A 225-km yatra to save the endangered sacred groves of Rajasthan

Subject: Environment

Context:

A unique 225-km-long yatra taken out through remote villages and hamlets in western Rajasthan, a powerful voice to the demand for protection of orans or sacred groves facing the threat of destruction with their land being allotted for renewable energy infrastructure and high-tension power lines.

About Orans:

Named after local deities and medieval warriors, orans hold religious and social significance as small forest patches in the middle of the mighty Thar desert.
Orans also form the natural habitat for India’s most critically endangered bird, the Great Indian Bustard (GIB), a protected species under the Wildlife Protection Act, which is also the State bird of Rajasthan.
Orans ensured food and fodder for the community and the herds of camels, sheep and goats during drought.
These orans are hotspots of biodiversity with trees and flowers like rohida, bordi, kumbhat, and desi babool in large numbers.
There are different varieties of grasses like sevan and murath as well, making these grasslands home to more than 250 species of birds and animals, including the great Indian bustard, McQueen bustard, chinkara, Indian desert cat, desert fox, etc
Tradition dictates that no tree or plant in the groves is cut and only seasonal grazing of livestock is allowed.

Why the protest is happening?

The allotment of their land to solar and wind energy, mining and other industries was affecting the ecology of the region. The land was also diverted for agriculture and other projects of the administration.
solar power companies have felled khejri and other trees to install their big projects.

The demand of the protesters:

The orans are listed as ‘wastelands’ in the revenue records. The Degrai Oran is around 10,000 hectares (60,000 bighas), but only 4,000 hectares are recognised as oran, which is listed as common land. The rest is categorised as the wasteland.
Demand for an urgent action to register orans as “protected land” in the revenue records of the State government.