5.    KATHALEKAN: THREATS AND CONSERVATION

Rain forests worldwide have been suffering from various anthropogenic pressures for several decades. Demand for land and resources became augmented as result of booming population. Escalating human wants found most of the rain forests becoming victims of ruthless exploitation. In the Western Ghats, forest destruction started with the introduction of agriculture, both shifting and permanent in the valleys. Yet, as the population during the pre-British period was small, and the forests vast, by and large there was a good equilibrium between human activities and forests and wildlife. The Western Ghats is known for excellent timbers, particularly teak. Various evergreen forest trees, most of them endemics, along with associated biota were specially protected in kans and other kinds of sacred groves like devarakadus and kavus by local communities. Wildlife was abundant in this region during the pre and early British period.

5.1 Kans: past perturbations: The British domination of the Western Ghats from early 19^th century marked a watershed in the forest history of the region. Unplanned forest exploitation for ship-building timbers was started by the British East India Company. Exploitation in early British period was opportunistic and confined to easily accessible places. Although the first Indian Forest Act was enacted in 1878, it was almost the end of the 19^th century when the first forest working plans were formulated for systematic exploitation of forests. Selection felling and clear-felling were the norms of routine forestry both during British period and in post independence period. Clear felling in the low altitudes of Western Ghats was mainly for raising teak monocultures. After independence forests were cleared at a greater pace for raising teak monocultures. Especially in southern Western Ghats medium and high altitude forests, rich in endemic species, were cleared for raising commercial crops like tea and coffee. In southern Kerala most of the foothills were cleared off the vegetation to raise rubber plantations.

Most kans of central Western Ghats escaped serious interference during the 19^th century, despite state monopoly over them, because of their evergreen nature, having mostly perishable softwoods. However, contract system was introduced for gathering non-timber products like pepper and cinnamon. Although these were exhaustively harvested no logging was attempted by the British until the Second World War when there was escalating demand for softwoods for the plywood industry and timbers like Dipterocarpus for railway sleepers.

The integrity of the kans  were, however, slowly getting eroded as the British had not made adequate provision for meeting the biomass needs of the local communities ever since reservation of forests for the state. As the communities were alienated from the kans, their worship places and sources of NTFPs, and their entry prohibited as well in the timber rich secondary forests, apparently, the people resorted to extracting biomass from the kans themselves. Many kansof Sirsi-Siddapur were already infested with weeds like Lantana by 1920’s. Dry wood collection was permitted in the kans by the British in eastern Sirsi and Siddapur. To meet the leaf manure demands of arecanut farmers even kans were allotted to them as betta or leaf manure forests. The kansaway from human habitation, towards the crests of the Western Ghats, got merged with forest re-growth on shifting cultivation fallows and other secondary forests, losing their identity. Some of the notable kans like Kathalekan in Siddapur, Karikan in Honavar and Alsollikan in Ankola, which are treasure troves of rare and endemic biodiversity belong to this class of kans.  

Soon after Indian independence, the kanslike rest of the evergreen forests were caught in the grip a strong industrialization drive. Their massive timbers, hitherto untapped or underutilized, were allotted to plywood, match and packing case industries at extremely low rates. The process of extraction of industrial timbers by selection felling, carried out through a period four decades up to 1987, was too denigrating for the kanecosystems. However, the prohibition on live tree felling since then has brought back new life into kansand their endemic biota are slowly springing back to normalcy. At the same time the kansare nevertheless immune from onslaughts from local communities, who resort to them for biomass extraction as well as divert the streams associated with them into their arecanut gardens and other crop lands impoverishing the regeneration of sensitive endemic species. The major threats operating in the Kathalekan reserve today are documented here. 

