Shrinking shock absorbers of Bannerghatta National Park in Bengaluru

For a State that takes pride in having the country’s highest elephant population at 6,013, even as it has suffered a high rate of human casualties due to attacks by elephants (20 deaths in 2025-26 alone), Karnataka ought to be in the forefront of maintaining Eco-Sensitive Zones (ESZ).

Bannerghatta National Park, near Bengaluru, acts as a terminal point on the northern side of the Mysore Elephant Reserve, the movement path for Asian Elephants to migrate from the adjacent Cauvery wildlife Sanctuary of Karnataka, and Krishnagiri and Hosur Forest Division of Tamil Nadu. 
| Photo Credit:
K. MURALI KUMAR

However, instead of maintaining the ESZ, whose main objective is to function as a buffer for protected areas, successive governments have worked at reducing the ESZ around the Bannerghatta National Park (BNP), which is home to three elephant corridors — Karadikal-Mahadeshwara, Thally-Bilikal and Bilikal-Jawalagiri — and over 150 elephants.

In 2015, the Karnataka government submitted a proposal for declaring the ESZ around BNP in Bengaluru.

The ESZ initially proposed around BNP in the draft notification dated June 15, 2016, covered an area of 268.96 sq. km. Subsequently, this was reduced to 181.57 sq. km., and thereafter to 168.84 sq. km. in the final notification dated March 11, 2020.

In the 2016 draft notification, the BNP’s ESZ was 100 m to 4.5 km from the boundary of the national park, which was subsequently reduced to 100 m to 1 km in the 2020 ESZ notification.

Challenging the reduction of BNP’s ESZ, a petition was filed by K. Belliappa and others in May 2025. The Supreme Court constituted a Central Empowered Committee (CEC) to look into the issue and submit a report to the apex court.

On January 2, Chandra Prakash Goyal, a member of the CEC, visited the national park. He held discussions with the local farmers and the petitioners. On January 7, Siddhanta Das, chairperson of the committee, submitted a report to the apex court, which recommended restoring the 2016 draft notification and cancelling a 2020 notification, which reduces the ESZ.

Chandra Prakash Goyal, CEC member, and Meenakshi Negi, Principal Chief Conservator of Forests (Head of Forest Force – HOFF), Karnataka, at the Bannerghatta National Park, Bengaluru.
| Photo Credit:
K. MURALI KUMAR

It recommended that the entire exercise to re-notify the ESZ of BNP be completed within the next six months.

What are ESZs?

According to the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC), the National Environment Policy (2006) defines the ESZs as areas or zones with identified environmental resources having incomparable values, which require special attention for their conservation because of its landscape, wildlife, biodiversity, historical and natural values.

It further adds that the purpose of ESZs is to protect the environment and avoid its degradation due to anthropogenic activities, create some kind of barrier or shock absorber for the specialised ecosystem (PAs), and act as a transition zone from areas of higher protection to areas involving lesser protection.

Environmentalist Kiran Urs, who works with Bannerghatta Nature Conservation Trust, said that the ESZ is delineated by the MoEFCC based on certain guidelines. “There are certain guidelines from the MoEFCC, and the ESZs can stretch up to 10 km. Based on the assessment, the BNP was given an ESZ of 100 m to 4.5 km in 2016. There were ecological reasons behind this, as the Indian Institute of Science (IISc) had done some studies, and it was decided that Bannerghatta needs a buffer zone of 100 m to 4.5 km,” Urs said.

Why was ESZ reduced?

Urs said the ESZ was reduced primarily to facilitate the Karnataka government’s large-scale housing development project, Surya Nagar Layout (KHB Surya City), which abuts the revised ESZ boundary of the BNP. “Initially, it was thought the reduction happened to ensure the operation of the quarries in the area, and also because of the land purchased by politicians to run resorts. But later, we got to know that the Karnataka Housing Board (KHB) was developing a housing project,” he said.

He added that the KHB had identified five villages for this housing project, out of which three villages — Bagganadoddi, Kadajakkanahalli, and Indlawadi — are inside the ESZ as per the 2016 draft notification.

“When they came to know that they cannot do any development project in these villages, as per the rules in the ESZ, they thought let us move the boundary,” he added.

Herandyapanahalli, Tippuru, and Bijahalli are among the villages around Bannerghatta National Park in Bengaluru South district of Karnataka.
| Photo Credit:
K. MURALI KUMAR

The CEC, in its report, has mentioned this. “It is also important to note that the State of Karnataka is undertaking a large-scale housing development, namely the Surya Nagar Layout (KHB Surya City), immediately abutting the revised ESZ boundary of BNP. The subject land earlier formed part of the ESZ, within which activities such as the development of housing layouts and large residential projects were expressly restricted. However, by virtue of the ESZ notification dated 30.10.2018, this area was excluded from the ESZ on the stated ground of urbanisation pressure,” it said.

