Forest dwellers in the remote hamlets of M.M. Hills Wildlife Sanctuary cut off from the mainstream due to lack of connectivity will heave a sigh of relief with the inauguration of motorised transportation, on Saturday.
Four multipurpose vehicles are being pressed into service connecting these hamlets.
It is being funded by the district administration through District Minerals Fund and the keys of the four vehicles were handed over to the Forest Department by the Chamarajanagar Deputy Commissioner Charulatha Somal, on Friday.
The ‘’Jana-Vana Sethuve’’ as the initiative is called, aims to bridge the distance between the remote hamlets and the major human habitation around M.M. Hills.
Yedukondalu, Deputy Conservator of Forests, M.M. Hills Wildlife Sanctuary, said this is part of the outreach programme by the Chamarajanagar district administration and the Forest Department and will be functional covering the routes that lack public transportation.
The four multipurpose vehicles will function as an ambulance, a public bus ferrying passengers, as a ration bus transporting food and ration supply apart from doubling as a school bus by ferrying schoolchildren from their hamlets to schools. While the services will be free when the vehicle functions as an ambulance or a school bus, regular fares similar to state transport service charges will be levied if used for general transportation.
Some of the hamlets are situated along steep gradients and are not easily accessible as a result of which patients and pregnanat women or injured are physically carried for about 4 km before reaching the nearest point from where ambulance used to pick them up all these years.
The situation was similar in case of schoolchildren and tiny-tots had to walk through forests braving the presence of wild animals. In certain places like Doddaane, there were incidents of people being attacked or trampled by wild elephants.
Taking the geographical terrain into account, the authorities procured the four multi-purpose vehicles that can ply on jungle tracks and negotiate steep inclines besides carrying passengers and goods.
Four routes have been finalised and one route will connect Indiganatha-Tulsikere -M.M. Hills and Medagalaane. The second route will link Padasalnatha-Palar-M.M. Hills and the third route will connect M.M. Hills – Kokkabare-Tokere-Doddaane-Marthalli villages. The four route will link Pacchadoddi-Kanchahalli-Ajjipura villages and about 15 hamlets with nearly 5,000 people will stand to benefit from the initiative, according to Mr.Yadukondalu.
