UDUPI: The forest department's Someshwara wildlife range officials have begun a drive to slap fines on tourists who feed simians and discard packets, boxes of the food along Agumbe Ghat road stretch.
About 40 staffers of the forest department have been deputed to guard the 10 km stretch, from Someshwara to Agumbe, to keep an eye on those who create a nuisance.
They (the staffers) educate people at Someshwar and Agumbe (the two ends of the Ghat section) and impose fines on those who violate the rules.
Agumbe Ghat, connecting Udupi and Shivamogga district, is a busy road stretch on NH 169 A and receives hundreds of visitors for its views.
The number of tourists visiting this scenic spot swells up especially during holidays and weekends.
There are many simians found in this forest tourists often stop by to feed them.
Lion-tailed macaques, endemic to the Western Ghats, are also found here and some tourists feed them with fruits, junk food, post which they dump the packets in the forest.
Taking stock of the situation, the forest department has now begun imposing fines in a bid to curb such activities.
On Saturday, a fine was imposed on nine people who were found feeding monkeys and consequently dumping the waste on the roadside.
"Feeding food to animals affects their natural eating habit. Their food system gets affected and they will wait for this food. If they do not get food, there are possibilities of them attacking people. So this step was taken, said Anil Kumar, RFO, Someshwara wildlife range, Hebri.
‘‘Such contacts are also dangerous as there are possibilities of transmission of disease from animals to human’’ he informed.
The forest department will collect a fine of Rs 100 for dumping waste and plastic on the roadside.
Entering forest without permission, cooking inside the forest, having a bath at the roadside falls and cleaning vehicles, staying in the forest more than the fixed time would attract the fine of Rs 200. Fine of Rs 50 will be imposed on those who feed wild animals.