Forest dept reclaims 7 acres of encroached Turahalli woodland

Bengaluru: The Bengaluru division of the Forest Department on Wednesday reclaimed over seven acres of land, valued at Rs 60 crore, in the Turahalli reserve forest.

The land has been encroached by the head of a religious organisation for more than six years, despite eviction orders.

In an early morning operation, N Raveendra Kumar, Deputy Conservator of Forests, Bengaluru Urban, along with Assistant Conservator of Forests (ACF) Suresh and Range Forest Officer (RFO) Govindaraj, razed structures on the contested land, spanning various survey numbers in south Bengaluru’s BM Kaval and Mailsandra villages.

The action followed Forest, Ecology, and Environment Minister Eshwar B Khandre's directive to recover encroached forests near urban areas.

Regarding the operation, Khandre said land prices are surging and vested interests are encroaching precious forest areas near urban areas. “The department is responsible for safeguarding forests and the environment,” he said. “I have instructed officials to recover land where eviction orders have been issued.”

In 2017, the ACF, Bengaluru South sub-division, issued eviction orders to Madhusudhananandapuri Swami, the head of Omkar Ashram in Kengeri, to vacate 8 acres 12 guntas of land. Of this, 7 acres and 17 guntas lay in the buffer zone, and the remainder was within the core area of the Turahalli Reserve Forest.

Swami contested the eviction, claiming that the land was not forested, and the buffer zone had been decided without a joint survey. He alleged that the RFO reached conclusions without conducting a joint survey.

However, the RFO in Kaggalipura produced a government notification declaring the land parcels as state forest with supporting sketches. The RFO highlighted the construction of a building in violation of forest regulations causing environmental damage, asking the encroacher to pay Rs 24.27 lakh.

The Forest Department's eviction order in 2017 followed a high-level committee report on encroachments, coupled with a joint survey revealing the extent of the encroachment.

On December 29, SS Lingaraja, the then Chief Conservator of Forest, Bengaluru Circle, dismissed the swami's appeal after verifying documents. 

"The appellant has also constructed a building in violation of the forest regulations and causing damage to the natural forest," the order noted, directing officials to recover the forested area.