VELLORE: Known as the poor man’s Ooty, Yelagiri Hills is slowly losing its old-world charm to rapid commercialisation. Its lush green cover is giving way to the deadweight of concrete structures and its natives are losing their livelihood. The fast-invading commercialisation has already eaten into hundreds of acres of cultivable land. With the district administration turning a blind eye to the exploitation of the hills, the future of Yelagiri and its villagers looks bleak.The area has undergone a sea change in the past few years, leading to ecological degradation, displacement of local villagers and conversion of agriculture land into commercial land.This destination became an instant hit due to its sparse population and proximity to the metropolitan cities – Chennai and Bangalore – especially after the completion of National Highway 46 which connects the two metros. The hills became a hot spot, not only for IT professionals, NRIs and politicians, but also for top level government officials to chill out during holidays.Realtors and hoteliers began to cash in on the growing popularity of Yelagiri hills and persuaded farmers to let them convert a large portion of agriculture land into commercial plots. At present, there are 56 hotels of different classes and hundreds of small and medium resorts in Nilavoor, Athanavoor, Kottaiyur, Pallakaniyur and Mettukaniyur villages.According to details availed under the Right to Information (RTI) Act, Chapter X-A (Building Regulations in Hill Stations) of the Tamil Nadu District Municipalities (TNDM) Act 1920, Tamil Nadu Forest Act 1882 and Tamil Nadu Preservation of Private Forest Act 1949 are applicable to Yelagiri Hills. These Acts strictly prohibit felling of trees, use of agricultural land for non-agriculture activities and levelling of slopes greater than 30 degrees for construction activities. None of these rules have been enforced to protect the natural environment of the hills.“Buildings should have no more than one floor, excluding the ground floor, and should not be more than seven metres high. The buildings should have sloping roofs,” said state joint secretary of Tamil Nadu Green Movement S Jayachandran, citing TNMD Act, 1920.However, more than 300 buildings, including two and three-storeyed luxury hotels, have come up on agricultural land. The District Collector is empowered to take stringent action against illegal and unauthorised buildings in the hills and issue orders for demolition, said Jayachandran. But the collective failure of the government machinery — district administration, pollution control board, forest department and local body administration — to enforce the rules has given a free hand to realtors, resort promoters and hoteliers to exploit the hills to the core.
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