Adivasi farmers threaten existence of Wenlock Downs, one of the last remaining grasslands in the Nilgiris

Over a hundred hectares of the last remaining grasslands in the upper Nilgiris, in Wenlock Downs, is being slowly eroded by encroachments by the Shola-grasslands’ former adivasi protectors — the Todas and Kotas. According to Forest Department officials, over a 100 hectares of the total expanse of 1,500 hectares of land designated as “forest lands” in the Udhagai North Range, have been encroached upon by the Todas and Kotas, many of whom have leased their lands to non-tribals in exchange for a small fee.