5.2 Kathalekan: threats – past and present: As described earlier, the development of railways and the soaring demand for softwoods for industries had not spared Kathalekan as well.  Many huge trees like Dipterocarpus indicus, Calophyllum tomentosum, Artocarpus hirsutus etc. were intensively extracted from here from 1940’s to 1980’s. Such extraction created enormous incidental damages in addition to exposing the forest floor with its shade and humidity loving species to the scorching tropical sun during the post-monsoon period. The outcome was largescale invasion of the gaps by weeds and other heliophilous pioneers (Gadgil and Chandran, 1989). Even after the ban on selection felling operations were carried out for collection of dead and fallen trees from the forest for some more years. Needless to say all these are expected to be detrimental on the forest ecosystem as a whole, compacting soil, exposing it to erosion, increasing evaporation and also affecting the nutrient inputs into the soil.

5.2.1 Cultivation within in kan: Agriculture is the main livelihood of the people in Siddapur as is with most in the interior of Uttara Kannada. The main crops grown are areca, banana and paddy. In fact these crops require large quantity of water so the cultivators target valleys with rich supply of water from streams for starting new gardens or rice fields. The 2.25 sq.km area we have chosen for study has only three agricultural families living there (2 in Grid 4 and 1 in Grid 7). A larger area is under cultivation in Grid 4 than in Grid 7. Around the farm in Grid 4 forest has been cleared to create grazing land as well. In both the Grids the farmers have blocked the streams by making earthen bunds redircting the water to their cultivation. Because of such water diversion in Grid 4 the very sensitive Myristica swamps downstream in Grids 2 and 5 are affected. Due to inadequate water in the swamps of these grids, during summer months, the regeneration potential of aseasonal evergreen swamp trees like Myristica fatua, Gymnacranthera canarica and Semecarpus kathalekanensis (the last one in Grid 5) are at stake. Myristica swamps have been described as one of the primeval ecosystems in the Western Ghats (Chandran, et al, 2001).

In Grid 1 of Kathalekan, there is an abandoned paddy field within the domain of the swamp. Because of the easiness in converting the swamp into paddy field, such conversions might have taken place widely erasing perhaps scores of Myristica swamps from the vegetation map of Western Ghats.  Even in the Grid 4 the paddy field obviously was formerly a Myristica swamp. Two isolated large individuals of G. canarica on the bund are all that remain of a former swamp. A good perennial stream running through a Myristica swamp in Grid 7 has been bunded and its water diverted into a newly made horticultural garden. During reconnaissance study the stream blocking near to this plot was noticed. This part is found to be more cleared having poor forest cover. Another vulnerable area was found in grid 8 where cultivation of crops like areca and banana was observed. This garden itself is the outcome of reclaiming a swamp. In a small grove of Gymnacranthera trees in this garden could be seen an ancient worshipping place, proving that the swamp was a larger sacred grove once. The stream diversion has imperiled many swamp loving rare species. A good Myristica swamp with some important species is surviving here. The depletion of water due to overuse for growing crops has not only affected the swamp species but its implications should be for the forest as a whole due adverse effects on its soil moisture regime.

5.2.2 Encroachment:  Small scale encroachments that have taken place periodically within the forest, especially in the swamp areas, apparently were not prevented on time. Each such encroachment has left indelible imprint on the extent of the swamp, even though some such encroachments have been cleared by the Forest Department. Taking this as an advantage this type of encroachment is very common. Grid 4 is found to be more encroached for grazing and settlement. In Grid 8 encroachment is mainly for expanding the cultivation of arecanut. Some areas also were found to be encroached nearer to highway but now they are in abandoned

5.2.3 Cattle grazing: Cattle grazing within the forest was observed during the survey. People from nearby places allow cattle to graze in the forest. Cattle were found to wander even in the interior part of the forests.  Trampling by the cattle expectedly would be a hazard for sensitive species. If cattle grazing goes on uncontrolled there could be a selection pressure favouring only browsing tolerant species in the future. The former logging roads help villagers to move within the forest along with their cattle.

5.2.4 Lopping: Lopping the ground plants, mainly tree saplings and shrubs for the green manure purpose has been indulged in, causing serious depletion of ground flora especially in Grid 3. Many sensitive tree species are thereby affected adversely. Shrubs and small trees are cutting for fencing stakes and poles as well, with adverse effects on the growing stock.

