The Nilgiris district administration is awaiting instructions from the Tamil Nadu government on implementing the Madras High Court’s order mandating the obtaining of electronic passes (e-passes) for tourists entering the district from May 7 to June 30.
The exercise is being done to estimate the number of vehicles entering the ecologically-fragile district of Nilgiris and the hill station of Kodaikanal in Dindigul district, where uncontrolled tourism has led to massive destruction of the biosphere reserves.
According to local business owners, the announcement that e-passes need to be obtained before entering the Nilgiris has already led to cancellation of bookings at resorts and hotels. “Most people only hear of the system and do not know that it will come into effect only from May 7 and have ended up cancelling their reservations,” said a hotel manager from Udhagamandalam.
