Massive influx of tourists and the resulting air and noise pollution at the famous shrine of goddess Ambika at Deokund, in the eastern fringes of Simlipal Wildlife sanctuary, has upset a cross-section of residents in the region, who are demanding curbs to check the menace.
An all time record number of 563 noisy and polluting vehicles, including 306 four wheelers, 20 buses, 27 auto rickshaws and scores of two wheelers carrying nearly 7,000 tourists visited the shrine on December 25, said sources in the forest department and the Deokund Development Committee.
The shrine, also known as the Panchasagar Tirtha or Shakti Peetha, a hotspot for tourists and devotees of goddess Ambika, was visited by 1,06,350 tourists last year, tourism department sources said here on Wednesday.
Only 20 four wheelers are allowed to ferry tourists through the Pithabata check gate, while another 40 four wheelers are allowed to enter the tourism zone of the STR (Simlipal Tiger Reserve) through the Kaliani check gate for day tourism in the reserve. Visitors are allowed to enter the reserve before 9 am in the morning and leave by 5 pm.
But for visiting the Ambika shrine in the vicinity there are no such rules in place to combat noise and pollution and preserve sanctity and peace in the sanctuary and the shrine, said Uttam Behera, a member of the executive committee of Deokund Development Committee.
Behera suggested that the forest department should allow the parking of vehicles at least five kilometers away from the boundary of the wildlife sanctuary at Budamara and vehicles should never be allowed to enter beyond the village. Only bullock carts or battery-driven vehicles should be allowed to carry tourists from Budamara to the shrine, he added.
"If the forest department does not wake up to the need to restrict the number of Deokund-bound vehicles, stop eco-vandalism of a different kind existing in the region, we shall soon go for a PIL to stop dust and noise in the shrine," Behera said.
A local tribal leader, Durga Tudu, has also joined Behera in his cry for a PIL to get rid of the pollution and ensure a noise-free sanctuary.