Heavy footprints of unsustainable tourism in the Western Ghats

With the state government not conducting ‘carrying capacity’ studies at tourist places in the districts of Kodagu, Chikkamagaluru, Hassan, Shivamogga, Uttara Kannada, Dakshina Kannada, Belagavi, Udupi, Mysuru and Chamarajanagar, environmentalists say the intensity of the natural disasters that Karnataka is witnessing will get worse.

Hubballi: Ten years ago, the 15 acres of grassland at enchanting Agumbe, a tiny village in the Western Ghats, offered a perfect place for researcher Deeraj Aithal to study the life cycle of the yellow-wattled lapwing, a grassland bird that lays its eggs on the ground. The undisturbed habitat at the grassland of Agumbe used to attract birds and wild animals from the neighbouring reserve forest. But today, the entire place has seen a turn for the worse.

“The grassland has been completely ruined. Hardly any lapwings nest here now, due to the ‘off-roading’ that tourists engage in when they visit the area. Broken liquor bottles, leftover food and plastic covers dumped by neighbouring homestays and hotels have turned this important habitat into a breeding place for feral dogs,” says Deeraj, a former researcher at Agumbe Rainforest Research Station. Visitors also tend to make their way to waterfalls deep in the forests, to which access is generally prohibited. 

A decade ago, there was only Dodda Mane, a century-old home where portions of R K Narayan’s Malgudi Days were shot by filmmaker Shankar Nag. Today, the village that spans three sq km has at least seven homestays, five multi-cuisine restaurants and hotels catering to hundreds of tourists. 

The flux in visitors to Agumbe has led to mushrooming of homestays on private lands, right next to reserve forest areas and protected forests. This is not only exerting pressure on the limited civic amenities at the village, but is also threatening the rich biodiversity of the area. In addition, landslips have been reported in the ghat section, some 14 km from the village, the most recent one having occurred on July 15. Landslips are attributed to  the widening of the road. Agumbe, once the highest rainfall receiving station, now suffers from a water crisis during summer.

“Unregulated tourism is adversely impacting the fragile ecosystem at Agumbe. Today we have lost the grassland, tomorrow we may lose the habitats of king cobras and other endangered species that are thriving here,” says Deeraj.

Agumbe is just one example of the havoc that unregulated tourism is wreaking in the Western Ghats. With the state government not conducting ‘carrying capacity’ studies at tourist places in the districts of Kodagu, Chikkamagaluru, Hassan, Shivamogga, Uttara Kannada, Dakshina Kannada, Belagavi, Udupi, Mysuru and Chamarajanagar, environmentalists say the intensity of the natural disasters that Karnataka is witnessing will only get worse.

Girish D V, a member of the Chikkamagaluru-based NGO Wildcat C, says scientific study of carrying capacity is very essential to understand if the site is capable of holding so many tourists at a time. “Carrying capacity studies can assess the impact of construction of resorts, new civic structures, availability of water sources to sustain the projected tourist inflow, roads, power lines, soil erosion, diversion of streams, extraction of groundwater, waste generation and handling, and pollution that can be caused at tourist destinations that are eco-sensitive,” Girish says.

The National Green Tribunal (NGT), while dismissing his petition for carrying capacity studies to be conducted in Chikkamagaluru and other places, instructed the Ministry of Urban Development, Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC) and corresponding authorities in all states to conduct a study to assess carrying capacity of tourist places in ecologically sensitive areas, given that Article 21 of the Constitution states that the very basis for development stands on the principle of sustainable development.

The principal bench of the NGT at New Delhi had also asked the MoEFCC for a report by April 2019. No action has been taken in this regard by the state, says Girish.

Popular places like Mullayanagiri, Baba Budangiri and Devaramane in Chikkamagaluru district are overexploited due to tourism. If immediate measures are not taken these hills can witness catastrophic tragedies, Girish adds. The impact of unregulated tourism is evident in many places in Chikkamagaluru, where landslides and landslips are becoming a regular affair. Not only have migratory and native birds started avoiding certain patches in the district, there has also been an increase in instances  of wild animals being run over. Girish believes a science-based tourism policy can present a win-win situation for both the environment and humans.

New measures

Several environmentalists see the recent note issued by Karnataka Forest Minister Eshwar Khandre on “clearing forest areas of encroachments” as a step in the right direction, to reclaim forests and prevent natural calamities. However, while the intention is considered positive, experts point out there are practical problems, including political ramifications, judicial process, question of livelihoods for displaced persons and the impact it could have on the tourism sector as a whole.

