Hoteliers stop vehicles from entering Corbett, tourists suffer

Several tourists were left in a tizzy after the local hoteliers and Gypsy (vehicle) operators, protesting against the new online booking rules for permits framed by the administration of Corbett tiger Reserve (CTR), stopped their vehicles from entering the park.

Guests visiting the park are required to produce permits for the entry.

The protesters alleged that the new rules instead of helping the tourists were proving to be a stumbling block for them. Hari Maan, the president of Ramnagar Hotels Association, said the rules are non-practical. “Some of the new rules demand the phone number of each visitor, including children. No hotel or agent can book the entry permit for the visiting guests,” he added.

“If this continues for even a few days, it’ll give us all a huge dent in terms of business. Imagine all our marketing efforts going down the drain because we cannot assure a safari permit to the guests,” said Maan, who, along with a large number of locals, protested at the entry point of the park on Wednesday morning.

Vedant, a wildlife lover and regular visitor to the park, was disappointed after the protesters blocked his entry to the park. “This is really sad. I have travelled hundreds of kilometre to witness the wildlife in Corbett, but despite permission from the park administration, my family is not being let in. I will definitely report this to the tourism ministry and if repeated will not visit Uttarakhand,” he said.

Surendra Kumar, another tourist, wondered why tourists were being made target for no fault of theirs.

Amit Kumar Verma, deputy director, CTR, said the entry is open for the vehicles having permits.