Mandya: Heavy rains with thunderstorms lashed various parts of Sri Rangapattana Taluk since two days has forced forest officers to close Ranganathittu Bird Sanctuary on Saturday April 30 and Sunday May 1.
The bird sanctuary attracts thousands of tourists during weekends, and is the worst hit as over 100 trees have got uprooted forcing the authorities to shut down. Region Forest Officer Santosh Hoogar said that fully grown trees at the entrance to the Sanctuary and inside were uprooted due to last night’s rains. As a result, the entry gate, ticket counter, museum and gopura at the entrance have been damaged.
In the post-Covid times, the Sanctuary was gradually attracting more number of visitors, especially during weekends when tourists from other States thronged the Sanctuary. But now the strong winds have caused the unexpected and the Sanctuary is estimated to have lost about Rs. 10 lakh revenue due to temporary shutdown,” he said adding that the closure may be extended by a day if found absolutely necessary.
This apart, a good number of roadside trees on either side of more than a kilometre stretch of the road leading from Paschimavahini to Ranganathittu too have got uprooted, disrupting vehicular movement on the road to the popular tourist destination.
Revenue authorities said that more than 100 coconut, arecanut, mango and other trees have got destroyed and fully grown crops were also destroyed in some areas. Three houses in Palahalli have partially got destroyed and they are now assessing the losses. They said that a detailed report will be submitted to the higher authorities on the extent of damage of crops and other properties. The Chamundeshwari Electricity Supply Company (CESC) has incurred lakhs of rupees loss as more than 60 electricity poles have fallen due to tree fall with more than a dozen transformers being destroyed.