Hill station sealed for minister, irks visitors

Irate visitors to the Jogimatti hill station in Chitradurga district broke open the lock and entered the tourist spot on Sunday.

They were angry because the hill station was locked up to facilitate the visit of Forest, Ecology and Environment Minister R Shankar.

Jogimatti is a hill station and forest reserve in Chitradurga, Karnataka. The reserve covers 10,048.97 hectares in Chitradurga, Holalkere and Hiriyur taluks.

The hill station's authorities were unable to stop the tourists from breaking in and remained silent spectators.

Shankar who visited Jogimatti on Saturday night halted at the tourist bungalow for the night.

Consequently, the authorities sealed off the hill station preventing entry to visitors who came to enjoy the fresh air of dawn at the place.

There were over 50 two-wheelers and 25 cars parked at the entrance on Sunday morning.

At around 8 am, the visitors' patience wore off and rage boiled over.

Following a heated argument with the security staff, they forcibly entered the hill station by breaking open the gate lock with a big stone.

They did not heed the officials' request that the gate would be opened after the minister's departure.