Wayanad Over Wildlife: New MP Rahul Gandhi Chooses Constituency Demand Over Wildlife, Signals Support For Bandipur Route Night Opening

Member of Parliament from Wayanad and former Congress president Rahul Gandhi on Thursday sought to know if it was possible to find an alternative to the night traffic ban on National Highway 212, which runs through the Bandipur National Park, without disturbing the wildlife.

This, he said, was to address the "hardships a large number of people living in North Malabar" were facing on account of the ban.

Thankfully, to the delight of wildlife enthusiasts and environmentalists and disappointment of the Gandhi scion, the Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways, responding to the question, wrote off the possibility of any such action.

Night Traffic Ban In Bandipur

There has been a ban on movement of vehicles on National Highway 212 that runs through the Bandipur Tiger Reserve in Karnataka since 2009. Based on a directive issued by the Chamarajanagar district administration, no vehicles are allowed to use the stretch of road between 9 pm and 6 am to avoid man-animal conflict, accidents and to protect wildlife on both sides of the state borders. The order was upheld by the Karnataka High Court on March 2010.

But this ban has been contested time and again by the Kerala state government and the transport lobby. In 2010, the transport department of Kerala had filed a petition against the Karnataka High Court order following which a special committee was constituted by the apex court. The committee had representatives from the transport departments of both states and the Centre and the National Tiger Conservation Authority.

In August 2018, the Centre had also proposed the construction of elevated corridors at four points on the stretch and widening of certain portions of the road to facilitate vehicular movement at night on the stretch. Activists had opposed this attempt by the Union government to lift the ban and the Karnataka government too refused to be a party to this proposal.

Despite reports by the National Tiger Reserve against any such construction in the area, the Union Road Ministry had proposed the lifting of the ban. But the Karnataka government had argued against it and contested that an alternative route through Hunsur-Gonikoppa-Kutta-Mananthavady had already been constructed for the purpose.

In February, much to the respite of activists, who began a ‘Save Bandipur’ campaign against the central government’s plans, the committee headed by the Union Cabinet Secretary recommended that the "the status quo shall be maintained on restriction of night-time traffic through Bandipur National Park, as it is a core area of wildlife habitat and an alternative route is already available for night time traffic and four buses and emergency vehicles are already permitted through Bandipur National Park.”

Bandipur Tiger Reserve

One of the premier tiger reserves in the country, Bandipur was once the private hunting reserve for the Maharaja of Mysore. National Highway 766 (earlier 212) passes through this reserve forest and the reserve park and its inhabitants have paid quite a heavy price for letting humans have their way quite literally.

It was only after the ban was imposed that there was a reduction in the death of wild animals in the stretch. As per BTR statistics, the pre-ban death count of wildlife between 2004-2009 was 93, while the count has drastically come down to 34 between 2010 and 2018, as reported.