New Delhi, Feb 26 (PTI) Hailing the Karnataka government's decision to declare its lands in the Yelahanka taluk of Bengaluru Urban district as the Greater Hesaraghatta Grassland Conservation Reserve, Congress leader Jairam Ramesh on Wednesday said the Siddaramaiah-led dispensation was demonstrating how economic growth, social development and ecological sustainability could go hand-in-hand.

The Karnataka government on Monday notified 5,678 acres and 32 guntas of land in the Yelahanka taluk as the Greater Hesaraghatta Grassland Conservation Reserve.

The notification came after the state Cabinet last month decided to declare the grassland as a conservation reserve.

Reacting to the development, former Union environment minister Ramesh said the Karnataka government had been attracting very many new investments since May 2023.

It has also been implementing historic income support, food security and other guarantees, he added.

"Now, it has taken a bold decision to finally declare about 5,700 acres of government lands in the Yelahanka taluk of Bengaluru Urban district as the Greater Hesaraghatta Grassland Conservation Reserve under the Wild Life (Protection) Act, 1972," Ramesh said in a post on X.

This grassland reserve is critical and, as a large catchment area, will greatly help in groundwater recharge for farmers in surrounding villages, Ramesh said.

It will augment the water supply to Bengaluru city, he further said.

"It will provide a natural carbon sink that mitigates effects of climate change in urban areas. It protects a rich biodiversity ecosystem that includes animals, insects, plants and trees, many of which are under serious threat," Ramesh said.

It will be a safe home for migratory birds arriving from Europe, Central Asia, Himalayan regions and the Arctic Circle, he noted.

"The Karnataka government is demonstrating how economic growth, social development and ecological sustainability can go hand-in-hand, as indeed they must at all times. This is a model for other states as well," the Congress general secretary said.

A notification dated February 24 states that the Karnataka government deemed it desirable to declare the specified area as the Greater Hesaraghatta Grassland Conservation Reserve due to its ecological, faunal, floral and geomorphological significance.

The government issued the notification to protect, propagate and develop the grassland, its wildlife and the crucial catchment area around Hesaraghatta, which serves as one of Bengaluru's water sources.

It clarified that the conservation reserve would not include any 'patta land' or affect existing rights.

The privileges of surrounding villagers will remain unaffected by this notification, it added. PTI ASK ASK SZM SZM

Grassland conservation reserve designation protects critical catchment, biodiversity and existing local rights under the Wild Life (Protection) Act. The government declared about 5,700 acres in Yelahanka taluk as the Greater Hesaraghatta Grassland Conservation Reserve under the Wild Life (Protection) Act, 1972 to protect and develop the grassland, its wildlife and the crucial catchment area, while excluding patta land and preserving existing rights and the privileges of surrounding villagers.