It was on February 19 this year that the eco-tourism centres under the control of the Wayanad Forest Department were closed all at once. Since then, many spots like Kuruva Island, Tholpetty Wildlife Sanctuary, Brahmagiri Trekking Centre, Soochipara Falls, Meenmutty Falls, Chembra Peak, Muneeswaran Kunnu, and Muthanga Wildlife Sanctuary remain closed. All these were major tourism centres of Wayanad and travellers of all kinds loved their vibe. There are very few tourism centres under the District Tourism Promotion Council (DTPC) and other agencies that are functioning at present and even after five months, there has been no action to reopen them. The government is yet to decide on the matter, as it is currently sub judice.
Why the closure?
All the eco-tourism centres were closed all of a sudden after Paul, an employee of the Forest Protection Committee, was killed by a wild elephant at Pakkam in Mananthavady. Eco tourism centres are usually closed for one or two months during the hot summer to prevent forest fires but they are reopened once the monsoon begins. After the wildlife attacks escalated, nature conservationists approached the High Court and filed a petition to close down the eco-tourism centres and the court passed an order stating that the eco-tourism centres should be re-opened only on the directive of the court.
According to South Wayanad Divisional Forest Officer Ajit K. Raman, the Forest Department has filed an affidavit in court advocating for the reopening of the tourism centres. The continued closure of the centres is also putting the Forest Department in crisis. 120 people are working in the Forest Protection Committee in the South Wayanad Division alone. They have been temporarily assigned to other posts. They have been retained in the hope of reopening the eco-tourism centres. Issues such as paying them salaries are facing a crisis. Their salaries and other expenses, including those of temporary watchers, were previously covered by income from tourism centres. The DFO noted that the delay in reopening the eco-tourism centres has also put salary disbursements in crisis. The Forest Department suggested to the court that the centres be reopened and operated by restricting the number of people entering the eco-tourism centres and increasing the ticket fares. As the court has yet to hear the case, the reopening of the centres remains uncertain. Meanwhile, eco-tourism centres in other Kerala districts remain operational.
Starvation looms for locals
Conservationists claim that human encroachment into forests is driving wild animals into rural areas. However, those advocating for the reopening of tourism centres argue that wildlife encroachment has continued unabated despite the closures. They argue that one person was killed in a wild elephant attack in Sulthan Bathery last week and that a herd of wild elephants and a tiger had entered Panamaram last month as evidence for their argument. Sandeep, who runs a tea shop near the Meenmutty Falls at Padinjarathara, says that the closure of tourism centres will serve no purpose other than to push those who are already poor into starvation. Sandeep added that when there are efforts to establish a zoo safari park on 256 acres in Kannur, the authorities are treating Wayanad with a hostile attitude.
