Night Travel Ban In Sathyamangalam Tiger Reserve; Madras High Court Issues Directions For Movement

The Madras High Court recently issued a set of directions to be followed in respect of the movement through the road inside the Sathyamangalam Tiger Reserve. The court ordered a complete ban on the movement of vehicles having more than 12 wheels and weighing more that 16.8 tonnes at any time through these roads. Vehicles having below 10 wheels and weighing less that 16.8 tonnes have been permitted between 6 am to 6 pm. The transport buses, both public and private are free to ply between 6 am and 9 pm. While considering the petitions, the bench of Chief Justice Munishwar Nath Bhandari and Justice D Bharatha Chakravarthy highlighted the fundamental duty for protection of animals. The court also considered in detail the particular nature of the area and the need for protection of the Reserve. The judgement was made in a series of petitions concerning movement of vehicles through the Sathyamangalam Tiger Reserve and the Government Notification prohibiting movement of all vehicles between 6 pm to 6 am. Background In the present day scenario admittedly about 6000 vehicles pass through the road and majority of them are heavy commercial vehicles. The court also observed that - "The vehicular movement endangers wildlife by constantly and thoroughly disturbing them even during at Night and road-kills also happen and thus extremely inappropriate for wildlife, but has also became a necessity for humans." Considering the repeated accidents and the road blocks, the meeting of the District Road Safety Committee was held on 12.10.2018 with representatives of lorry, bus owners of Erode and other adjacent districts and upon suggestion it was decided to ban the movement of all commercial heavy vehicles from 9.00P.M to 6.00AM and accordingly a notification was issued. In another committee meeting it was decided to collect the entry fees and also to ban the plying of commercial vehicles in the stretch from 6.00 P.M to 6.00 A.M and also prescribed the rates of entrance fees. By a notification of the National Highways Authority of India, the prescriptions were made for the use of the Ghat Road, thereby, the maximum weight of the vehicles pass by was fixed at 16.20 tonnes, the maximum height of the vehicles can be 3.80 meters and the maximum speed limit was fixed at 20 kms/hr Mr Chockalingam, the petitioner-in-person argued that the decisions of the Committee were not implemented properly and that the night ban remained only in paper. He further presented data showing that there has been constant road kills in the area affecting free movement and existence of the wild species. He also relied on a series of judgments to support his contentions that though a passage through a Sanctuary may be a highway, it is regulated and restricted in view of Section 27 of the Wildlife Protection Act. He also drew attention of the court to the decisions in B.R Prakash Kumar and Ors v. The Collector-cum-Regional Transport Authority and Ors and P.K.Fravesh and Ors. Vs. The State of Karnataka and Ors where the Madras High Court and the Karnataka High Court had imposed similar restrictions and night bans in Mudumalai Tiger Reserve and Bandipur Tiger Reserve respectively. Mr.J.Ravindran, learned Additional Advocate General appearing for the State, including the District Collector and the Forest Department submitted that the respondent authorities were concerned about preserving the Tiger Reserve to the fullest extent possible and at the same time, not creating any fetters on the rights of the residents of the village, forest and tribal settlements and the agriculturists in the area. He further submitted that there were no alternative routes and previous attempt to let vehicles pass through an alternative route was unsuccessful due to repeated landslides. He further submitted that the night ban was causing more hardships as the vehicles pile up for the night-time to pass causing more disturbance to the neighbouring area. He also suggested that it was not feasible to install CCTV cameras every 5 kms and that he same may be installed at entry and exit points. He also informed the court of the hardships faced by the public as the public buses and the private buses would also run late due to the traffic bans. The ban would also affect the emergency health services also. Mr NGR Prasad, one of the petitioner informed that court that instead of a complete night ban the traffic can be regulated and with speed restriction the vehicle can be plied in the stretch without causing any harm to the wildlife. He submitted that a complete ban would amount to unreasonable classification and would be violative of Article 19(1) (g) of the Constitution. Mr.A.R.L.Sundaresan, learned Senior Counsel appearing on behalf of Ms.Geetha, counsel for one of the petitioner villager argued that the order of the District Collector did not provide any exception for the villagers....

Night Travel Ban In Sathyamangalam Tiger Reserve; Madras High Court Issues Directions For Movement

Upasana Sajeev

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