Hesaraghatta Grassland: Is the grass greener with the new tag?

After braving the metropolis postulation and a heavy trench dug up adjacent the Government Film and Television Institute to forestall vehicles from entering, the show that meets the oculus is underwhelming compared to earlier pictures of the Hesaraghatta Grasslands.

But for the sudden, ample expanse of unfastened space, determination is nary of the dreamy, gangly writer that 1 often sees successful aged photos, but for a spot wrong the institute. Instead, what greets you are scrawny aged saplings that person been called retired for being unscientifically planted successful the incorrect landscape, and grounds of bonfires and brew parties successful the respective bottles and litter near behind.

At the clip of our visit, a pre-wedding photography league was successful advancement astatine a distance, and section residents accidental it is simply a communal affair. A hare races distant from its spot adjacent immoderate rocks, proceeding quality voices.

Film metropolis to biodiversity hotspot

Before 2025, these grasslands were successful the quality chiefly for being the prime of ‘real estate’ for the Karnataka authorities to acceptable up ambitious projects specified arsenic a movie metropolis oregon a taxable park, overmuch to the chagrin of environmentalists. Successive governments failed to spot what it truly is: an important reservoir of biodiversity, a refuge for endangered wildlife species, a ‘carbon sink’. 

It was not until 2003-04 that things began to move, recalls Mahesh Bhat, a lensman and filmmaker who has been moving connected preserving the Arkavathy catchment for implicit 2 decades. “Following a drought, erstwhile the Hesaraghatta water had wholly dried up, a radical of section radical wanted to rejuvenate it,” helium said. As the radical started surveying the area, they discovered that the transmission that utilized to bring rainwater runoff from Dasenahalli khana was filled with silt.

“We decided to unfastened the channel,” helium said, recalling however colony radical started digging the transmission implicit the weekends manually. Water flowed, and much volunteers started pitching successful — 1 bore the charges of dense machinery, and the MEG got progressive successful desilting.

“Around 2006-07, determination were besides groups progressive successful the conservation of Kumudvathy and Arkavathy basins,” helium says. These groups past got unneurotic to bring successful immoderate governmental propulsion into rejuvenating the catchments.

The authorities of Karnataka had leased this onshore to Mysore Film Development Corporation (MFDC) successful 1972 to physique a movie city. MFDC was aboriginal renamed Karnataka Film Development Corporation (KFDC), but it closed down. “The rights of this onshore were temporarily vested with Kanteerava studios, which utilized to rent retired the country for Kannada movie shootings. We had to cleanable up the messiness created by it,” Mahesh said.

Long earlier this, successful 1942, this portion of onshore was sold to the Department of Animal Husbandry by the past Maharaja of Mysore for ₹10,000.

In 2012, the movie metropolis connection came up again, which prompted the Arkavathy and Kumudvathy Nadi Punaschethana Samithi to record a PIL against the task successful the High Court of Karnataka. “The Advocate General said that the authorities volition support the presumption quo till it took a determination connected the presumption of the land. The authorities decided to springiness the onshore backmost the section of Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Services,” helium added.

It was lone successful January 2025 that the Karnataka Cabinet approved the declaration of Greater Hesaraghatta Grasslands Conservation Reserve (GHGCR), comprising 5,678 acres. While the connection was archetypal mooted successful 2013, the declaration of the country arsenic a conservation reserve had been deferred owing to unit from definite sections, including section bodies. But the motion from the State Board for Wildlife successful October 2024 paved the mode for the conservation reserve tag.

Finally, a Conservation Reserve

The authorities notification, dated February 24, stated the country is being declared the “Greater Hesaraghatta Grassland Conservation Reserve (GHGCR) for its ecological, faunal, floral and geo-morphological importance, and for the intent of protecting, propagating and processing grassland and wildlife therein oregon its environment, and to support the important catchment country astir Hesaraghatta, which is 1 of the sources of h2o for Bengaluru city”.

It acknowledged grasslands arsenic “unique ecosystems that are diagnostic of adust unfastened areas wherever grasses signifier the predominant vegetation”, and however “grasslands are equal, if not much important than immoderate forest”.

“They prolong biodiversity and clasp a batch of atmospheric carbon. Conserving the grasslands helps to trim the impacts of planetary warming and clime alteration caused by excess c dioxide. The said country not lone gives structure to assorted types of plants, animals, birds, reptiles and insects, but besides has go a structure to assorted types of biomasses,” it stated. “Hesaraghatta water furniture and grasslands successful the surrounding catchment country are an important reservoir of biodiversity and a refuge for endangered wildlife taxon specified arsenic leopard, slender loris, jackal, Indian fox, Smooth Coated Otter, chaotic pig, communal mongoose, Black Naped Hare, Indian Mole Rat and Indian Field Mouse. In addition, determination are 7 antithetic taxon of snakes observed successful Hesaraghatta grasslands.”

The Hesaraghatta scenery is simply a tract for respective wintering migrants from Europe, Central Asia and Himalayas, including respective taxon of raptors. One of the migratory birds is the Greater Spotted Eagle, and globally threatened taxon similar the Lesser Florican and the Red-necked falcon, the notification adds.

A twelvemonth on...

A twelvemonth later, has thing changed connected the ground? Local residents are unenthused.

Umesh, 53, who was calved and brought up present and runs a makeshift beverage stall extracurricular the grasslands, said determination is 1 defender stationed for the implicit 300-acre grassland, and garbage dumping continues contempt trenches being dug up to forestall entree to vehicles.

Instead, the trenches person deterred section cattle grazers.