5.2.5 Road: Honnavar-Bangalore National High way is passing through the heart of Kathlekan. Road construction through the forest is one of the major threats in many parts of the Western Ghats. The infrastructural developments became an inevitable need of the time. However optional routes could have been found out instead of sacrificing precious swamps and Dipterocarpus forests for road making.  Road breaks the continuity of forest and create edges along it. The road also becomes a certain barrier for animal movements. In the rainy season many endemic amphibians particularly get crushed under the wheels of vehicles.

5.3 Conservation and Management plan for Kathalekan
Kans are considered as relic forest (Pascal, 1988). The case of Kathalekan as a relic forest is much stronger perhaps than any such kans of central Western Ghats. Here we find high degree of plant endemism, resembling forests of more southern Western Ghats. The Myristica swamp resembling those of south Travancore,  and  the rest of evergreen forest liberally sprinkled with southern climax species such as Dipterocarpus indicus, Palaquium ellipticum, Mesua ferrea, Syzygium spp, etc with rich under growth of especially the slender palm Pinanga dicksonii and clumps of Ochlandra are a visual demonstration of congenial microclimatic condition and rich soil with high water conservation values. The swamps being the peak expression of the high water content, the Myristica swamps are also sources of perennial streams and have some of the most ancient land biodiversity of the earth dating back to the Gondwanaland.

That such a forest also having some savanna regions and  gorge of the River Sharavathi having tremendous micro and macro heterogeneity should fall prey to cater to escalating human wants for industrial timbers, speaks about the slighting attitude that we have developed towards pieces of primeval nature. This short term study therefore has become helpful for formulating a conservation and management plan for Kathlekan.

1. Declaring as biodiversity heritage site: According to the Biodiversity act, 2002, there is a provision to declare locally unique areas as heritage sites. This study, though primarily focus on plant ecology, nevertheless is sufficient proof of the biological richness of the forest, the rarity of its element and the high potential of water shed conservation. The fauna particularly Lion tailed Macaque, endemic amphibians, rare hornbills and Imperial Pigeon, etc. strengthen the cause of endowing such special status.
2. Management of water courses: Perennial water sources flanked by swamps in many places are unique to this forest. But as such there is no appreciation of these vital arteries of the forest that has  resulted in drastic reduction in summer time water flow. The swamp biota including the newly discovered critically endangered tree species Semecarpus kathlekanensis is facing extinction. This situation has arisen because few families living in Kathalekan area have steadily expanded their holdings to the species rich forest for growing primarily arecanut and banana. Streams that should be running through the swamps have been diverted in to these farmland with scanty concern shown for the regeneration and survival of sensitive species. The indiscriminate use of stream water, particularly in summer months also could have caused less water input into Sharavathi River which has a power generating station down stream at Gersoppa. The farm products from just few acres of arecanut and banana are trifles compared to the invaluable plant and animal species of great antiquity and rarity. Therefore it is recommended that the quantum of water used by the few farmers be regulated, especially during summer months. Irrigation if at all required during March to May period should be from wells than from forest streams. Stream bunding and diversion during summer months need to be prohibited.
3. Maintenance of Savanna: Savannas on hill tops in and around Kathlekan enhance landscape heterogeneity and promote wild life. They need to be maintained as such without bringing under afforestation schemes.
4. Regulation of cattle grazing: Cattle including buffaloes were found roaming unattended to through forest paths. Especially the entry into the swamp and streams results in trampling of the fragile saplings, destruction through browsing and water pollution from the dung. There should be awareness creation among the locals about especially sparing the swamps from the depredations of cattle.
5. Prevention of encroachment: periodically attempts have been made in the past to clear the patches of forest especially near swamps and streams, for apparently for raising arecanut gardens. These encroachments have created indelible marks especially in Myristica swamps and Semecarpus patch. If vigilance was strong such damages could have been prevented. Therefore, it is suggested that monitoring by the forest department staff should be carried out on regular basis.