The Chinnakkanal grama panchayat, near Munnar, in Idukki will approach the Kerala High Court against the recommendations of an expert panel appointed by the court to address human-animal conflict in the local body.
The panel submitted its report recently.
On Thursday, an all-party meeting convened by the panchayat passed a resolution against the panel recommendations and decided to approach the court. The meeting observed that the recommendations would negatively impact tourism and human life in the local body.
Chinnakkanal grama panchayat president N.M. Sreekumar said the local body would approach the court on Saturday. “The expert panel prepared their recommendations without considering the local body or the local people. If the recommendations are implemented, tourism and livelihood of the people in the region will be affected,” said Mr. Sreekumar.
“Following the court’s direction on July 14, 2023, boating was suspended in the Anayirankal dam. The panel claimed that if boating was stopped in Anayirankal, the human-elephant conflict in the Anayirankal and Chinnakkanal regions could be prevented. But despite suspending boating, wild animal attacks increased in the region,” said Mr. Sreekumar.
Out of tourism map
Kerala Homestay & Tourism Society (HATS) district vice-president and Chinnakkanal Destination convener Joy George said that Kolukkumalai jeep safari and Anayirankal dam boating were the major tourist attractions in Chinnakkanal. “The boating in the Anayirankal dam has already been stopped, and the recommendation about the Kolukkumalai safari will negatively impact the destination. If the Kolukkumalai jeep safari is stopped, Chinnakkanal will be out of the tourism map,” said Mr. George.
“Wild elephant presence has not been reported on the Kolukkumalai trekking route. The road connecting tea plantations was constructed over 100 years ago,” said Mr. George. He added that most of the recommendations of the panel were included in the report without proper study or discussion.
The expert panel has recommended to regulate tourism activities in the Munnar-Anayirankal area and to impose punishments through the Forest department if incidents of provoking/teasing the elephants are noticed. “A total of 187 jeeps ply from Suryanelli to Kolukkumalai as part of a 7-km off-road safari. A maximum of three trips per jeep are possible daily. This is definitely a source of disturbance to the habitat and wildlife in the area. No studies are available on the impact of this off-road safari. The concerned (District Tourism Promotion Council/Society) may be instructed to study the impact of the activity, suggesting mitigation measures. The work should be entrusted to an accredited agency. The number of trips or jeeps may be restricted or completely banned till the report is made available,” said the panel report.
