New Delhi: Accepting the Central Empowered Committee’s (CEC) recommendation to ban entry of private vehicles in Sariska Tiger Reserve (STR), the Supreme Court Wednesday directed the Rajasthan Government to introduce electric shuttle buses for pilgrims who visit Pandupole Hanuman temple located inside the forest.
A bench led by Justice B.R. Gavai fixed 31 March, 2025, as the deadline for replacement of private vehicles with e-buses to ferry the pilgrims. The order was passed after the court reviewed CEC’s report running into 262 pages on the measures that should be initiated to improve habitat management inside STR, while balancing the sentiments of pilgrims.
CEC is a court-appointed monitoring body that reviews development activity falling within forest areas for whose preservation the top court has in the past issued directives.
The report detailed the adverse impact of unregulated vehicular traffic, used by a large number of devotees to visit the Pandupole Hanuman temple, on the forest. The temple is located 22 km inside the core area.
The CEC recommended using electric shuttle buses in lieu of private vehicles and advised exploration of alternative transport modes such as tramway, elevated road, motorable twin tunnel or ropeway.
The report also talks about stringent management of hotels and resorts functioning in the buffer areas, calls for an increase in field staff, and highlights the need for a better infrastructure in the reserve.
Rajasthan government counsel, additional advocate general Shiv Mangal Sharma, informed the bench that the state had in principle accepted CEC’s recommendation on utilising the services of electric shuttle buses to make arrangements for pilgrims visiting Pandupole temple or any other shrine inside the forest.
“It’s not an adversarial litigation and the state shall assist the court in finding a solution that will take care of the pilgrims’ interest and also maintain the tiger habitat,” submitted the state law officer, while adding the state is already working on a proposal to deploy 21 e-buses, which the ICICI Foundation has promised to fund. These buses, as per the suggestion of CEC, would ply from the Sariska and Tehla gates.
With regard to other alternative measures suggested by the CEC, Sharma asked for some time to hold deliberations. There were concerns about the feasibility of an elevated road or skyway as well as the timeline laid down by the CEC to start their operation, he told the bench.
Sharma addressed the CEC’s concern about the lack of field officers and staff, promising to work with the state’s Chief Secretary to resolve these issues and ensure proper management of the tiger habitat.
On CEC’s observations that all hotels and resorts in the buffer area must have the permission from the National Board for Wildlife (NBWL) and National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA), as required by the law, Sharma said the state would set-up a committee to look into this aspect. In case any commercial activity is found to be in violation of the law, demolition action would be initiated against them, he assured the bench.
With regard to CEC’s other proposal to notify the eco-sensitive zone (ESZ) of STR by 31 December, 2024, and demarcate the temple area, the state said it needs some time to study it.
It also agreed to consider the CEC’s suggestions of banning food preparation inside the temple, controlling cattle grazing, expeditious relocation of villages in the STR, developing a secret information system for checking wildlife offences and state support for STR management through the involvement of district collector and the local police.
(Edited by Zinnia Ray Chaudhuri)
Also read: Less stress, more cubs — how proposed ban on private vehicles in Sariska Reserve can help tigers