Awareness programme to prevent forest fires, littering conducted in The Nilgiris

An awareness campaign focusing on forest fire prevention, plastic waste reduction and preventing littering was conducted at the Bokkapuram Temple by the Eco-Voice Trust, a community based conservation team working in The Nilgiris on Sunday.

According to representatives of the trust, the campaign was carried out at Bokkapuram Temple, which is located in the buffer zone of Mudumalai Tiger Reserve and is part of an old elephant corridor. “Considering the ecological importance of this area, Eco Voice Trust, in collaboration with Mudumalai Tiger Reserve and the local Police Department, organised an awareness campaign,” a statement from the trust stated.

Representatives from Eco Voice Trust created awareness among the public on how to prevent forest fires, avoiding plastic usage and the littering of liquor bottles within the forests.

“We also fixed banners around the temple area with awareness messages for public viewing. The Bokkapuram Temple festival is conducted annually during the summer season, and lakhs of people visit from different States. Although, The Nilgiris is declared as a plastic-prohibited area, we still observed plastic waste around the temple. Many people also consumed liquor and left bottles in the area. Smoking was also noticed near temple shops,” the press release added.

The Eco Voice trust has recommended that the temple committee strictly restrict plastic use, liquor consumption and smoking during the next festival. “Strong monitoring and preventive measures are needed to protect this sensitive landscape,” they added.