Madikeri: Summer is intensifying and not only rivers which are the lifeline of the people that are going dry creating drinking water problems, even the forests are going dry causing a lot of problems to wild animals and birds.
One of the common scenes in the Anechowkur forest region in Virajpet taluk of Kodagu District is of a wild elephant lifting water from a pond through its trunk, even as a deer quietly comes to the pond with fear writ large on its face seeing the huge elephant, takes a sip and darts away. It is surprising how nature works. Just a few months ago, a part of Kodagu was devastated with floods, but now with the sun blazing not only humans but even animals and birds are tottering due to lack of water. As the temperatures keep rising, the lakes, the ponds and the waterholes are all drying up.
