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Shivapura etc. also block the movement of Elephants. To alleviate the problem of the people living close to the park due to the straying out of the elephants from the park, the Government is considering the necessity of widening and developing of the Elephant corridors of the Bannerghatta National Park.
Karnataka is a mega biodiversity state with 13% of its forests under Wildlife protected areas covering an area of around 6500 sq km,
most of which are located in the Western Ghats complex.
With recent advances in landscape ecology, fragmentation of habitat is identified as one of the most serious threats to biodiversity conservation.
In Karnataka too, many of the 28 notified National Parks and Wildlife Sanctuaries are small pockets of protected areas (PAs) amidst a landscape
mosaic of reserved forests, coffee plantations, agricultural enclaves and human settlements. With population densities in excess of 10 people per square
kilometer, even inside some of our PAs, it is vitally important for any long-term conservation plan to address this major threat of fragmentation and devise
site-specific solutions.
Bannerghatta National Park is a tiny 104 sq km area located just 25 km from Bangalore, the Information Technology capital of the
country, which is home to some mega fauna which
includes the Asiatic elephant, Leopard and ungulates like the Sambar, Axis deer, Muntjac and around 180 species of birds.
Most Asian reserves are too small to maintain viable populations of large mammals over the long term but auxiliary landscape
features such as corridors, buffer zones and multiple use areas may allow for persistence of endangered species living in fragmented habitats
(Dinnerstein et al 1999). While Bannerghatta National Park is under serious threat from the expanding city, a unique conservation opportunity
exists to consolidate the area, through creation of corridors and buffer zones, which can support mega fauna like the elephant and leopard so
close to a metropolis.
Ramakrishna Mission has been playing the lead role in implementing all community development activities including building necessary
local community support for creation of the ecologically sensitive areas / buffer zones and for voluntary resettlements, community education and conflict resolution activities.
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