species of plants over an area of 3,282sq km. Wildlife International, Cambridge, has officially classified Goa's area as one of the endemic bird areas of the world.
The sections of the Western Ghats that lie within Goa are one of the richest reservoirs of biodiversity, reflecting a complexity of plants, animals and bird life.
Ramesh Gauns, environmentalist from Bicholim, said, "Goa's Sahyadri is an extremely important source of fresh water for people. The legal protection of the green cover has facilitated and sufficed the increasing demand for fresh water. By inscribing the region in the World Heritage list, our efforts to protect and conserve the region will be consolidated."
The officials from Goa's forest department said, "We are making our best efforts to get Goa's sites in the Ghats a World Heritage status. However, final decision in this matter lies with Goa government."
- Courtesy: The Times of India
KERI/GOA: The apathy of the Goa government has been responsible for five sites in the Western Ghats region of Goa missing out on being included among world heritage sites.
Already, a cluster of 39 sites from Maharashtra, Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu has been inscribed in the heritage list. However, four wildlife sanctuaries and one national park of Goa has missed this year's opportunity of getting world heritage status.
The Goa government neither concurred with the application to UNESCO, nor did it supply any information on Goa's protected areas of Mhadei, Bhagavan Mahavir, Netravali and Cotigao to the MOEF.
As per India's Forest Report of 2011, Goa has one National Park at Mollem in Dharbandora taluka with 107 sq km area and six wildlife sanctuaries covering an area of 648 sq km a total of 755sq km area constituting 61.68% of the recorded forest area and 20.4% of the geographical area of the state as under protected area.
The forest cover in the state, based on interpretation of satellite data of February 2009 is 2,212sq km which is 59.94% of the state's geographical area.
In terms of forest canopy density, the state has 543 sq km area under very dense forests, 585sq km area under moderately dense forests and 1,091sq km area under open forests.
Amrutsingh, president of Animal Rescue Squad, said, "It is indeed painful for us that our Western Ghats region is not given a heritage tag, when the region has areas rich in biological wealth."
The sections of the Western Ghats that lie within Goa are one of the richest reservoirs of biodiversity, reflecting a complexity of plants, animals and bird life.
Ramesh Gauns, environmentalist from Bicholim, said, "Goa's Sahyadri is an extremely important source of fresh water for people. The legal protection of the green cover has facilitated and sufficed the increasing demand for fresh water. By inscribing the region in the World Heritage list, our efforts to protect and conserve the region will be consolidated."
The officials from Goa's forest department said, "We are making our best efforts to get Goa's sites in the Ghats a World Heritage status. However, final decision in this matter lies with Goa government."
- Courtesy: The Times of India
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