The district-level committee formed to do a reality check of the deemed forest land in Kodagu district will convene its first meeting in a week and is likely to submit a comprehensive report to the government within six months.
The committee chaired by the deputy commissioner comprises of the deputy conservator of forest, deputy director of land records and officers from revenue and forest departments.
In order to verify the report submitted by an experts committee on deemed forest in 2002, the State government has formed district committee in district level, zonal committee in revenue level and state committee in state level.
According to sources, the district committee will conduct a survey in the district and prepare a report on deemed forest scenario in Kodagu. The functioning of the district committee will be supervised by the zonal committee and state committee on a time bound manner and give suggestions as and when required.
What is deemed forest
If a land has the features of forest, where trees are grown outside the purview of government recognised forest land, it is called as deemed forest. The experts committee formed in 2002 had put the deemed forest land figure in the State at 9,94,881 hectare. About 69,205 hectare deemed forest land identified in Kodagu district, also comprises of Bane, Paisari, Kumki Malai, C and D land and plantation.
It all started with the Supreme Court directing all states to provide information about the forest land, during the hearing of Godavarman Thirumalapad case in 1995. As per the order, the Karnataka government formed the first experts committee, which submitted the report to the government on April 2, 1997.
While submitting the report before the apex court, the government stated that it has completed the process of identifying the area which has been officially declared as forest land. The government requested additional time for identifying the forest land which has not been officially declared.
On observing the delay by the Karnataka government in submitting the report, the Central Empowered Committee of the SC took the government to task, following which the government revised the experts committee.
This second committee identified 33,24,854 hectare land as notified forest and 9,94,881 hectare as deemed forest. The committee, in fact, included even the barren forest land as deemed forest. It also included C and D land, Bane and Paisari.
Due to identifying even Paisari land as deemed forest in various districts including Kodagu, the government is neither able to take up various projects in this land, nor it can make sites to be distributed to poor. Even the work on providing basic facilities like construction of road can not be taken up.
In several cases, the revenue land (Paisari) which has been sanctioned to beneficiaries under Akrama Sakrama, is also considered in the list of deemed forest, due to which RTC can not be made in the name of beneficiaries. To solve the impeding problem the new committee has been formed for conducting a joint survey.
source: http://www.deccanherald.com / Deccan Herald / Home> District / by Shrikanth Kallammanavar / Madikeri, DHNS – June 19th, 2014
Kodagu residents oppose the project The three-member Technical Experts’ Committee seen gathering public opinion in Madikeri on Thursday.
Madikeri :
A three members Technical Experts’ Committee visited Kodagu district on Thursday to study the possibilities of finding an alternate route to lay 400 KV hi-tension line from Kozhikode in Kerala to Mysore. This has come up in the backdrop of stern opposition from the people against the electricity line passing through Kodagu district.
The committee members visited the places in and around Maldare where the project is implemented and collected public opinion. Representatives from various organisations, including Viju Biddappa from Maldare, Kaveri Sene President Raghu Machaiah, Convener Ravi Chengappa, K.C. Subbaiah, Basavana Devana Bana Trust President B.C. Nanjappa, Chennayyana Kote Gram Panchayat member Shyam, Coorg Wildlife Society President Colonel C.P. Muthanna and others, shared their opinions.
They all said that thousands of trees will be felled if the line passes through Kodagu. This will have negative impact on the environment, wildlife and coffee growers. Therefore, an alternate route has to be found out for laying the wires, they insisted.
Speaking to reporters after the meeting, Committee Head R.S. Shivakumar Aradhya said that a lot of factors like environment and technical feasibility and project expenditure has to be taken into consideration while finding an alternate route. “We will submit the report to the government within a month. We will visit Kutta and surrounding region on Friday and examine the problem,” he said.
The government formed the Committee chaired by Shivakumar Aradhya, in response to the continuous opposition and protest by villagers and various organisations opposing the project. Forest Department senior officials Ajay Mishra and elephant expert Sukumaran are the other two members of the Committee.
source: http://www.starofmysore.com / Star of Mysore / Home> General News / June 14th, 2014
India has become known for the congested traffic and crowds of the cities. To escape the madness, Indians head to Coorg, a land of lush beauty, traditional food, and—sigh—tranquility.
On a recent family visit to Delhi, with its acrid air and evil traffic, my mother suggested an escape—a long weekend in Coorg, some 1,400 miles away in a tiny corner of the southern Indian state of Karnataka, just north of Kerala. In spite of its unprepossessing size, Coorg, which the British called the Scotland of India, is a region of intense pride and history. Many Indians regard it as a quasi-mythical place, a land of lush hills, temperate climate, martial men, and handsome women. Its ample rain and still-thick forests, not to mention its low population density, make it one of the few remaining Shangri-Las in over-peopled India.
