BENGALURU: Prolonged dry spells, depleting ground water and rising temperatures have prompted the need to protect urban landscapes, catchments and water sources. The forest department, in coordination with private firms, on Friday announced ‘Forests for Watershed -- The Nandi Hills Project’.
“This is the first ever initiative undertaken to protect and conserve the watershed region and its catchments, improve soil quality, restore biodiversity and create livelihood opportunities for communities,” said Principal Chief Conservator of Forests, head of forest force, Meenakshi Negi.
As a pilot, 600 hectares of area in and around Nandi Hills has been marked, of which 300 hectares belongs to the forest department and the remaining is farmland. The department has partnered with Iora Ecological First, an NGO, and SalesForce, an international organization. The forest department will be executing the project through Karnataka Forests Wildlife and Climate Change Foundation.
As part of the programme, eucalyptus trees will be cleared and 1.8lakh native trees will be planted for a three-year period in Chikkaballapur forest dvision. Protection and restoration of check dams and contour trenches will be done, and percolation pits created. Village forest committees will be partnered in nursery training, long-term watch-and-ward and creation of local green jobs.
Forest, Environment and Ecology Minister Ramalinga Reddy said Bengaluru’s water crisis is growing, driven by climate change, depletion of groundwater table and concretization. Water resilience is becoming increasing critical.
Restoration of vegetation in and around Bengaluru is one of the best ways to improve and recharge groundwater levels, he said. He added that regular reports of work done and progress will be taken up, and if proven successful, the same model will be replicated in other forest patches of the state too.
Reddy said, “Water security does not merely mean treatment plants. It starts as forest catchment and watershed ridges protection. Saving Bengaluru’s lakes and borewells means protecting and regreening hills upstream. Companies headquartered in Bengaluru are called upon to invest is restoring the catchments.”
Forest officials working on the project said Nandi Hills has been chosen for the pilot because it is the water tower of the region. Its slopes give rise to the Arkavathy, Dakshina Pinakini, Uttara Pinakini and Palar. It helps recharge groundwater and tank cascades of Bengaluru metropolitan region. With Bengaluru facing water stress every summer, restoring this upper catchment is a durable investment to address the city’s water security. Progress will be tracked through satellite monitoring, field survey, audits and hydrological assessment with third party verification.