It added that subsequent to such exclusion, extensive environmental alteration has been undertaken, including large-scale land levelling, flattening of naturally elevated terrain, and destruction of existing topography to facilitate housing development.

“The project, being of considerable magnitude, is likely to result in irreversible modification of land contiguous to a protected forest, raising serious concerns regarding the absence of any scientific assessment, evaluation of cumulative environmental impacts, and adherence to constitutional and environmental safeguards. It is also significant that the project site lies in proximity to the Karadikkal—Mahadeshwara wildlife corridor, and the Forest Department of Karnataka has already flagged the likelihood of increased human—wildlife conflict arising from this development,” the CEC noted in the report.

The CEC has noted that the decision to reduce the ESZ was taken in the Cabinet Sub-Committee meeting chaired by the Karnataka Environment Minister in 2017, and that this is contrary to para 6.2 of the 2011 Guidelines for Declaration of ESZ around National Parks and Wildlife Sanctuaries, which requires the state government to constitute a committee comprising the Chief Wildlife Warden, an ecologist, a representative of the local self-government and an officer of the revenue department to assess and recommend the appropriate extent of the ESZ for its management and the activities incorporated in the master plan for the region.

“The revised proposal for reduction in ESZ is in violation of the 2011 guidelines,” the CEC stated.

Opposition from farmers

Many farmers have protested against the housing project and have even filed petitions challenging the acquisition of their agricultural land.

“If a stadium comes here, will they allow farmers’ children and local youth to use the facilities? At best, our children will be offered the job of security guards, or they will be selling tickets for cricket matches”NagarajA farmer

“The KHB has forced many farmers to part with their arable land for the KHB Surya City. Why should our land be forcibly acquired when we still want to continue with our agricultural activities? Anekal taluk was once known as the ‘Ragi Bowl of Karnataka’, but large tracts of arable land have been forcefully acquired, and farmers who don’t want to part with their land are being threatened,” Somashekar T., a farmer from Kadajakkanahalli, told The Hindu.

Local farmers and environmental activists said that about 36,000 housing sites would be created in the 2,200 acres of land earmarked for the project.

“Apart from being agricultural land, it is in the elephant corridor and comes under the ESZ. If large-scale commercialisation takes place, and complexes and stadiums are built here, it will cause a lot of harm to the environment,” said Shivakumar L., a farmer from Indlawadi.

In August 2025, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah cleared a proposal by the KHB to build a state-of-the-art sports complex, including a cricket stadium with 80,000-seat capacity in Surya City.

“Stadiums are usually built by the Department of Sports or Youth Affairs. Why is KHB involved in this? If this stadium comes here, there is no benefit for us. Will they allow the farmers’ children or local youth to use the facilities? At best, our children will be offered the job of security guards, or they will be selling tickets for cricket matches,” said Nagaraj, another farmer.

Elephant corridor

According to ecologist T.V. Ramachandra, who conducted a study on the BNP ESZ for the Forest Department, the national park is one of the oldest habitats of Asian elephants, supporting a population of 100-150 pachyderms, and a large (200-300) migratory population is noticed from adjoining Tali reserve forest and Cauvery wildlife Sanctuary.

Professor T.V. Ramachandra explains his research on the protection of the environment and the ecologically fragile regions surrounding the Bannerghatta National Park at IISc, in Bengaluru.
| Photo Credit:
ALLEN EGENUSE J.

The study said that BNP acts as a terminal point on the northern side of Mysore Elephant Reserve, the movement path for Asian Elephants to migrate from the adjacent Cauvery wildlife Sanctuary of Karnataka, and Krishnagiri and Hosur Forest Division of Tamil Nadu which is in continuum with the Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve carved out of Western Ghats forest at Nilgiris stretching through M.M. hills, Biligiri Ranga Temple Sanctuary, Kollegal Forest Division and Sathyamangalam Forest of Tamil Nadu.

Apart from elephants, the BNP hosts several other wild animals. “The park constitutes the northern terminal of the notified Mysore Elephant Reserve. It comprises predominantly dry deciduous and scrub forests, with riverine and moist deciduous habitats in the valleys, supports breeding populations of elephants and other keystone wildlife species such as leopard, wild dog, gaur, sambar, chital, sloth bear, and slender loris, and functions as an important watershed giving rise to several tributaries that ultimately drain into the river Cauvery,” the CEC report states.

Tigers seen since 2015

Urs said that two tigers have been spotted in BNP in the last few years.“Two tigers have been spotted since 2015. They have come from the Cauvery wildlife Sanctuary, and they are making this (BNP) their habitat,” he said. 

The petitioners said that with thousands of new residents, vehicles, lights, and waste entering the landscape, encounters with elephants, leopards, bears, and other wildlife will no longer be occasional, but inevitable.