Q. ‘Gadgil Committee Report’ and ‘Kasturirangam Committee Report’, sometimes seen in the news, are related to

  • constitutional reforms
  • Ganga Action Plan
  • linking of rivers
  • protection of Western Ghats

Answer: (d) protection of Western Ghats

Notes:

  • Gadgil Committee:
    • Also known as the Western Ghats Ecology Expert Panel (WGEEP), it recommended that all of the Western Ghats be declared as the Ecological Sensitive Areas (ESA) with only limited development allowed in graded zones.
    • It classified the whole of the Western Ghats, spread across six states and covering 44 districts and 142 talukas, as an Eco-Sensitive Zone (ESZ).
  • Kasturirangan Committee:
    • It sought to balance development and environment protection in contrast to the system proposed by the Gadgil report.
    • The Kasturirangan committee recommended that instead of the total area of Western Ghats, only 37% of the total area should be brought under ESA and a complete ban on mining, quarrying and sand mining be imposed in ESA.