BENGALURU: The Karnataka forest department is collating data for the State government, which is keen to file a counter-affidavit in the Supreme Court on alternative solutions against the ban on movement of vehicles during night hours through Bandipur Tiger Reserve (BTR) on National Highway-212 (also called NH-766).
“We don’t want the ban order issued by Supreme Court to be revoked. There is a lot of pressure from the government to lift it or find alternative solutions. One of the alternatives we are thinking of is whether the number of vehicles plying through the reserve could be increased,” department sources told TNIE.
As per the Supreme Court and Karnataka High Court orders, only four vehicles from Karnataka and Kerala are permitted to ply through NH-766 from 9 pm to 6 am. This is apart from emergency vehicles.
The exercise of collating data started after Forests Minister Eshwar B Khandre held a meeting with officials to discuss alternatives to address the night traffic ban.
“The meeting was called following increasing pressure from Wayanad Member of Parliament Priyanka Gandhi Vadra to lift the ban,” the source said. According to data, there have been 29 recorded roadkills on roads cutting through BTR from 2021-24. The animals include deer, wild boar, civet cat, tiger and elephant.
“Most deaths occurred during the evening and early morning hours, when vehicles speed through, aiming to cross the gates before they are closed or soon after they open. There are fewer incidents of overspeeding and collision with animals during the daytime, as animals usually tend to avoid crossing roads. If night traffic ban is lifted or the number of vehicles increases, the number of animals dying in road accidents will rise,” said a forest official, not wanting to be named.
Officials said many incidents are also reported outside forest fringes, near villages. Despite putting up speed breakers, accidents are on the rise. “We are also using technology and speed meters to track the speed of vehicles, but a lot more needs to be done,” the official added.
The SC had issued orders banning the movement of vehicles from 9pm to 6am on the 24.7-km stretch of NH-766 in 2019. Following suggestions of the SC and HC, the Karnataka government developed NH-275 (State Highway-90) from Mysuru to Wayanad for non-stop movement of vehicles. This road connects Hunsur, Gonikoppa, Kutta, Sulthan Bathery and Moolehole to Wayanad, and is 35km longer than NH-766.