Tourists complain of poor road conditions leading to Vedanthangal ahead of the bird season
Every year, starting from late October all the way upto May, the sanctuary which is located near Madurantakam in Chengalpattu district, hosts thousands of tourists
Visuals from the spot
CHENNAI: With the peak season at the Vedanthangal Bird Sanctuary all set to begin in a month, tourists have raised complaints that the roads leading to the sanctuary are in a terrible state and is riddled with potholes.
Every year, starting from late October all the way upto May, the sanctuary which is located near Madurantakam in Chengalpattu district, hosts thousands of tourists. During this period, hundreds of rare and exotic bird species from countries including Australia, Russia, Canada, Sri Lanka, Myanmar, Bangladesh and Nepal arrive at the sanctuary and make it their home. They are often seen building nests on the trees in the lake, breeding and raising their young ones before migrating back to their home countries.
The annual event attracts a vast number of tourists, bird enthusiasts and photographers, who flock to Vedanthangal and camp there for days to observe the birds. However, recently the approach roads to the Vedanthangal is severely damaged and filled with potholes.
Locals noted that certain key routes including the Uthiramerur-Vedanthangal road, Madurantakam-Vedanthangal road and the Vedanthangal-Pandaraipettai link road lack proper maintenance and have remained a motorist's nightmare for several years.
Tourists, especially foreigners, who are already battling poor infrastructure are also forced to tolerate taxi and rental car drivers who charge exorbitant fares, citing the terrible road conditions.
Responding to the complaints, the Vedanthangal village administration stated that all internal village roads under their jurisdiction are well-maintained and in good condition. However, they attributed the problem to the damaged approach roads which is under the control of the Highways Department.
While the Highways Department has promised to fix the roads soon, with the peak bird season and the northeast monsoon showers starting in a month, locals said it is unlikely that the repairs will be done on time. Owing to this, the locals requested the authorities to at least take some temporary measures to make the roads safe.
Apart from this, the residents also urged the authorities to clean the sanctuary's entrance that is reportedly covered in garbage and also to fix the broken and damaged seating arrangements for visitors.