Tyrannical rajahs ruled Coorg until the British, who knew a promising escape from the heat when they saw one, annexed it to the East India Company’s territory in 1834. The British established farms there, recruited the famously valorous Coorg natives for their Imperial mission, and, in 1947, left behind tidy settlements of Victorian-influenced cottages in shades of lavender, rose, and mint, along with graceful plantations of Robusta and Arabica coffee. Coffee flowers smell something like jasmine, and from mid-March to early April, the white blossoms add their perfume to the other scents of the region—orange, pepper, cardamom, vanilla, honey.
While venerable hill stations in other parts of India are overrun with tourists, doughty little Coorg is still putting up a fight to retain its old essence, even as it welcomes visitors with courtly hospitality. Coorg is a fashionable destination for wealthy Indian travelers hungry for places cool and green—not merely in the literal sense, but also in keeping with the eco-alert, Indo-centric new ethos of the country’s intelligentsia. Coorg is not a hippy-strewn, land-locked Goa. Nor is it a more verdant Jaipur, overrun with Bloomingdale’s buyers. It’s a more understated and introspective sort of place that honors its roots. The locals worship their ancestors, and their attachment to family land is almost visceral. Coorg isn’t easy to get to from afar, for which we should be grateful. Bangalore is the nearest international airport, a six-hour drive away. The highway is smooth and hassle-free by Indian standards, until you get close to Coorg, when you hit sinuous roads that wind through hillsides: these can range from bumpy to bone-jarring, and are best tackled at a sedate pace, all the better to take in the landscape.
“India’s cities are so insistently provocative that, for a certain class of Indian, to be under-stimulated has become the ultimate luxury.”
India’s cities are so insistently provocative that, for a certain class of Indian, to be under-stimulated has become the ultimate luxury. For some time now, members of the Indian elite who have no family connection to the place have been quietly buying land in Coorg, building vacation houses in its remote hills and valleys. Once obsessed with gleaming hotel towers and swimming pools in the “foreign” mold, India’s domestic tourists have grown infinitely more sophisticated and, even, jaded. Indians who have “been there, done that” in Sri Lanka, Singapore, and the Swiss Alps want languid escapes from their overscheduled lives. And they are deeply nostalgic for the quiet India—so recently changed—that they remember from childhood vacations.
Enter the Taj Group, with its astute understanding of the needs of the well-heeled and the well-traveled. Their hotel in Coorg, situated near the region’s capital, Madikeri, is called “Vivanta by Taj,” and it is the company’s nimble response to travelers who clamor to get off the beaten track without collapsing from weariness and worry.
With its hotel outside Madikeri, Taj promises “a haven for the curious mind,” dotted with “interpretive nature trails” set in a “model of coexistence.” The Eden theme is coupled with a celebration of modesty that seems to reflect a wider backlash against modern Indian brashness. The property comprises 180 acres of rainforest, and each of the 60-odd cottages and villas offers views of woods, cloud, and vibrant green. The buildings are beautifully unobtrusive, designed to be in hushed harmony with the surroundings. In the evenings, the lighting is subdued, almost apologetic, and this deference to nature is apparent also in the materials used: wood and local stone, the architecture seeking to emulate the Coorg vernacular.
The hotel was built on land carefully surveyed to avoid displacing trees in a rainforest teeming with some 350 species of flora and fauna. Compressed soil from the site was used to make the bricks for the resort. Most of the stone used was sourced from within a 200-mile radius of the hotel’s premises. The interiors of the cottages resemble the sort of understated living room you might find in a gracious Indian home. The roof-tiles are handmade and repurposed from dismantled houses in Tamil
Nadu, Pondicherry, and Andhra Pradesh. “Revived craft” artifacts made by indigenous tribes—like light fixtures fashioned from old-style fish traps—are incorporated into the décor, providing both authentic ambience and employment for local craftsmen. The property’s architect, Pramod Ranjan, aimed for an unobtrusive, minimalist design that allows the organic landscape to outshine the manmade artifacts. That said, the manmade and the natural do converge in a setting of utter glory: the infinity pool in the hotel’s main building, where, immersed in warm water, one can gaze upon a lush green heaven that stretches for miles before the eye.
