Despite the closure of 39 resorts “illegally operating” in the notified elephant corridor in the buffer zone of the Mudumalai Tiger Reserve (MTR), a few of them continue to function surreptitiously. This is notwithstanding efforts of the District Administration to crackdown on the resorts.
Of the 39 resorts against which action was taken in 2018, The Hindu contacted seven establishments, of which three agreed to bookings in their properties. A fourth resort claimed to be running another property outside the elephant corridor, while three others said that they were temporarily closed and would be functional in March and April during “peak tourist season.” A resort in Bokkapuram, said that they were accepting bookings only through “trusted sources.”
“Due to the elephant corridor case, which resulted in resorts around Bokkapuram being closed down, we have only limited rooms on our property which we rent out to guests,” said the resort manager. The only means of booking rooms were through the recommendations of the owners of the resort. “We are working in a legally grey area, and we send guests an account number to which they can directly transfer funds,” he added.
Two other resorts said that their original buildings had been closed down, but they let visitors stay in the buildings that have been allowed to function.
Nilgiris Collector J. Innocent Divya said that regular inspections are conducted in all the sealed resorts, and none of the sealed rooms have been opened nor have the seals been tampered with. However, some of the buildings in the sealed resorts, for which residential permits had been obtained by the owners were still functioning. “They have been strictly instructed that no commercial activities can be conducted and are only to be used by the owners for maintenance purposes,” she added.
Local residents, including owners of legal resorts in the surrounding areas alleged that these were the same buildings that were being rented out to guests surreptitiously. “From the resort owners I have spoken to, they all confess to taking in guests, and it is sort of an open secret that these establishments continue to function in some capacity,” said a long-time resident of Bokkapuram. The District Administration and the Forest Department served notices to three resorts, where guests and “tourism-related activities” were seen during an routine inspection, a few months ago.
“Some of these resorts have been reviewed online by guests during the period they are supposed to have been sealed, pointing to the fact that they are still being leased out to visiting tourists. It is clear that they continue to flout Supreme Court guidelines,” said a conservationist from the Nilgiris who requested anonymity.
The administration should insist that these owners take down online advertisements for their properties, and contact information which will allow customers to get in touch with them, he added. “They specify to guests to check-in to the rooms post a certain time in the evening and leave early in the morning before government officials can get wind of what is happening and launch inspections,” said a tribal resident of Bokkapuram, who routinely fixes rooms for guests to stay in. “Of course, this means that illegal night safaris and treks can still be organised into reserve forests with a ‘package’ being fixed at ₹5,000 for a group of three to four persons,” he said.