“It is good, but easier said than done,” says Praveen Bhargav, a former member of the National Board for Wildlife.

“Courts have always come down heavily against forest encroachments. There are several verdicts from the Supreme Court and High Court to clear forest encroachments. Yet, precious little has been done on the ground. Vicious cycles of ‘Akrama’ and ‘Sakrama’ have continued under successive governments, demoralising forest staff. Whether the forest minister will be able to convince elected representatives to ensure implementation this time around remains to be seen,” he says.

According to an affidavit submitted by the Additional Principal Chief Conservator of Forest (Land records) to the Karnataka High Court in 2023, nearly 2.30 lakh acres of forest land has been encroached in Karnataka. Of this, about 25,767 acres of land was encroached after 2015, when a government order exempted clearing encroachments of less than three acres of land that were encroached before 2014 for “livelihood” purpose (mostly cultivation). 

Addressing media persons recently, Khandre claimed that his department had recently cleared encroachments from over 2,000 acres officially (after issuing a notice under section 64A of the Karnataka Forest Act, 1963), and unofficially (without issuing notices) from more than 10,000 acres.

Speaking to DH, Khandre says encroachment and eviction is an unending process, where people tend to encroach unprotected areas of forest, while officials have been clearing them on priority basis. “As it is an unending process, we are unable to get an exact number of the total forest area being encroached,” he adds.

Officials at Aranya Bhavan say that they do not discriminate between forest land encroached for agriculture purposes or for building tourist amenities like homestays, resorts and others. 

District-level officials at the tourism department estimate that only a miniscule area of total forest land is encroached, as the majority of homestays are being run in ancestral buildings or in revenue land next to forest areas. Documents also show that more than 50% of forest encroachments that were encroached before 2014, are less than three acres, and a majority of them are being used for cultivation purposes.

The industry

The responsibility of regulating tourism is not just limited to the forest department, but extends to several departments and local bodies. Gram panchayats, zilla panchayats, urban local bodies and others make decisions on issuing permissions to start homestays or resorts. District tourism committees, headed by respective deputy commissioners and comprised of district tourism department officials, authorise them based on inputs received from local bodies or spot inspections. The police department also needs to give a no-objection certificate.

Environmentalists are not entirely against tourism, an industry that generates one of the highest revenues and number of jobs in the country. However, reckless tourism comes with irreversible consequences.

For instance, take Kodagu, one of the most sought-after holiday destinations in Karnataka for its pleasing weather, breathtaking views and cultural diversity. Locals and environmentalists point out that certain areas in the district have unfortunately been overexploited.

According to Kodagu Tourism Deputy Director Anitha Bhaskar, the district received more than 47 lakh tourists this year; nearly six lakh more visitors than last year.

There is greater scope for tourism in the district, as southern Kodagu is still untouched, she says.“Kodagu ranks 19th in terms of attracting tourists at national level. Currently, the majority of the tourists are visiting only one part of Kodagu. There is so much cultural and natural diversity in the district. If we put a certain procedural system in place, we can manage more tourists,” she says.

However, this is yet to be scientifically verified. Anitha concedes that they have not done any carrying capacity study for the district. 

At present, there are more than 4,000 homestays across the district, out of which only 2,650 have registered with the district administration.

“Illegal resorts and homestays have come up by cutting hills and green cover. To decongest heavy traffic, we are widening roads by unscientifically cutting hills and felling trees,” says Madikeri-based environmentalist Thammu Poovayya. The local administration has not put in place mechanisms to address the solid waste generated at tourist spots. “The liquid waste generated by these homestays and resorts are polluting the water of the Cauvery,” he adds.

A majority of homestay owners blam “outsiders” and corporate houses for disturbing the tranquillity of Kodagu. “Not being able to cope with the erratic monsoon that impacts the coffee cultivation, a majority of Kodavas are selling their lands and settling in Bengaluru and other cities. Non-locals, who buy these lands, do not have much understanding of the fragility of land and are destroying the landscape with their profit motives,” says Sandesh Somanna, owner of a homestay.  

The ecotourism trap

In 2007, the Karnataka government came up with the concept of the ‘Athithi Homestay project’ to promote ecotourism and introduce local culture and cuisines to visitors. Unfortunately, at several tourist destinations, the set guidelines are being violated. The sale of liquor, playing loud music, accommodating more than the permitted number are common occurrences.

Hassan has more than 300 unauthorised homestays, and the majority of them are in ecologically sensitive Sakaleshpur and Belur taluks. Sources in the forest department inform DH that the highest number of resorts and homestays encroaching forest areas are in this district. 