Traditional food is also “revived with love” at the hotel. Native Coorg cuisine is a delight to savor. It revolves around a few local ingredients, such as Kachampuli (a type of vinegar), pepper, chilies, rice flour, coconut, and Maddu Soppu, a medicinal leaf believed to confer 18 healthful properties, each especially effective if delivered on a particular day of the year. Succulent pork also figures centrally in the local cuisine, along with dishes made from bamboo shoots, wild mushrooms, banana stems, and jackfruit—flavors that have not yet been appropriated by the vacation-industrial complex.
Coorg also offers its share of picturesque anthropology. The Kodavas, the people of Coorg, revere weaponry and maintain a reputation as brave soldiers well represented in India’s wars. They are tall and light-skinned, when compared with other south Indians, and some attribute their appearance to Arab blood. Others contend that Greek mercenaries who came to India with Alexander the Great left their genetic mark in Coorg. At the hotel, however, the staff reflects the variety of modern India: our bartender, whom I tested with the making of a martini, was from Himachal Pradesh, in the far north; the cheerful chatterbox who waited on us at dinner was from Orissa, in the coastal east. But the unmistakable tenor of the place was that of a Coorg bastion, a hotel in the heart of a fabled region, bathed in mist in the morning and alive with the sounds of birds at dusk. A graceful, benign getaway it was, and we wrenched ourselves from it sorrowfully at the end, hating the horror of a return to Delhi.
source: http://www.thedailybeast.com / The Daily Beast / Home> Great Escapes / by Tunku Varadarajan / March 25th, 2014
Kodaimelanadu or Kodagu or Coorg is an hour-long drive from Mysore along winding roads that take you through a collage of colours which explode into shades of greens, browns and yellows. As you squint through the green fabric, plantations of coffee, cardamom and pepper speed by, merging with larger forestscape. The hiss of the tyres accentuate the haunting solitude of the journey; no wonder Coorg is called the Scotland of the East.
Much of Coorg is about coffee and a fair amount of cardamom and pepper. Siddapur district seemed a tree-shadowed coffee estate, dotted with contradictions—a few market places, seedy bars, pork shops and elegant vegetable displays. As we travelled, we grew wiser about coffee: its history, its clandestine entry into India, and the difference between arabica and robusta. The British brought coffee to Coorg. The first estate was established way back in 1850s by an Englishman, John Frawler.
Coorg seems to be made for introverts, there is an overwhelming feeling of seclusion, where from a distance you can spot a coffee pod, but it is difficult to spot your immediate neighbour. It is an immense aviary, and home to nearly a quarter of the bird population of Karnataka. The tour guide seemed to be Coorgi Salim Ali; he knew the names of each and every bird. At times he even imitated their calls perfectly. Every hilly region has at least one well known waterfall, and in Coorg it is Abbey Falls that plunges down, separating some coffee and spice estates to join the river Kaveri. An army of clouds envelope the hill. The walk is enough to give anyone an appettite for the singular flavours of Kodava food. The central piece of Kodava cuisine is meat and rice. I tried the irresistible Pandi curry, a subtle pork dish, cooked well by adding a local fruit, Kanchampali. Dry spices are roasted before grounding them, giving a toasty flavour to the thick curry.
As night falls, the highlands of Kodagu become a magical place. The moon shines brightly and the trees are laden with millions of fireflies, as if decked up for some fat Indian wedding.
In the morning, the mist-laden verdant hills awaited in silence. The Dubare reserve encompasses 50,000 acres and is home to the elephants of the Western Ghats. Majestic rosewood, teak and other hardwood tree species stand around like sentinels. Giant parasitic vines are swathed around large banyans and other trees in a macabre bond. As Hansel and Gretel would’ve felt, the forest kept getting thicker and more enchanting. Below, the river Kaveri, flowed unmindful of the inter-state disputes. Grabbing a coracle, drifting on the green waters and gauging the moods of the river and the pristine surroundings is one way to experience Coorg.
Local myth says the invincible Coorgis descended from Alexander’s Macedonians. “Neither Tipu Sulatan, nor the British could conquer it,” said the guide. The place has a long history of war; the Madikeri fort is a living testimony to that. Built as a mud fort by Mudduraja in the 17th century, it was later rebuilt in granite by Tipu Sultan who renamed the site Jaffarabad. In the north-east corner at the entrance stand two life-size statues of elephants. A church stands in the south-east corner. The fort also houses a prison.
Among the other architectural treasures of Coorg is the Omkareshwara temple built by King Lingaraja in 1820, in a mosque-like style, with an impressive central dome and four minarets, which are surrounded by Basavas, or sacred bulls. On the top of the dome sits a gilded ball with a weathercock. The Raja’s seat is a small pavilion in a garden, offering a view of the green valley below, where it is said the kings of Coorg spent evenings with their consorts. From there, they would’ve seen the melting sun, parrot-green fields and the mountains sleeping in the mist as if time had dawdled here, mesmerised by the languid beauty of Kodagu.
