The Madras High Court has ordered the immediate closure of 87 lodges operating in the Sathyamangalam Tiger Reserve in Tamil Nadu, followed by steps to demolish the structures after an official report found that none had obtained the required approvals identified in the proceedings.
The order was issued during the hearing of a petition filed by R. Karpagam, founder of the Coimbatore-based Oli Vizhappu Iyakkam, who alleged that unauthorised lodges in the Erode district reserve were damaging the fragile hill ecosystem. The case was heard by a division bench comprising Justice N. Sathish Kumar and Justice G.K. Muthukumar.
An affidavit submitted on behalf of the Erode Collector stated that 87 lodges were operating in the area where the Sathyamangalam Tiger Reserve is located. The report said none of the lodges had obtained the necessary permission and that there was no evidence that approval had been secured from the Hill Area Conservation Authority for using residential buildings for commercial activity.
Based on the report, the court directed the authorities to take immediate action to shut all 87 lodges. It further ordered that the administration proceed with measures to demolish the constructions as the next step. The directions place responsibility on the district administration and other relevant authorities to establish whether the establishments can continue operating within or around the protected landscape.
The proceedings also raised concerns about lodges continuing business despite earlier closure action. Counsel for the petitioner, S.P. Chokkalingam, told the court that some establishments that had already been closed were allegedly functioning through back entrances. The court directed officials to seal lodges operating without the required licences or permissions.
The order is significant because the dispute involves both commercial land use and the regulatory controls applicable to a tiger reserve and hill area. The Collector’s report, as recorded in the proceedings, does not identify any of the 87 lodges as having secured the permissions needed for their operations. The court’s directions therefore link continued business activity to compliance with the applicable approval framework rather than to the existence of buildings alone.
The Sathyamangalam Tiger Reserve is located in Erode district and forms part of a wider forested landscape in the Western Ghats region. The court proceedings followed a petition alleging that unapproved commercial activity was affecting the area’s ecology. The supplied report does not provide details of the individual lodges, their construction dates, ownership, occupancy or the specific environmental damage attributed to each establishment.
The authorities must now implement the closure and sealing directions and begin action relating to demolition. The court has directed that a report on the steps taken be filed on November 27. That filing is expected to indicate whether the lodges have been shut and sealed and what further action has been initiated against the structures.
