CAUVERY
BASIN - GEOGRAPHY
News:
Natural vegetation on
nearly 12,850 sq. km in the Cauvery basin has been lost, says a research paper
What's
in the news?
●
Natural vegetation on nearly 12,850 sq. km
of land in the Cauvery basin was lost in the 50 years between 1965 to 2016,
according to a recent paper published by scientists and researchers at the Indian Institute of Science (IISc),
Bengaluru.
Key
takeaways:
●
Karnataka
has lost much more than any other State in the basin. It accounts for three-fourths of the lost cover, while Tamil Nadu’s share is around one-fifth,
the study added.
Cauvery
Basin:
●
The Cauvery basin has witnessed the loss
of approximately 12,850 sq. km of natural vegetation between 1965 and 2016,
with Karnataka accounting for three-fourths of the
decline, according to a study by scientists at the Indian Institute of
Science (IISc), Bengaluru.
●
Karnataka
has just around 20% of the area under forest cover.
Key
takeaways of the Report:
●
46% reduction in natural vegetation cover,
with dense vegetation decreasing by 35% and degraded vegetation by 63%.
●
Adverse changes in forest cover in
areas such as the Brahmagiri
Wildlife Sanctuary and national parks like Bandipur and Nagarhole.
Recommendations:
●
Integrated catchment management.
●
Sustainable agricultural practices.
Cauvery
River:
●
It is the third largest river after Godavari and Krishna
in Southern India.
●
It is the largest in the state of Tamil Nadu.
●
It is also known as ‘Ponni’ in Tamil.
●
It originates in Karnataka (Talakaveri in the
Brahmagiri range in the Western Ghats, Kodagu district) and eventually drain
into Bay of Bengal.
Flowing
States/UTs:
●
Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Puducherry.
Tributaries:
●
Its left bank
tributaries include Arkavathi, Hemavathi, Shimsa, and Harangi.
●
Its right
bank tributaries consist of Lakshmantirtha, Suvarnavati, Noyil,
Bhavani, Kabini, and Amaravathi.