Priyanka Gandhi flags Western Ghats ESA notification as an issue, says livelihoods and habitations will be protected
Congress MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra on Thursday said that the Western Ghats ESA draft notification was "an issue" and assured that the party and its government in the state will protect livelihoods and habitations affected by it.
Vadra, speaking to reporters here, said that apparently a certain number of villages have been included in the Ecologically Sensitive Area (ESA) draft notification and Chief Minister V D Satheesan has assured to look into the matter.
"This (ESA) is an issue for us. There are a certain number of villages being included apparently. The CM is aware of that. I think he met with people from the central government a day ago. He has said that he will look into the matter."
"Our job is to protect livelihoods. Our job is to protect habitations and the people who live there. We are going to do our job. That is very clear," she said.
On Wednesday, Satheesan had said that the state government has decided to submit a proposal to the Centre completely excluding inhabited areas and CHR (Cardamom Hill Reserve) regions from the ESA draft notification.
The Environment Department would prepare a comprehensive map for this purpose, he had said.
State Agriculture Minister T Siddique had on September 20 said the government was taking steps to exclude residential and agricultural areas in the state from the Centre’s draft ESA notification related to the Western Ghats.
Siddique had said that the government was taking steps to exclude around 131 villages and 9,993 square kilometres of land in Keralam from the notification.
The minister had also said the 60-day deadline for submitting objections and suggestions to the draft notification issued on July 25, 2026, would end on September 24, by which time the government would submit its comprehensive and accurate response to the Union Ministry of Environment and Forests.
He had further said that the government aimed to completely exclude more than 30 villages from the list and remove residential areas and agricultural land in the remaining villages from the environmentally sensitive area limits.
Congress-ruled Karnataka has also expressed its reservations over ESA notification.
The Kasturirangan Committee had recommended declaring 37 per cent of the Western Ghats, covering around 60,000 sq km across six states—Gujarat, Maharashtra, Goa, Karnataka, Keralam and Tamil Nadu—as an Eco-Sensitive Area to balance environmental conservation with development.
