CANACONAThe Shristhal BiodiversityManagement Committee(BMC) has recommended thedeclaration of the Gulem hillock,known as GhodyapaikakodilThikan, as a BiodiversityHeritage Site.The Goa State Bio-DiversityBoard (GSBDB) has set theball rolling to identify anddeclareBiodiversity HeritageSites (BHS) in various internalbiological and traditionallysites in the State.The GSBDB had invited proposalsand appealed to variousgovernment authoritiesand department heads to havea consultation with local bodiesand identify the
potentialheritage sites, as part of effortsto restore and protect rich ecosystemsby declaring them BiodiversityHeritage Sites.The Shristhal BMC undertooka trek trip in search ofheritage sites and visited theGulem hill, which is coveredwith medicinal plants, ethnictrees and wildlife.The place is locally known as'Ghodyapaik' Shree GhodyapaikakodilThikan or the placeof the village deity of the localtribal communities of Gulemvillage.Every year, villagers ofGulem worship this deity duringthe onset of monsoon seasonin June by performing ritualsand offering earthen idols toGod Shree Ghodyapaik Dev.Those present at the siteinspection included GSBDBMember Secretary PradeepSarmukadam and his team,Shristhal Sarpanch GaneshBhiva Gaonkar, ShristhalBMC Chairman Vinay Tubki,Zoology professor and technicalteam incharge of ShristhalBMC Deepak Bolwekar,BMC members Shirish Pai,Damodar Vasant Chari, AnjaliGaonkar, Govind BhongoVelip, locals familiar with medicinalplants Tolu Gaonkar,Thulo Bombo Gaonkar, TejasNaik Gaonkar, Pratap NaikGaonkar and Satyawan NaikGaonkar.GSBDB Member SecretaryDr Pradeep Sarmukadam inspectedthe site and said theGulem heritage site has a verydifferent and unique concept.“However, the primary objectiveis to strengthen thebiodiversity conservation intraditionally managed areas,as such areas also often representa positive interference betweennature, culture and society,”said Dr Sarmukadam.Dr Sarmukadam clarifiedthat the creation of BHSwould not put any restrictionson prevailing practices andtraditions of local communities,other than those voluntarilydecided by them.He stated that the purposeis to enhance the quality oflife of the local communitiesthrough this conservationmeasures.“It will be highlighted inthe tourism plan of the area,which will bring in additionalrevenue for the people,” saidsaid Dr Sarmukadam, allayingapprehensions from the localcommunity.He informed that an areacan be declared a biodiversityheritage site if it has a uniqueand rich flora and fauna ortraditional knowledge andpractices.
