Protect Matheran to get votes: Residents

PUNE: With just 3,000 voters and only a section of them going to vote on Monday, the picturesque hill station of Matheran has been left untouched by main candidates this election season .


“Politicians are not bothered to even come to our area and so our demands just remain on paper,’’ activist Janardhan Parte, who has been fighting to get eco-sensitive zone (ESZ) tag for the area, said, adding, “Poor connectivity is eating into the tourism prospects of the area.”

The hill station is connected only by train as the road, which was constructed way back in 1851, has now been rendered unusable. “I do not believe any politician wants to protect this hill station and this has been proved this election season,” social activist and hotelier Maria Vaz said.

“The ESZ is being largely encroached upon by citizens who are using these premises as lodging rooms much to the detriment of the environment,’’ she said.

Vaz wants the hill station to be preserved for it’s sanctity and is against any kind of ropeway at the hill station, the work on which was to commence in December. The ropeway was to ferry tourists from Bhutavili village in Bhivpuri, Neral, to Matheran in 20 minutes, however, it met with opposition from the residents who said the area was landslide-prone.

The residents said their vote would go to those who will protect the hill station and not destroy it with unnecessary interventions.

Recently, the ministry of environment and forests had turned down the state’s plan to reduce areas marked as ESZ in Matheran and use the land to build townships, educational institutes and a film studio, among other things.