A group of farmers under the aegis of the Karshika Purogamana Samiti (KPS), a farmer organisation, staged a dharna in front of the telephone exchange at Vythiri in the district on Wednesday demanding withdrawal of the draft notification of the Ministry of Forest and Environment (MOEF) to declare eco-sensitive zones around Malabar and Aralam Wildlife sanctuaries, which share borders with many villages in Wayanad district.
Speaking after inaugurating the protest, P.M. Joy, chairman, KPS, said that the Ministry had issued similar notifications to declare eco-sensitive zones in the six of the 18 wildlife sanctuaries in the State.
Mr. Joy said according to the draft notification issued on August 5, the eco-sensitive zone will be to an extent of up to 1 km around the boundary of the sanctuaries.
“If the draft is implemented, it will adversely affect the lives of close to 50,000 farmers living on the fringes of the Malabar Wildlife Sanctuary which is spread over 13 villages,” he said.
