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Saturday, December 19, 2015

Silent Valley National Park - Challenges

Silent Valley National Park - Challenges
Forest Fire
Fire is one of the major threats facing forests in Kerala. People engaged in grazing livestock often burn an area to get fresh grass shoots for their cattle, especially during dry season when fire danger is greatest. Also, illicit activities like ganja cultivation, poaching, tree felling, non timber forest products (NTFP) collection and very often careless tourists and pilgrims are responsible for big forest fires.
Cannabis Cultivation
The cannabis mafia has cut hundreds of acres of evergreen tropical forest in the Attappady Hills, including Silent Valley buffer zones, for illegal cultivation of the cash crop. The Forest Department had an ambitious plan to root out ganja cultivation from the Attappady forests by April 2006.
Maoist Presence
The ticket counter of the Silent Valley National Park at Mukkali was attacked by a group of Maoists in December, 2014. A big contingent of special police has been deployed there since then, but the growing influence of Maoist groups among the tribal of east Kerala is of grave concern.