To Reach: Madikeri is the nearest bus station. There are frequent buses from Mysore, Mangalore and Bangalore to Coorg.
To Stay: For luxury, the Orange Country Inn. For an authentic Coorg experience, try a planation home stay.
source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> LifeStyle> Travel / by Aakash Mehrotra / May 29th, 2014
Uyyala Jampala fame Avika Gor is acting in a film titled “Lakshmi Raave Maa Intiki”. Naga Shaurya is the lead actor in this film.
The film is being shot at Coorg now and a melody song, choreographed by Shekar master, has been shot on Avika Gor and Naga Shaurya recently. Giridhar Mamidipally, the producer of the movie, said that the next schedule starts on May 31st at Hyderabad.
Rao Ramesh, Sr. Naresh, Anitha Chowdary, Vennela Kishore, Sapthagiri, Satyam Rajesh etc played the key roles in the film. Nandyala Ravi is making his debut as the director with this film. K.M.Radhakrishna is the music director.
source: http://www.indiaglitz.com / IndiaGlitz / Home> India Glitz Telugu / Friday – May 23rd, 2014
Test your mettle running through over the hills, through the waterfalls, streams, coffee estates and the thick jungles of Kodagu. Coorg Escapade being held on June 1 will give running enthusiasts a chance to blend with nature and fill fresh mountain air in the lungs.
Conceptualized by Next Level Sport and Entertainment, the run will flag off from Chelavara waterfalls. The trail is a scenic loop, which offers magnificent views of Kodagu. The trail offers different elevations, making the run truly challenging. The lowest point is 950 metres and the highest is 1,250 metres. The Run has three categories – The 10K Run, the 2.5K Fun Run and the 10K Relay for corporates and families.
The run was conceptualized with the mission of encouraging and promoting responsible tourism. As a part of this endeavour, the Coorg Escapade will not be using any plastic in the event, keep noise levels to a minimum and no private vehicles will be allowed past the nearest town Cheyandane. A shuttle service will transport participants and audience to and from the venue.
Participants and their families get to experience the rich cultural heritage of Coorg and interact with other runners during the bonfire dinner the 250-year old Nadikerianda Aine Mane (The Ancestral Home).
The first three winners will be awarded a cash prize up to Rs 1.80 lakh along with gift vouchers. The Race Categories and starting time are as follows: 10K Challenge – Anyone above the age of 15 – Start time – 7.15am; 2.5K Fun Run – Anyone above the age of 12 – Start time – 11.30am; 10K Inter Corporate Relay (2.5K X 4 members) – Start time – 10.45 AM and 10K Inter Family Relay (for Coorg Locals only) – Start time – 10.45am.
source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / Home> City> Mangalore / by Stanley Pinto, TNN / May 24th, 2014
On the one hand, greens have been demanding to explore alternative routes to lay 400 kv high tension line between Mysore-Kozhikode, and on the other hand, Power Grid Corporation of India (PGCI) says that the alternative routes were discussed way back in 2009 and they were rejected.
The Members of Kaveri Sene, Coorg Wildlife Society and Kaveri Bachao Andolan have said that felling of trees will have its impact on the bio-diversity and environment of the region. Hence, the project should be kept out of the purview of the Kodagu district.
Power Grid Corporation Chief Manager C D Kishor told Deccan Herald that all the three suggestions put forth by the protesters were discussed and rejected.
The route proposed by the protesters are as follows:
Route 1—Upgrading 220 kv line that provided connectivity between Karnataka and Kerala. Upgrading of the line falls under Bandipura National Park.
After the implementation of Forest Conservation Act 1980, no development work can be initiated inside National Park where tigers habitate.
Hence, the proposal was rejected.
Route 2—Laying electric wire on D-line of Nagarahole National Park.
However, the route was rejected as the width of the D-line is only 15 metre. The width required for laying high-tension wire is 45 metres.
Hence, it would require felling of trees on minimum of 30 meter after the D-line. On an average about 17,515 trees would have been felled if the route was approved.
Hence, both the State and Central governments had rejected the suggestion.
Route3—Underground cable.
The proposal was rejected as it was an uphill task to lay underground cable for 55 kms. To lay underground cable, a separate road will have to constructed to take up repair work in the underground cable.
Present route
At present, the high-tension line will pass through Hunsur, Piriyapattana-Devamacchi forest-Maldare-Hundi-Mayamudi-Bekkesodlur-Nalkeri-Kutta-Kerala.
