The Madras High Court directed that an e-pass is mandatory for entry into the Nilgiris and Kodaikanal between May 7 and June 30.
Chennai: On Monday, April 29th: The Madras High Court made it mandatory for non-residents to obtain an e-pass before entering the hilltowns of Nilgiri and Kodaikanal. The court’s decision aims to collect data on the number and types of vehicles entering these popular tourist destinations. However, the court has exempted local residents from this requirement. However, a status report was filed by the state government, highlighting the high volume of daily vehicle entries into the Nilgiris region.
According to the court’s order, all vehicles entering the Nilgiris and Kodaikanal between May 7 and June 30 must acquire an e-pass. The purpose of this requirement is to enable the district administration to gather essential data regarding the influx of vehicles during the summer season.
A special Division Bench consisting of Justices N. Sathish Kumar and D. Bharatha Chakravarthy emphasized that there will be no limit on the issuance of e-passes by the Nilgiris and Dindigul Collectorates, and residents are not required to obtain them. Additionally, the collectors were instructed to extensively publicize the e-pass system.
The court emphasized that there would be no cap on the issuance of e-passes. To ease the process, the district administration may consider linking an online payment gateway to the e-pass system, thus minimizing vehicle congestion at the check posts.
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According to the state’s status report, during the non-season period, approximately 1,150 cars, 118 vans, 60 buses, and 674 two-wheelers enter the Nilgiris daily. However, during the tourist season, these numbers increase significantly to 11,509 cars, 1,341 vans, 637 buses, and 6,524 two-wheelers. To accommodate the influx of tourists, the Nilgiris can currently house around 20,000 visitors, including those staying in guest houses managed by various departments such as PWD, TTDC, horticulture, and forest.
Instructing the collectors to gather comprehensive information, including details like the vehicle category, number of passengers, travel duration, and overnight stay plans, the judges highlighted the importance of considering the suggestions put forth by amicus curiae Chevanan Mohan, Rahul Balaji, and M. Santhanaraman before issuing e-passes.
Additionally, the judges proposed that the collectors, in collaboration with the Information Technology Department, explore the option of integrating a payment gateway into the e-pass system. This initiative aims to enable applicants to pay toll charges online, thereby preventing long queues at checkpoints, conserving fuel, and reducing carbon emissions.
Justice Kumar proposed the concept of an e-pass, drawing inspiration from a similar system implemented statewide during the COVID-19 pandemic.
He remarked, “Back then, vehicles were prohibited from entering the Nilgiris without a valid reason. Now, there’s no need for such restrictions; instead, we can utilize the system to gather accurate data on tourists visiting the hill stations.”
The Advocate-General, P.S. Raman, noted that the data collection would greatly assist Professors Amar Sapra from the Indian Institute of Management-Bangalore (IIM-B) and Sachin Gunte from the Indian Institute of Technology-Madras (IIT-M) in conducting scientific studies to determine the carrying capacity of the hill roads.
The State Government’s status report revealed that around 20,000 vehicles enter the Nilgiris every day. In order to address this issue, scientific studies will be conducted by the Indian Institutes of Management Bangalore (IIM-B) and the Indian Institute of Technology Madras (IIT-M). These studies will focus on determining the carrying capacity of the ghat roads. The collected data from the e-pass system will prove invaluable in assisting these institutions’ research efforts.
Recognizing the need for ample parking spaces, especially during peak tourist seasons, the district administration has identified additional temporary parking areas for tourist vehicles. The state’s status report mentioned the existence of 12 designated parking spaces, which will be supplemented by these newly identified areas.
