Chennai: The southern bench of National Green Tribunal has ordered forests department and the Nilgiris collector to ensure that resort buildings within the Segur elephant plateau that have been sealed following court orders, continue to remain so. They should not used for commercial or residential purposes, the bench ordered.Stressing the importance of elephant corridors for seasonal migration and survival of elephants, the tribunal asked authorities to ensure that no fresh construction, expansion, alteration, or commercial activity is permitted within the notified corridor, in line with the Wild Life Protection Act.The bench, comprising judicial member Justice Pushpa Sathyanarayana and expert member Prashant Gargava, passed the orders on a suo motu case taken up based on news reports that criticised former minister Mathiventhan for staying at a partially closed resort in the Mudumalai Tiger Reserve in 2024.Though the tribunal refrained from expressing opinions on the legality of demolition notices issued to the resorts or the validity of the constructions within the corridor as the matter was pending before high court, it called upon the concerned authorities to maintain strict surveillance over the notified corridor and remove physical obstruction or fences hindering elephant movement.The bench also urged the department to curb “unnatural elephant deaths arising from electrocution, illegal electric fencing and other anthropogenic causes by conducting periodic inspections of vulnerable areas, particularly along identified elephant corridors.”
