Nod for Malabar Wildlife Sanctuary

The proposed Malabar Wildlife Sanctuary in the district has become a reality. The State Wildlife= Board approved the new sanctuary at its meeting in the State capital on March 2. With this, the State will have 13 wildlife sanctuaries, apart from three national parks. Top sources told The Hindu here on Wednesday that the Wildlife Board chaired by the vice-chairman Benoy Viswom, who is also the Forest Minister, took the decision. Now the government would issue orders for the declaration of the new sanctuary. The orders would be issued only after looking into the aspect whether it would breach the model code of conduct with the announcement of the parliamentary elections. Sometimes the order would be issued only after the elections, the source said.P.K. Mohanty, Principal Secretary, Forest and Wildlife; T.M. Manoharan, Principal Chief Conservator of Forests, and K.P. Ouseph, Chief Wildlife Warden, among others, took part in the meeting. The decision was taken in the absence of Chief Minister V.S. Achuthanandan, who is the chairman of the Wildlife Board, he said. The formation of the new wildlife sanctuary in north Kerala is expected to give a thrust to the tourism industry besides generating employment to hundreds of local people. The sanctuary, covering 75 sq km, falls in the limits of the Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve. The area is an integral part of the Wayanad Elephant Reserve under Project Elephant. The Wayanad Wildlife Sanctuary, spread over 344 sq km, is another important sanctuary which falls in the Nilgiri Biosphere.The region of the new wildlife sanctuary consists of the Pannikootur reserve forests of the Peruvannamoozhi range and Karapara; Olathuki, Shankaranpuzha and the Attikkode vested area. The total area covers 74.24 sq km. Initially, the proposal was to carve out a new wildlife sanctuary consisting of the forest areas in and around Kakkayam in Kozhikode district and its adjoining forest tracts in Wayanad district.Kakkayam and Peruvannamoozhi reservoirs will be in the new sanctuary. The area has a marvellous diversity of flora and fauna. The lion-tailed macaque, brown palm civet, elephants, guars, tigers, leopards, flying squirrels and Nilgiri Langur, the Kerala laughing thrush, oriental darter, grey-headed bulbul, Malabar parakeet, small sunbird, and white-bellied blue flycatcher have been reported in the region. Over 100 butterfly species apart from a wide range of reptiles have been recorded in the new sanctuary.

 

The Hindu, 5th  March  2009