The Territorial Wing of the Andhra Pradesh Forest Department is all set to regulate tourism activities at Gudisa, the only grassland tourist destination in Andhra Pradesh, 45-km away from Maredumilli town in East Godavari Agency.
Located in the reserve forest, the tiny hamlet of Gudisa is surrounded by fields of flowers (Lamiaceae family), which bloom in winter in hundreds of acres on the Gudisa hilltop, and a waterfall, wooing tourists from across Andhra Pradesh and Telangana, despite a not-so-safe drive to the hill.
This winter, Gudisa hill has been witnessing a huge rush of tourists as tourism activities are slowly returning to normalcy after the seven-month lockdown. Ironically, a majority of the tourists have been found to light campfires by collecting wood from the grassland that is not permissible in the reserve forest, disturbing the unique grassland.
Regulations
“A check-post will be set up at the foot of the Gudisa hill at Vollangi village, engaging the tribal people to run it and collect fee for entering the grassland. The check-post will help regulate tourism activities, prevent the night stay, apart from generating revenue through tourism,” East Godavari District Forest Officer B. Sunil Kumar Reddy said.
Mr. Kumar said that night stay on the grassland was prohibited as it was a reserve forest. The grassland had every potential to become a major tourist attraction in the State. “It is risky to stay for the night on the grassland. We strongly advise to avoid planning the visit to the grassland along with the families as the road to the hill does not support for a safe travel in the night,” said Mr. Kumar.
On regulation of the movement of vehicles of tourists, Mr. Kumar said talks were on with the local police to keep an eye on the movement of the tourists to prevent any untoward incidents at the tourist destination.
Presently, tourists form into groups and plan an adventure trip to Gudisa by travelling on two-wheelers and prefer to stay for the night to explore the beauty.