Kumaraswamy, the president of Sakleshpur Homestays Owners’ Association denies this claim. “Homestays and resorts are being used as scapegoats by officials to hide their failures. Show us one instance of natural calamity striking in Hassan due to tourism infrastructure,” he says. The construction of the national highway on Shiradi Ghat, drawing of huge pipelines for implantation of the Yetthinahole drinking water project and the development of three power projects in ecologically sensitive areas is what has resulted in landslides in Sakleshpur and surrounding areas, he says.

“None of the homestay buildings in Sakleshpur are within the reserve forest. Owners might have encroached forest land for cultivating coffee or for other purposes long before. One of the reasons for encroachment is the lack of proper demarcation of forest boundary,” he says.

The problem of blurred boundaries — lack of proper demarcation, non-availability of survey numbers and unclear description of boundaries — is hurting the cause of both revenue and forest department officials. This is not just limited to Hassan but is also common in other parts of the state.

Lack of regulation

Wildlife activist Giridhar Kulkarni gives the example of the Kali Tiger Reserve (KTR), which is witnessing severe stress from tourist activities. “There is no eco-sensitive zone notified around KTR, resulting in several homestays and resorts coming up right next to core and buffer zones, especially within the administrative limits of Haliyal Division,” he says. Many resorts, and homestays are misusing forest roads to connect to their properties, although there are stringent rules against this, he adds. 

Kulkarni also points out that tourism and revenue departments have failed to act against illegal establishments. 

Woodway Homestay owner Shreedev Hulikere says the unfortunate mess around tourism is because there is no proper policy and regulation in the state. “We have let every tourist destination open without providing basic facilities. We need zonation at each tourist spot to reduce the stress on nature. There should also be punitive and strict action against repeated violators,” he says. 

Officials say they are working towards sustainable tourism in the state, but this needs cooperation from all. They add that most importantly, visitors need to be more responsible while visiting these places and respect the nature and culture of locals.

A senior officer at the Karnataka Tourism Department, says Chikkamagaluru, Hassan, Kodagu and Shivamogga are becoming prone to natural calamities. He adds that one of the reasons behind this is infrastructure development. “Hills and trees are being cut to level the ground for construction of resorts and homestays. The government has asked the Geological Survey of India to identify such vulnerable places, so that we can avoid giving permission for tourism development at such places.”

Rajendra K V, the director of the Tourism Department says the government will encourage only responsible tourism and the process of streamlining has already started.

Former Principal Chief Conservator of Forest (PCCF) B K Singh says there is an urgent need to regulate homestay and resorts functioning in the Western Ghats, even if the facilities are in non-forest land, as these homestays are heavily dependent on the neighbouring forest cover. 

Political will

Another former PCCF says that earlier, one phone call from gram panchayat presidents, zilla panchayat leaders, MLAs and MPs would result in the halting of eviction drives, even though regulations and policies were in place.

“Without political will, these drives cannot be taken up. At times, officials are helpless, as they do not get the political backing to act. Before we can set the eviction process into motion, our transfer orders reach us. This is one of the main reasons why there is so little conviction in forest offence cases in Karnataka,” says the retired officer.

Even the Comptroller and Auditor General report that was submitted to the state government in July says that less than 1% (22 cases) of the total 2,541 forest offence cases booked between 2017 and 2022 saw convictions. In the majority of instances, officials failed to even file an enquiry report within the stipulated time.

The current PCCF (head of forest force) Brijesh Kumar Dikshit is optimistic that the encroachment clearance drive will take place unhindered, as the minister himself has sounded the alarm.

“Evictions have already started across the state. We are recovering lost forest lands. Legal processes may delay the time taken in recovery, but sooner or later, all lands that are recoverable will come back to us. The process of eviction will act as a deterrent to future encroachments,” he says.

Nearly 85% of the forest boundary in the state has been geo-referenced as well as demarcated on ground, says Dikshit. And efforts are being made to consolidate these boundaries from further encroachment. Cases where one part of the survey number is classified as forest and another part is not is a challenge, he adds. This is being tackled by a joint survey with the revenue department. 

The forest department is not against tourism, just unregulated tourism, he says. “Unscientific roads, buildings and high density of movement of vehicles are posing a threat to the fragile ecosystem of Western Ghats. The department has set in motion the process to regulate tourists in  areas under its control through online bookings, limiting them based on the carrying capacity calculated through scientific research, " he says.