COIMBATORE: The Madras High Court has directed the Coimbatore district collector to seal eight resorts in No. 24 Veerapandi village near Anaikatti that allegedly lack planning permission and other requisite licences and approvals.
According to the court order, SR Jungle Resort, Corniche Inn, Dolphins Resort and Restaurant, KK Selfie Point, Farm Retreat, Fire Fly Resort, Bharath Holidays Resort and Gmax Resort and Restaurant do not have planning permission and are set to face closure.
A special division bench comprising justices N Sathish Kumar and K Rajasekar directed the collector to verify the approvals granted by the panchayat for My Village Eco Tourist Resort in No. 24 Veerapandi village and Darza Resorts in Nanjundapuram village. The collector has also been asked to report to the court whether there were any violations or irregularities in granting the approvals. The matter will be heard next on September 18.
The committee constituted by the court under the chairmanship of the collector, comprising the Range Officer, Coimbatore North Tahsildar and the Block Development Officer (BDO) of Periyanaickenpalayam, will submit a report on the closure of the eight resorts at the next hearing.
The court also directed the committee to conduct further field inspections to ascertain whether any other resorts are functioning in the area. "If any other resorts are found to be functioning without the requisite permissions or approvals, appropriate action shall be taken against such establishments in accordance with the court's directions," the bench said.
Chennai-based activist N Muralitharan who had filed a writ petition, seeking regulation of illegal resorts in Anaikatti and measures to protect the elephant corridor, pointed out that around 20 resorts were functioning in and around Anaikatti. However, the committee had identified only 10 resorts, of which eight were ordered to be sealed, while the remaining two had approvals.
"We suspect that officials have deliberately avoided naming the other 10 resorts as they could allegedly be run by ministers, MLAs and other influential personalities. We will identify the resorts and submit the details to the court at the next hearing," Muralitharan said.
Meanwhile, revenue department sources said the collector was yet to issue orders for the closure of the eight resorts.
Tahsildar Jayakumar told TNIE that the action would involve multiple departments, including the DRDA, forest department and panchayat authorities, based on a joint inspection. He added that the collector was yet to issue formal directions regarding the closure.
Sources in the forest department also said they were yet to receive any instructions from the collector
