BENGALURU: While 18-year-old Nishank was rescued after his fall in the Brahmagiri hills, forest officials, the district administration, and police officials admit that cases of trespass and illegal trekking are a matter of worry in the Chikkaballapur region, which houses a large area of hillocks and forest cover.
Officials point out that with a shortage of staff strength and a large area to cover, cases often go undetected, and only when rescue calls are made do cases come to light.
“Websites and companies post advertisements and messages, inviting enthusiastic trekkers and adventurists to the hills of Nandi, Brahmagiri, and Skandagiri for trekking, and stay overnight. When we get to know, we issue a notice and the message is deleted from the website, but the geolocation stays and people try to explore it by themselves. This is a big matter of concern,” said an official from the Chikkaballapur police team.
District officials and foresters also point out that Nishank had reached the gate and sought entry much before they are opened, by 5am. He had sought permission to go to Nandi Hills, but sneaked to Brahmagiri.
“He is not the only one. Some come down by themselves, unhurt, some others get stranded and tracing them becomes near impossible as there is only one staffer to patrol 2000 Ha. Sometimes, people are stuck for days and find their way out on their own. We have sought more security as the location is close to Bengaluru, and is an adventure hub, but the government pays little attention,” said a forest official.
The district administration pointed out that this is the constituency of Health Minister Dr K Sudhakar. “While the ropeway could be introduced here and efforts made to turn it into an international tourist hub, the government must ensure safety measures are in place as over 20 per cent of the area is under forest department,” a district official said.