There has been a lot of messages on social media on the recent 7th Draft Notification on Eco Sensitive Areas (ESA) of Western Ghats. The article by Machaiah attempts to simplify the possible misconceptions with direct intent of setting at rest – unwanted fears. In essence, there are similarities between the earlier notifications of 2017 regarding Eco Sensitve Zones (ESZ), which was focused on areas around Wildlife Sanctuaries and National Parks. ESA on the other hand can cover and protect a much larger ecologically fragile and sensitive landscape. The intent remains the prevention on Environmental damage as listed in Machaiah’s article.
However, the ESA and ESZ Notifications do not address the impact of the massive increase in footfalls arising from tourism. Kodagu like many similar hill stations like Ooty/Coonoor/Mussoorie/Shimla/Nainital/Mahabaleshwar/Matheran/Chickmagalur/Yercaud/Wayanad,etc faces a severe impact on natural resources and its related degradation of the environment. This needs to be addressed with equal urgency. While homestays is a much needed supplement to agricultural income, both the supply and the operations to improve the overall experience and value realization needs immediate attention. This is where the homestay association, along with COHERA, should step in to ensure responsible tourism with support from the District Administration. Needless to state, large resorts beyond what already is, have no place in this fragile ecosystem.
– CLN Newsdesk
The publication of the Seventh Draft Notification on Eco-Sensitive Areas (ESA) for Western Ghats, issued on 27th July 2026, appears to have caused considerable apprehension among people in Kodagu, particularly coffee planters.
Apprehensions Driven by Fear and Misperception
Some people fear that they could lose their land, while others apprehend restrictions on their agricultural activities and livelihoods. However, much of this concern appears to stem from a lack of understanding about what an Eco-Sensitive Area (ESA) or an Eco-Sensitive Zone (ESZ) actually means.
Social media and WhatsApp groups are already buzzing with messages expressing concern and fear. While some people may be genuinely ignorant of the implications of the notification, there may also be vested interests seeking to create apprehension and oppose the inclusion of parts of Kodagu in the ESA.
It is therefore important that people understand the facts before forming an opinion.
ESA and ESZ Are Not the Same
First, it is important to understand the distinction between Eco-Sensitive Area (ESA) and Eco-Sensitive Zone (ESZ).
ESA and ESZ are two different concepts, although both are intended to protect ecologically important areas. The confusion often arises because the terminology is similar and the terms are sometimes used loosely in official communique, media and public discussions.
An ESZ is generally a buffer or transition area around a Protected Area, such as a National Park or Wildlife Sanctuary. Its purpose is to ban envirnomentally destructive actitives and regulate other activities in the surrounding area so that the ecological integrity of the Protected Area is not adversely affected.
An ESA, on the other hand, can cover a much larger ecologically fragile or sensitive landscape. The proposed Western Ghats ESA is an example of such a landscape-level environmental protection measure.
ESZs Already Exist Around Three Wildlife Sanctuaries in Kodagu since 2017
It is also important to remember that ESZs have already been officially notified around the three major Wildlife Sanctuaries in Kodagu: Pushpagiri, Talacauvery (Talakaveri) and Brahmagiri Wildlife Sanctuaries.
The ESZ around Talacauvery Wildlife Sanctuary was notified through a Gazette Notification dated 15 May 2017.
The ESZ around Brahmagiri Wildlife Sanctuary was notified on 26 May 2017.
While the ESZ around Pushpagiri Wildlife Sanctuary was notified on 28 June 2017.
The proposed ESZ around Nagarhole National Park is yet to be finally notified. However, planters living around Nagarhole have little reason for concern. Their fellow planters around the Brahmagiri, Pushpagiri and Talakaveri Wildlife Sanctuaries have continued to tend their coffee plantations and carry on their agricultural activities without hindrance since these areas came under ESZ regulations in 2017.
What Has Happened to Planters Living Around Existing ESZs?
A useful way of understanding the implications of ESZ regulations is to look at the experience of people living around the three Wildlife Sanctuaries where ESZs have already been notified.