Delay in work
The length of Mysore-Kozhikode line is 210 kms. The line will pass through 92 kms in Kerala.
The work in Kerala and Mysore has been completed. Owing to the protest by environmentalists, the work was stalled in Kodagu district.
Technical committee
Following the protest, the State government has constituted a technical committee to explore the possible alternative routes.
The committee has been directed to submit report within 15 days.
Kaveri Bachao Andolan Convenor B C Nanjappa said “our concern is environment of the district. We had suggested three alternative routes. If it was not acceptable, then let the technical committee constituted by the government explore an alternative.”
source: http://www.deccanherald.com / Deccan Herald / Home> District / by Srikanth Kallammanavar , Madikeri / DHNS – May 06th, 2014
‘Team comprising police, reps from ULBs to keep tab on use of plastic’
Kodagu Deputy Commissioner Anurag Tiwari has issued an order banning the use of plastic bags and plastic cups with thickness of less than 40 microns that harm the environment.
He has instructed the police department and officials of urban local bodies to impose penalty to those who violate the rules by using the plastic bags of less than 40 microns in any part of the district.
In his order dated March 15, the Deputy Commissioner who is also the Chairman of the District Tourism Development Committee has said that the Kodagu district has sensitive environment and it is inevitable to ban the use of plastic bags to protect the environment.
Further, he has stated that the decision has been taken considering the Environment Protection Act 1986, Wildlife Protection Act 1972, the notification of the Environment and Forest Ministry of the Government of India dated February 4, 2011 and the notification of Karnataka Government dated October 20, 2010.
“A team of officials including those from police department and urban local bodies will be formed to keep a tab on the use of plastic usage. The team will pay surprise visits to shops and inspect them. Plastic bags if found will be seized and shop owners will be penalised,” Tourism Department Assistant Director Phanish has said.
He stressed that the first priority of the district administration is to control the sale of plastic bags.
The team will raid the shops based on suspicion and the team is expected to be formed after Lok Sabha elections.
As a large number of tourists visit Kodagu, instruction boards about the plastic ban will be placed in the entry points of the district. Tourist vehicles will be inspected and plastic bags if found, will be seized, he said.
It could be recalled that the use of plastic plates and cups was completely banned during the Akhila Bharatha 80th Kannada Sahitya Sammelana held at Madikeri in January. The initiative had received overwhelming response from people.
source: http://www.deccanherald.com / Deccan Herald / Home> District / by Srikanth Kallammanavar / DHNS – Madikeri, March 27th, 2014
The works on a temporary project to supply water from Kundamestri is nearing completion. The water from Kundamestri is likely to be supplied to the citizens of Madikeri by the week end.
Sand bunds have been laid to store water. The collected water will be supplied to Kootuhole through pipes. After filtering the water at a Filter house at Stuart Hill, water will be supplied to the citizens.
Madikeri reels under water crisis every year, during summer. The works on Kundamestri project was initiated to mitigate the water crisis. However, owing to delay in release of funds, the works could not be completed. Now, the estimated cost of the project has escalated.
The Kundamestri project is being implemented by the Karnataka Water Supply and Sewage Board (KWSSB). It will take another year to complete the works.
KWSSB Executive Engineer Balachandra expressed confidence of completing the works soon. “The project has been taken up, keeping in mind the development of Madikeri in the next 50 years. When the water level declines in Kootuhole, water will be supplied from Kundamestri to Kootuhole,” he said.
source: http://www.deccanherald.com / Deccan Herald / Home> District / by Srikanth Kallammanavar / Madikeri – DHNS, April 27th, 2014
Senior scientist and expert on apple cultivation from Himachal Pradesh Dr Chiranjit Parmar expressed confidence that in Karnataka, especially Kodagu, apple cultivation will be successful as the weather here is suitable.
Parmar, who was on a State tour, told reporters here on Monday that efforts are on to grow apples in Tumkur, Bangalore, Uppinanagady in Dakshina Kannada and Somwarpet in Kodagu.
He said Karnataka is better than Himachal Pradesh for apples as the growers here will get the yield twice a year compared to the northern state where it is once a year due to snow.
“Since three years, efforts are on to grow apples in Karnataka and it has been successful as the weather is conducive,” he said.
Parmar tasted the apples grown in Sulimlathe of Abbukatte in Somwarpet in the district.
Apple growers of Kodagu C R Shivakumar and Krishna Shetty of Uppinangady accompanied Parmar during his tour.
source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> States> Karnataka / by Express News Service – Madikeri / April 22nd, 2014
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