M’lore: City Artists Create General Awareness on Anti-Netravati River Diversion Campaign

By Robert D Costa
Bellevision Media Network

Mangalore, 11 Sep 2013: The city based Karavali Chitrakala Chavadi, in collaboration with the botany department of St Aloysius College organized ‘Jana – Jala - Jagrati’, an awareness programme and spot painting workshop on the Netravati River diversion issue and the importance of Western Ghats, at College auditorium, here on Tuesday September 10 afternoon.

The artist and writer Dinesh Holla, Kudremukh Wildlife Foundation co-ordinator Niren Jain, Karavali Chitrakala Chavadi president Vishnu Shevgoor, the HOD of the biotechnology department Dr Nagalakshamma, and the HOD of the botany department Sureshnath were the chief guests of the occasion.

The resource persons, Holla is an artist and writer by profession who is known for his art exhibitions. He has designed India’s biggest kite ever and has taken part in a number of national and international level kite festivals.

 

 

Holla spoke about the Western Ghats and Nethravati River, the lifeline of Dakshina Kannada district. He explained how if the river was diverted, the source of the river and Western Ghats would be affected. He said that the endangered animals and birds there would become extinct.

Jain, a national and international awardee, member of the Wildlife Conservation Society - New York, and a trekker, made a power point presentation on ‘Yettinahole Diversion Project’, through which he conveyed the message that the diversion project would be an emerging threat to the coastal region and would cause imbalance in the eco system. He also said that the Western Ghats, the reserve forests and the wildlife would be ruined if project was continued.

Speaking about the issue, Sureshnath said that public apathy was the reason for social degradation.

 Sapna Noronha, a member of Karavali Chitrakala Chavadi said that to spread awareness about the dangers to environment, the four-year-old Karavali Chitrakala Chavadi had organized many environment related programmess in colleges before.
 In the spot painting workshop artists from around the city canvas painted in the college premises. Students of the college were also given the opportunity of drawing and expressing their views on the Anti-Netravati diversion campaign.