Jaislamer, Jan 4 (PTI) The helicopter joy ride service which was inaugurated by two ministers and the Rajasthan Tourism Development Corporation (RTDC) chairman in Jaisalmer was stopped within a week due to violation of forest rules.
The helipad is located in the eco-sensitive zone (ESZ), adjacent to desert national park (DNP) which is the habitat of the endangered bird the Great Indian Bustard or Godawan.
There was no environmental clearance for this activity following which the forest department wrote a letter to the Jaisalmer district collector to ensure that the service was immediately stopped.
A forest official said the activity was a violation of the Wildlife (Protection) Act 1972 and the Environment (Protection) Act 1986.
The helicopter joyride was an initiative of the RTDC under which a private company was providing the service.
“The helipad was located in the eco-sensitive zone adjacent to the desert national park. The company had no clearance from the forest department to operate flying from there. Such activities are prohibited as per the central government’s guidelines regarding ESZ,” Ashish Vyas, Deputy Conservator of Forest (DCF) of the Desert National Park (DNP), told PTI.
He said the service was stopped on Tuesday.
DNP is famous for Godawan or Great Indian Bustard.
Wildlife lovers and locals had raised objections over flying near the DNP with an argument that this was disturbing the wildlife.
Mal Singh Jamda, secretary of Godawan Conservation Society, said the helicopter was ferrying over Godawan habitat, which was a disturbing activity for the bird.
He said such activities should take place in areas where there is no disturbance to Godawan.
The helicopter joyride service was started on December 28.
It was inaugurated by Minority Affairs Minister Saleh Mohammad, State Minister for Tourism Murarilal Meena and RTDC Chairman Dharmendra Rathore.
A maximum of 40 flights per day for 200 tourists was allowed for the company. The joyride was available in two slot packages of five minutes and 15 minutes. PTI COR SDA CK
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