Micro and small development projects should continue in Western Ghats region: Agrometeorology Scientist

Agrometeorology scientist M.B. Raje Gowda has suggested modifications to the Kasturirangan report by allowing micro projects and small developmental activities to continue in the Western Ghats region.

He said that while the Kasturirangan committee has collected and provided information about the social development works in the Western Ghats areas in relation to biodiversity and the environmental situation, there is no qualitative information about climate change in that areas and other parts of the State, particularly rainfall patterns and distribution, advantages and disadvantages in the agricultural sector

“Climate change is happening in the Ghat areas resulting in altered rainfall in other parts of the State. Our attempt is to highlight the research findings on the benefits experienced by the State’s agricultural sector owing to one of these situations,” he said.

He added that while reviewing the overall rainfall and agricultural conditions in Karnataka from 1900 to 2020, the average temperatures in the State increased by upto 1.5 degrees Celsius, rainfall has increased and significant changes in distribution have been observed.

Mr. Gowda said the State average annual rainfall, which was 1,140 mm during 1900 to 1950, has increased to 1,218 mm during 1980 and 2020. However along the coast and in the western parts of the hilly regions, the annual rainfall decreased slightly, by about 10 to 15%. On the other hand, in most of the State’s interior areas, annual and monsoon rainfall has increased.

In the northern and southern interior districts, monsoon rainfall has increased by about 100 to 200 mm.

“As a result, the agricultural land of 40-50 lakh hectares in the 1950s has increased to 1 lakh hectares in 2020. And the agricultural production, which was 4 to 5 million tonnes has now increased to 13 million tonnes,” he said.

Mr. Gowda said said that the scientific reason for this is because the monsoon clouds originating in the Indian Ocean cross the equator and enter the western coast through the Arabian Sea, where 76% of the clouds precipitates in the coast and western part of the Ghats and only 25% of the clouds cross the Western Ghats and move into plain interior Karnataka.