Environmental concerns were thrown to the winds during the pilgrimage to the Sathuragiri Mahalingam temple on the occasion of Aadi Amavasai on August 2, as forest department personnel who took efforts to regulate the crowds turned a blind eye to the violations there.
This hill temple is nestled in the protected area of the grizzled squirrel sanctuary, also known as the Srivilliputtur sanctuary. Though plastics are banned in the forest area, in over 40 temporary shops that sprang up on the 7-km stretch plastic bottles and bags were sold.
Says P Senthil Nathan, a nature activist who makes it a point to visit this temple just to keep watch on the environmental degradation: “This is in the core forest area, where many animals and amphibians thrive, and the plastics result in many of these protected species dying.”
Carrying explosive material into the forest is strictly prohibited under the Indian Forest Act, but devotees are seen carrying gas cylinders uphill on the route to the temple. Making fresh clearings within the reserve forest area is prohibited, but women were seen cutting shrubs and creepers to make way for temporary shops.
Many people were seen lighting a fire using firewood and gas to cook. He said that during the recent festival, it looked as though the forest department was more concerned with people’s safety than safeguarding the environment.
Water was being drawn from springs on the hills through tubes to cook as water in the river was not fit for cooking.
Several environmentalists who visited the forest area said the forest department had failed in its duty as far as protecting the forest was concerned.
Date: August 06, 2016