With tourist season picking up in Kodaikanal, stakeholders feel that it is the right time for steps to be taken to curtail overtourism in the region. The recent move by the Tamil Nadu government informing the Madras High Court of its in-principle agreement to carry out scientific assessments before fixing the carrying capacity for the ghat roads leading to Udhagamandalam in The Nilgiris district and Kodaikanal in Dindigul district is a case in point, they say.
R. Senthil, tourism range officer in Kodaikanal, says that the hit movie Manjummel Boys has led to a renewed interest in tourists visiting Guna caves. Even before the summer season has peaked, on March 23 and 24 the Twelve Mile Road on which tourist spots like Guna caves, Moir Point and Pillar Rock are located saw about 10,000 tourists.
Activists in Kodaikanal say the infrastructure is ill-equipped to sustain the growing number of tourists, especially a sudden rush. Toilet facilities, especially around the lake, are inadequate and those that exist are poorly maintained. Much needs to be done to create more parking space. For tourists it is a long crawl up the hill, especially on weekends with traffic jams spoiling the very experience of the scenic drive.
Activist Veerabadhran says overtourism has also affected local people. Many landlords prefer to convert their houses as homestays thus depriving the local people of getting a house for rent. Even the rents have increased manifold thus forcing many to move out of the town limits.
With no check on houses being converted into homestays or the number of glamping stays in the fringes of reserved forest areas there can be an irreversible damage to the fragile ecosystem.
Balaganesh, who runs an eatery near the lake, says the whole space is littered with plastic waste by evening. and the limited number of municipal workers are ill-equipped to remove them.
Municipal Commissioner P. Sathiyanathan says they are gearing up to manage the tourist crowd this season and more steps will be taken to remove the garbage.
Forest officials are making all efforts to keep the reserved forest area clean. Mr. Senthil says an awareness campaign was conducted for those having shops within the reserved forest area. Now many of these vendors use reusable plates and glass tumblers. “About 45 staff remove litter in the forest fringes every day,” he adds.
Many residents feel there should be a push for a cap on daily visitors. Mr. Veerabadhran says steps should be taken to promote off-season travel.
There are ways to better manage tourism by promoting more off-season travel, limiting numbers where possible and having greater regulation within the industry. There should be restrictions on the amount of time a tourist spends at a given spot. Kodaikanal can thrive only if there is a proper infrastructure in place to support tourism, long-time residents feel.
