Bandipur: Ban on vehicular movement put off again

 
The ban was to come into effect from Saturday night, as decided by forest officials of Bandipur on August 5.

Deputy Conservator of Forests of Bandipur National Park (Project Tiger) Dr Raju told Deccan Herald that the department had sent a detailed report to the State government for approval.

Once the government gave the green signal, the forest department would file a report in the form of a reply before the Karnataka High Court.

The report has suggested implementation of the ban orders in a phased manner. Now, the department has been concentrating on creating awareness among drivers travelling regularly on this road. The ban on the movement of vehicles was the last resort, he added.

Tough time   

He said on August 5, more than 300 vehicles had piled up at the entry point of the national park leading to trouble and the forest staff had a tough time to clear the traffic.

Interestingly, despite regular media coverage, many tourist operators of Kerala have claimed that they were not aware of the ban. If the vehicles are stopped near or inside the forest, it could lead to more problems. If families are travelling, they would be put up to a lot of inconvenience, observed Dr Raju.

Awareness

"We are committed to implementing the High Court's orders in phases only after creating awareness among the people of Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Kerala,” he added.

Meanwhile, Chamarajanagar Deputy Commissioner Manojkumar Meena welcomed the decision of forest department to implement the ban orders in a phased manner.

He said it was a wise decision as they had to protect the interest of travelling public, as well as wild animals in the national park.