Public opposition grows against lifting night traffic ban through Bandipur 

Local farmers underlined the imperatives of disturbance-free habitat for wildlife and the imperatives of continuing the ban, at a meeting held at Moolehole in Bandipur on Sunday.
| Photo Credit: M.A. SRIRAM

Public opposition to the possible lifting of the night traffic ban on NH 766 through Bandipur is gathering momentum with local farmers questioning the government of the rationale to reconsider the original decision, which has also been upheld by the courts.

Night traffic through Bandipur is banned from 9 p.m. to 6 a.m. since 2010 and was introduced to provide a reprieve to the wildlife from disturbance and as a measure to minimise deaths of animals run over by speeding vehicles. But there are speculations that, under pressure, the government may lift the ban, and hence the protests.

At a meeting held at Moolehole in Bandipur on Sunday, local farmers underlined the imperatives of disturbance-free habitat for wildlife and the imperatives of continuing the ban.

“While the road kills have reduced over the years, it has also helped wildlife to thrive, as evident in the increase in the animal population,” said Srikanta, a farmer from Jakkahalli village in the Bandipur buffer zone.

He said that traffic density has gone up in the last 15 years, and the reintroduction of night traffic through Bandipur will increase the grim prospects of a rise in animal deaths due to accidents.

Nagarajuna Kumar of Shivapura village in Gundlupet taluk said the views of the local people have to be considered before taking such decisions and claimed there was an overwhelming support for night traffic ban through the forests.

“When the road is open for 15 hours a day, what is the need for insisting on travelling at night unless one is indulging in illegal activities,” he added. There is a consensus among the activists that the politicians were under pressure from the timber lobby, mining lobby, etc., to carry on with their lucrative business unhindered.

Mr. Nagarajuna Kumar said there were nearly 124 villages around Bandipur that were in the Eco Sensitive Zone, and disturbance to wildlife would have a negative impact on the local residents as they would bear the brunt of a consequent increase in human-animal conflicts.

Kiran Bagade, a naturalist from Mysuru, pointed out that Bandipur was a critical wildlife and tiger habitat with a high density of animals. Before the ban, scores of animals used to perish in accidents, and these numbers have come down, he added, questioning the need to lift the night traffic ban.

Girish of Aranya Outreach, an NGO dedicated to conservation efforts, criticised Wayanad MP Priyanka Gandhi and Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, for advocating the lifting of the ban. He argued that their stance jeopardises the conservation legacy established by their grandmother, Indira Gandhi.

Meanwhile, Joseph Hoover of the UCM said farmers have agreed to launch a series of protests and strongly resist any move by the government to lift the ban on night traffic. A slew of protests have also been planned in Chamarajanagar, Mysuru, Bengaluru, and other places in the days ahead, he added.