4 months ago
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The Forest Department has informed the Madras High Court that chaotic elephants strayed retired of forests astatine the Marudhamalai foothills 119 times successful 2025. The Department, successful a missive dated January 29, made the submission earlier a peculiar Division Bench proceeding wood related cases, successful effect to a plea filed by an activistic opposing the projected program by the Marudhamalai Subramaniaswamy Temple medication to instal a 184-feet gangly statue of Lord Murugan astatine the foothills.
The Bench of Justices N. Sathish Kumar and D. Bharatha Chakravarthy had suggested the temple medication successful a proceeding successful November past twelvemonth to reconsider the determination of the statue, which was 137-metre disconnected reserve wood boundary, arsenic it is considered to beryllium an eco-sensitive portion arsenic per the Kasturirangan Committee report. The Bench suggested whether immoderate different suitable tract tin beryllium identified.
During the proceeding connected January 30, the Bench took enactment of the submission by the elder counsel representing the Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments section (HR&CE) astir different tract located 431 metres from the wood boundary.
Stressing the affluent wildlife of the wood country wherever the temple is located, the Bench said that it was for the authorities to see the alternate tract astatine 431 metres disconnected wood bound oregon they could adjacent see immoderate different suitable tract beyond 500 meters of the wood boundary, which according to the judges would not make immoderate human-animal struggle nor beryllium a load connected the pristine environment.
Amici curiae report
As directed by the tribunal connected December 19, 2025, its four-member amici curiae inspected the projected tract of Lord Murugan statue connected December 23. Its study stated that anthropogenic unit was disposable successful and astir the existing temple, close from the foothills passim the ghat section, wherever solid discarded and integrative discarded are dumped. The fig of visitors to the temple was astir 2,500 during weekdays, which increases to 4,000 during weekends. Once the statue is installed, this is expected to summation to 5,000 during weekdays and 10,000 during weekends, said the report.
The amici curiae was informed by officials of assorted departments that elephants often sojourn these areas and that the nationalist are not allowed betwixt dusk and dawn. One elephant died aft feeding connected integrative waste recently. A time aft the amici curiae’s inspection, a achromatic panther cub was rescued by the Forest Department precisely adjacent the country wherever the statue is projected to beryllium installed, the study said.
According to the report, animals are reportedly moving up to the Bharathiar University campus, astir 700 meters disconnected the projected installation site.
“It is submitted that the thought down the installation of the projected 184 ft. Lord Murugan statue is much successful the quality of a tourer attraction, which, if established, adjacent arsenic per the information provided by the Government departments, would adhd further interaction connected the already existing conflict, not lone successful presumption of man-animal conflict, but besides connected the full environment, including forests” said the report.
As per the report, the program was to instal the statue successful 23 cents of onshore retired of the interaction country of 4.96 acres. The country projected for establishing a car parking installation with 600 slots and a autobus terminal with 30 slots is 600 meters from the projected statue, a poramboke onshore measuring 7.98 acres adjacent Bharathiar University.
