Nearly 100 students from New Delhi, Hyderabad, Mangaluru, Thrissur, Shivamogga and Bengaluru and other places, and a few scholars, visited parts of Western Ghats in Chikkamgaluru district to study biodiversity. The visit had been organised by A.V.K. College here as part of a national seminar it had conducted on March 26 and 27, in association with the Karnataka State Science and Technology Academy.
B.S. Ravi Kumar, organising secretary of the seminar, told The Hindu on Tuesday that the visit was an enriching experience for the participants. “Western Ghats is considered as one of the 20 biological hotspots in the world. A majority of the participants were visiting the Western Ghats for the first time. We visited the forest areas near Sringeri, Horanadu, Kerekatte, Sirimane and Kudremukh,” he said.
The participants could study dry deciduous, moist deciduous, wet evergreen and mono-cultured plantations during the visit, besides an Archidarium near Kerekatte, and coffee and tea plantations. “During the visit to Kudremukh, participants noticed the adverse impact of mining on the nature around,” Mr. Kumar said.
Students from universities outside Karnataka seldom got opportunities like this. Ravi Kiran of Aurora College in Hyderabad and Pushpalatha of Mangalore University and Mr. Kumar spoke on the distinct features of Western Ghats and stressed the need to conserve plant and animal species, which were on the verge of extinction.
On the first day, the delegates listened to T.V. Ramachandra and Harish Bhat, both from the Indian Institute of Science, U.M. Chandrashekhar from the Kerala Forest Research Institute and M.J. Ashwini from SDM Ayurvedic College in Hassan. They focussed on how development activities were affecting biodiversity and emphasised that attention should be paid towards sustainable development.
Mr. Kumar said, “The theme of the seminar is sustainable development. The lectures during the seminar and the visit to forest were very valuable to students.”
‘Western Ghats is among the 20 biological hotspots in the world’
‘At Kudremukh, visitors can see how mining activities have an adverse effect on nature’
