Western Ghats Eco-Sensitive Area Still Not Final as Floods, Droughts and Landslides Rise
A new study by the Vidhi Centre for Legal Policy looked at official data for the 47 districts covered by the proposed Western Ghats Ecologically Sensitive Area (ESA). These districts lie in six states: Gujarat, Maharashtra, Goa, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Kerala.
The Union Environment Ministry (MoEFCC) issued the seventh draft notification for the ESA on 27 July 2026. It covers 56,825.7 sq km. The area becomes legally protected only when the final notification is issued, and that has still not happened.
Floods: Flood events in the region rose by about 1,000% between 1970-80 and 2010-20, against about 410% for India as a whole. The region's share of India's floods rose from 13.4% to 28.9% in the same period.
Landslides: The ESA districts recorded 7,983 landslides between 1905 and 2024. That is 23.3% of India's recorded total. Thirteen of these districts are among India's 50 most landslide-affected districts. Idukki in Kerala alone had 1,791.
Droughts: Between 2011-12 and 2025-26, 38 of the 47 districts were declared drought-hit at least once, with 157 declarations in total. Karnataka was hit the hardest.
The study warns that the Ghats' natural ability to absorb shocks will keep weakening until the ESA is finally notified, because the rules on mining, quarrying and big construction apply only after that.
Ecologically Sensitive Areas (ESAs) and the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986
An Ecologically Sensitive Area is a piece of land that the Central Government marks as very fragile and very valuable for nature. Inside it, harmful activities like mining, quarrying, big polluting factories and large townships are banned or strictly controlled. People can still live, farm and run their normal lives there. The Western Ghats ESA has been proposed for more than ten years but is still not final.
The new study shows the 47 proposed ESA districts are getting more floods, longer dry spells and many landslides. Until the Centre issues the final notification under the Environment (Protection) Act, the restrictions on mining and quarrying cannot be enforced, so the area stays exposed.
The Gadgil and Kasturirangan Committees on Western Ghats Conservation
India set up two expert groups, one after the other, to decide how to protect the Western Ghats. The first, led by ecologist Madhav Gadgil, wanted almost the whole range treated as sensitive. States and many local groups opposed it. The second, led by space scientist K. Kasturirangan, cut the protected area down to about 37% of the Ghats. Every ESA draft since 2014 has been based on this second report.
The flood, drought and landslide data in the new study add weight to the warnings both committees gave more than a decade ago. The gap between their reports and a final notification is the "stuck" process this news describes.
Landslides in India: Causes, Hazard Zones and Risk Management
A landslide is the sudden movement of rock, soil or debris down a slope. It happens when the force pulling the slope down (gravity) becomes stronger than the force holding it in place. Heavy rain, earthquakes, and human actions like cutting slopes for roads all upset this balance. In India, landslides kill people every monsoon, mostly in the Himalayas, the North-East and the Western Ghats.
The new study finds that the 47 proposed ESA districts account for 23.3% of India's recorded landslides, with Idukki in Kerala second in the country. Disasters like Malin, Pettimudi, Taliye, Shirur and Wayanad all happened in this zone. This is why experts link a final ESA notification, with its curbs on quarrying and slope-cutting, to reducing landslide risk.
- Proposed Western Ghats ESA: 56,825.7 sq km, 47 districts, 6 states (Gujarat, Maharashtra, Goa, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Kerala)
- Seventh draft notification: 27 July 2026, by MoEFCC; first draft was in March 2014
- Floods in the region: up about 1,000% (1970-80 to 2010-20) vs 410% nationally; share of India's floods up from 13.4% to 28.9%
- Average floods per district per year rose from 0.23 to 1.64
- Most floods: Thiruvananthapuram (232), Wayanad (149), Pune (139), Idukki (116)
- Landslides 1905-2024: 7,983 (23.3% of India's total); Kerala 3,283; Idukki 1,791
- Droughts 2011-12 to 2025-26: 38 of 47 districts, 157 declarations; all 10 proposed Karnataka districts hit (69 declarations); Goa and Gujarat none
- Kasturirangan Committee (2013): about 37% of the Western Ghats as ESA; Gadgil Committee (2011): whole range in three zones