Mega Plantation · 8km from Vijayapura City

Karad Doddi Forest

In 2017 it was completely barren. Seven years later, trees stand over 6 feet tall and dozens of bird species have made it home. This is what 540 acres of rocky land looks like when you refuse to give up on it.

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Dr. MB Patil's Vision

The Biggest Patch of Land Near the City. Why Was It Empty?

Karad Doddi sits about 8 kilometres from Vijayapura city. It is the largest patch of Revenue department land close to the city - 540 acres of it. And in 2017, when the Koti Vruksha Abhiyan team first visited, it was completely barren. Rocky, hard terrain with no trees, no shade, and no life.

Dr. M. B. Patil saw it differently. He was then handling the irrigation portfolio and serving as Vijayapura's district minister. He knew the land was sitting next to Bhutanal tank, which meant water was accessible. He convinced the district administration to hand the land over to the Forest Department and make it part of Koti Vruksha Abhiyan.

The idea was not just to plant trees. It was to create a green lung for the city. A place where people could walk in the morning, where birds could nest, where the air would be cleaner. A forest that belonged to Vijayapura and its people.

Aerial view of Karad Doddi forest showing the green transformation

The Challenge

Rocky Ground, Scorching Summers, No Easy Answers

Karad Doddi was not just empty land. It was hard land. The kind that pushes back.

Rocky Terrain

The ground at Karad Doddi is hard and rocky. You cannot just dig a pit with a spade. The Forest Department had to bring in breakers and earthmovers to create planting pits. Every hole in the ground was a small battle against the rock.

Surviving the Summer

Drip irrigation was the first plan. But the rocky terrain made micro irrigation inefficient. So the team switched to water tankers - eight of them, running every day for over two months through the drought season, keeping the young saplings alive one by one.

Choosing the Right Species

Not every tree can grow in rocky, dry soil. The team identified 70+ varieties suited to Karad Doddi's conditions - plants that need little water, can handle scorching heat, and will eventually produce fruit, timber, or medicinal value for the community.

Karad Doddi forest today - dense green canopy from aerial view

Seven Years Later

Trees Over 6 Feet Tall. Birds Everywhere.

The forest that was not supposed to be possible is now real. Trees stand over 6 feet tall across the 540 acres. Dozens of bird species have moved in. People from the city come here every morning to walk.

Mahantesh Bijjaragi, a local businessman, has been walking in Karad Doddi every morning for three years. "Vijayapura needs more such plantations," he says. "People should be made aware of the importance of forests and greenery."

Dr. M. B. Patil's vision for Karad Doddi goes further still. The plan is to add a walking track, a garden, an aquarium, and a food court - turning it into a recreational forest that the whole city can use. A green space that earns its place in people's daily lives.

Community at the Centre

When Farmers Started Queuing for Saplings

The Karad Doddi project did not just plant trees. It changed how people in Vijayapura think about trees.

In the beginning, the Koti Vruksha Abhiyan team had to hold camps and go door to door to convince farmers to take saplings. People were sceptical. They had seen afforestation drives come and go. They did not believe this one would be different.

Then something shifted. The trees at Karad Doddi started growing. The forest started looking like a forest. And suddenly, farmers were not waiting to be convinced. They were showing up in large numbers, standing in queues, asking for specific varieties - mango, sapota, custard apple, sandalwood, red sanders, Malabar neem.

The Forest Department had to start limiting distribution to manage the crowds. That is the moment you know something has changed. When people are competing to plant trees, the campaign has done its job.

NGOs joined in too. SPPA, Hasiru Torana Balaga, Hasiru Sampada, and Nanna Gida Nanna Bhumi all became part of the effort. Dhruva Patil of SPPA now brings Indian and foreign students to Karad doddi to show them what a community-built forest looks like.