THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Keralam has submitted proposal to limit the extent of the state’s Ecologically Sensitive Area (ESA) to 8,590.69 sq km to the Centre, while completely excluding inhabited areas, agricultural land and plantations from its ambit.
The state has also prepared a revised ESA map identifying the areas to be included in the proposed extent.
Environment Minister Sunny Joseph said the proposal and map were prepared based on detailed studies and public feedback and submitted to the Union Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change as part of the state’s response to the draft ESA notification issued in the wake of the Kasturirangan report.
The 2013 Kasturirangan report had proposed including 13,108 sq km across 123 villages in Keralam under the ESA. Following widespread protests, the area was reduced to 9,993.7 sq km based on the recommendations of the Oommen V Oommen Committee.
Of the revised area, 9,107 sq km was forest land and 886.7 sq km was non-forest area. This position continued from the notification issued on March 10, 2014, through the notification issued on July 27, 2026.
The state is now seeking to completely exclude the non-forest areas and limit the ESA to 8,590.69 sq km, based on more precise studies.
Kerala, which has a relatively small geographical area and high population density, has 29.15% of its total land area under forests. The state also has 23 wildlife sanctuaries and protected areas.
The government has argued that further ESA restrictions in inhabited areas could adversely affect agriculture and people’s livelihoods, particularly given the existing environmental regulations governing paddy lands, wetlands and tree felling.
The state had earlier invited the central expert committee headed by Dr Sanjay Kumar to Thiruvananthapuram and presented its demands in the presence of the chief minister and ministers.
The government will bring a unanimous resolution on the issue during the upcoming Assembly session, Joseph said. If required, a delegation led by the chief minister will visit Delhi to meet union ministers and press for a final decision on the issue, which has remained unresolved for the past 13 years.
The revised ESA plan and map will be published on the State Environment Department’s website, the minister said.