The Pilikula Development Authority with the Deputy Commissioner of Dakshina Kannada as its chairperson will come into effect from April 1, 2021.
The authority has been constituted under the Pilikula Development Authority Act, 2018. It is a total 23-member body.
There will be a commissioner to manage the day-to-day affairs of the authority who will be the ex-officio member secretary of the authority.
There will be 17 ex-officio members. The MLAs of Mangaluru City South, Mangaluru City North and Moodbidri, the president of Moodushedde Gram Panchayat, and the captain of Pilikula Golf Course are its members. In addition, the government will have to nominate three members who are experts in the field of culture, wildlife, plant life, science, technology, heritage, fisheries and tourism.
Executive director (in-charge) of Dr. Shivarama Karantha Pilikula Nisargadhama Gokuldas Nayak told a team of visiting journalists on Friday that presently two societies managed the nisargadhama and the Pilikula Regional Science Centre. The authority will manage the both from next month.
Mr. Nayak said that the annual expenditure of the nisargadhama stood at ₹5 crore and the fee from gate collection a year ago (pre-COVID-19 period) stood at ₹3.5 crore per annum. The gate collection during post-COVID-19 period has decreased. “The tourist footfall to the nisargadhama has recovered by only 50%,” he said.
Mr. Nayak said that the innovation hub project and the urban eco park projects are underway in the nisargadhama now.