Since the notifications were issued in 2017, agriculture and coffee cultivation have continued in the surrounding areas. Numerous plantations and residential properties continue to exist within the notified ESZs. There has been no general acquisition of private agricultural land by forest department, merely because it falls within an ESZ.
The existence of an ESZ does not, by itself, mean that private land is taken over by the Government or that existing agricultural activity automatically comes to an end. There is no provision in the notification or law for the same.
No Ban on Normal Agricultural Activities or Homestays
The Supreme Court has also clarified the basic purpose of ESZ regulation. The objective is not to stop the normal day-to-day activities of people living around Protected Areas, but to prohibit or regulate activities that could adversely affect the Protected Area.
Normal agricultural and livelihood activities therefore should not be confused with activities that are specifically prohibited or regulated under the applicable notification.
The same principle is important when people consider the proposed ESA notification.
What About Roads, Electricity and Other Infrastructure?
The existence of an ESZ does not mean that roads, electricity, drinking-water infrastructure or other essential public infrastructure automatically come to a halt.
Activities that are specifically prohibited or regulated under the relevant notification may require restrictions, permissions or scrutiny. Environmentally destructive activities such as certain forms of mining and quarrying, highly polluting industries and large-scale construction may face prohibition or regulation.
This is fundamentally different from saying that all development or infrastructure activity is prohibited.
What If Areas of Kodagu Are Included in the ESA?
The Seventh Draft Notification proposes the inclusion of 55 areas in Kodagu within the proposed ESA.
Many of these areas are villages and human settlements located in landscapes surrounded by forests, plantations and other ecologically sensitive areas.
The inclusion of these areas in the ESA should therefore not automatically be interpreted as a threat to the ownership of private agricultural land or to the continuation of agriculture.
Similarities Between ESA and ESZ Regulations
There is considerable similarity in the broad environmental objectives of ESA and ESZ regulations.
Under the proposed ESA framework, activities that can cause significant environmental damage, such as mining and quarrying, highly polluting industries, major construction and development projects, certain large-scale tourism projects (Huge Resorts, Tourism Parks, etc), and activities that adversely affect water bodies and fragile ecosystems, can be prohibited or regulated.
This does not mean that ordinary agricultural activities, existing settlements or the day-to-day lives of residents will automatically be stopped.
The ESA Is Not Limited to Karnataka
The proposed ESA is not confined to Kodagu or even to Karnataka.
The Government has been considering the declaration of ecologically sensitive portions of the Western Ghats as an ESA across six States.
The latest republished Seventh Draft Notification proposes an ESA covering approximately 56,825.7 sq km across Gujarat, Maharashtra, Goa, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Kerala.
Therefore, the proposed notification needs to be viewed in the larger context of protecting the ecological integrity of the Western Ghats, rather than as a measure specifically directed at the people or agricultural communities of Kodagu.
People Should Understand the Notification Before Panicking
The debate over the Western Ghats ESA is important and people of Kodagu have every right to examine the proposed notification, raise legitimate concerns and seek clarification from the Government.
However, opposition based purely on the assumption that an ESA or ESZ will result in the automatic loss of private land, the closure of coffee plantations or the end of normal agricultural activities is not supported by the experience of the existing ESZs in Kodagu.
The people of Kodagu should therefore read the actual notification, understand what is prohibited, what is regulated and what is permitted, and distinguish between legitimate concerns and misinformation.
Environmental protection and the interests of local communities need not necessarily be contradictory. The objective should be to ensure that Kodagu’s forests, rivers and fragile ecosystems are protected while the legitimate rights, livelihoods and economic activities of its residents and agriculturists are safeguarded.
The facts, views and opinions expressed are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of Coffeeland News.
A very clear and timely explanation of a subject that has created considerable confusion and apprehension among the people of kodagu. I appreciate the effort to distinguish between ESA and ESZ and more importantly to present the facts without creating unnecessary fear. The article brings much needed clarity to a complicated issue. At the same time, the concern about tourism pressure and the degradation of our natural resources is an important reminder that environmental protection must go hand in hand with responsible development. A well researched and balanced peice that helps readers understand the issue before forming an opinion.