Basavaraj, 42, from Dasenahalli village, said helium had stopped taking his cows to the grassland arsenic they could not transverse the trenches. “There is besides a leopard problem. So, I don’t privation to instrumentality the risk,” helium added.

H.M. Yeshwanth, 43, is an entomologist who has grown up here. “I was an avid vertebrate watcher during school. This was similar an airdrome landing for raptors and falcons. There were nary trees excepting these two,” helium said, pointing to 2 ample trees astatine a distance.

Mahesh said the perfect word for the grassland should beryllium Open Natural Ecosystems (ONEs). “Since getting the conservation tag, not overmuch has changed for Hesaraghatta. It is not a nationalist parkland oregon reserve forest, So, the onshore ownership remains with the Animal Husbandry Department and the Bangalore Water Supply and Sewerage Board (BWSSB). However, the authorities has to represent a absorption committee, which has not happened. The Forest Minister, during his caller visit, had made it wide that foraging, grazing and sportfishing rights volition remain. Now, immoderate bound markers are being placed. So, enactment seems to person begun.” 

“The grassland is simply a tiny 345-acre information of the 5,000-odd acres. It volition ever beryllium a porous area. So, a batch of garbage is being dumped. People proceed to spell successful with vehicles for photography, eat, portion and litter. It is not the locals, but the visitors. In the grassland, overgrazing is simply a problem. It should beryllium regulated, similar sportfishing successful coastal areas,” helium added. 

The roadworthy up

Seshadri K.S., ecologist and module subordinate astatine the Ashoka Trust for Research successful Ecology and the Environment, Bengaluru, who was progressive successful making the connection to state the country a conservation reserve, said each grasslands successful India endure owing to people’s ignorance and indifference. “They are seen arsenic wastelands, and this needs to change. The wasteland atlas of India, for example, classifies galore autochthonal grassland habitats arsenic wastelands, and they are either taxable to an onslaught of plantation drives, oregon are diverted to a antithetic onshore use. Grasslands oregon assemblage owned grazing lands, specified arsenic gomala onshore oregon karab land, are taxable to apathy and encroachments.”

While grasslands don’t look similar forests, they clasp immense biodiversity and seizure important amounts of carbon, helium said, adding that the grasslands of Hesaraghatta person been a root of bioresources. “An insect called Neodusmetia Sangwanii was discovered successful these grasslands, which has been utilized arsenic a biologic pest power cause successful the U.S., and apt saved the play turf and beef manufacture backmost successful the day. By losing the grasslands, we basal to suffer respective specified tangible and intangible benefits. The displacement successful people’s position cannot hap overnight, and this requires continued engagement and awareness,” helium added. 

Apart from bioresource, the grasslands astatine Hesaraghatta are an important roosting tract for birds specified arsenic the Harriers. “We person astir 4 species, which migrate each the mode from Kazakhstan and parts of Central Asia. Recent probe by my colleagues has shown that these birds are liable for effect dispersal, and signifier ecosystems. They chiefly provender connected birds, specified arsenic larks, which devour writer seeds. The Harriers devour these larks and regurgitate the undigestible parts retired astatine roosting sites. The researchers collected the pellets and examined them for seeds. They recovered an unthinkable diverseness of seeds, and galore of the seeds were viable. So, the elemental enactment of having a vertebrate roost successful an country is silently shaping ecosystems by dispersing seeds, and shaping the grassland ecosystem,” helium said.

For those successful Bengaluru, the grasslands successful and astir the reserve are an important h2o catchment. They tin forestall run-off of h2o and ungraded during rains. and assistance recharge groundwater. People astir the water are benefiting from ample h2o and salubrious section climate, helium added.

Only the beginning

While the declaration of the conservation reserve has been a long-fought battle, it is lone the beginning, says Seshadri.

“While the portion is present officially protected, overmuch enactment remains to beryllium done successful presumption of mounting up a committee to draught the absorption program and get funds to guarantee the portion is protected. Rules for managing the conservation reserves should beryllium consultative, and see representatives from the stakeholders. In the lawsuit of GHGCR, it includes representatives from the panchayat, the Department of Animal Husbandry, probe organisations, and the Forest Department,” helium said.

He excessively said the archetypal measurement is to represent a committee and found rules and regulations, which intelligibly articulate that existing bonafide users would not beryllium excluded oregon harassed. “This was a superior fearfulness down the absorption to the reserve being declared. Then, the Forest Department has to get funds and demarcate the conservation reserve. and enactment up boards successful Kannada and English, intelligibly stating the database of activities which are permitted. and unafraid extortion by deploying guards and watchers for patrolling. There needs to beryllium a cheque connected unregulated cattle grazing. The grassland is besides being utilized arsenic a spot for recreational motorbiking, and this needs to beryllium stopped,” helium added.

Over the adjacent fewer years, the GHGCR needs to beryllium restored, by removing planted saplings from the grasslands and replacing them with autochthonal writer and herbs. This has to beryllium done successful a phased mode truthful arsenic to forestall immoderate biology daze caused by abrupt removal of trees oregon alterations of the habitat, helium said. 

Forest Minister Eshwar Khandre, during a caller sojourn to the reserve, had assured of measures to not lone support the area, but besides make it with money allocation and CSR help.

Getting a conservation reserve tag was nary uncertainty a triumph for the Hesaraghatta Grasslands, but lone fractional the conflict is won. As the Bannerghatta National Park, the different protected country adjacent Bengaluru to its south, continues to conflict assorted threats, it remains to beryllium seen if the writer volition beryllium greener for the newly-formed Greater Hesaraghatta Grassland Conservation Reserve.