There could not have been a better forum and an appropriate time to kick off a debate to safeguard Seshachalam’s valuable biodiversity.
The first seed was sown on Wednesday for what is expected to grow as a mammoth ‘Save Seshachalam’ project in the coming days.
The workshop on ‘Societal role in forest protection/conservation with special reference to red sanders’ organised by the Red Sanders Anti-Smuggling Task Force (RSASTF) turned out to be a well-meaning effort, involving a cross section of society to safeguard the forest.
The forum of forest sleuths, social activists, academicians, wildlife enthusiasts and journalists spoke in unison on creating a sense of belonging among people living in the forest fringe villages, right from Talakona to Kodur, so that they could act as a ‘security cordon’ to the bio-wealth.
Recalling the positive role played by Vana Samrakshana Samithis (VSS) a decade ago, wherein the local villagers safeguarded their territory from poachers and also eked out a living through sale of honey, tubers, nuts and grass, their prolonged absence had turned a bane for the forest.
Deputy Inspector-General of Police (RSASTF) M. Kantha Rao promised concrete steps to restore the glory of Seshachalam as a repository of precious biodiversity. Conservator of Forest P.V. Chalapathi Rao, Divisional Forest Officers G. Srinivasulu (Wildlife) and G. Pavan Kumar (Flying squad) sought the community’s support to curb smuggling. “While foreign countries evinced interest on our wood, there has been hardly any serious research on the red sanders smuggling,” said trekking enthusiast B.V. Ramana. A tribal person, Ch. Kotaiah, recalled the symbiotic relationship their community had with the forest and faulted the law for infringing into their freedom.
“The officials depend on our guidance for everything, but deny us entry into the forest,” he said. Women’s Initiatives (WINS) secretary R. Meera urged the department to identify culprits, innocents and bystanders in the complex social phenomenon of smuggling. V.Sunanda, a social worker, saw the need to woo back tribal youth to their villages as the vacuum caused by their exodus led to the entry of poachers into the porous forests.