Randip Hooda Backed The Protest against Proposed Road through Corbett National Park Gathered Momentum with Heavyweight Backing the Protest
Corbett National Park, Ramnagar, Uttarakhand
News Updated: 31-03-2017
It will encourage exploitation and poaching’, said the veteran Actor Randeep Hooda on the proposed road plan through the heart of the Corbett National Park. He slams the plan to build a highway through the ‘treasured asset’ Corbett National Park.
Actor Randeep Hooda is among the few celebrities who stand up for a social and political cause. Now, he is flexing his muscles for an online plea to protest against the proposed Kandi Highway, which will be built through the middle of the pristine Corbett reserve forest in Uttarakhand.
The online plea caught many eyes over the social media across the world and already garnered more than 5200 signatures. The plea is opposing the decision of Uttarakhand’s new BJP government headed by Trivendra Singh Rawat to build Kandi Highway through the Corbett tiger reserve, which is supposed to shorten the Kumaon and Garhwal distance by around 80 km.
Spread over an area of around 520 sq km, the Corbett National Park boast of being the natural habitat to more than 200 tigers along with other wildlife that includes leopards, elephants, chital, sloth bears, etc. The park is extremely prone to poaching incidents and the proposed road will only aggravate the problem.
Being a wildlife enthusiast, actor Randeep Hooda backed the protest and wrote in his plea that the proposed road is the worst things that can be done to the park. It will allow unmonitored access and encourage exploitation and poaching. Also, it will disturb the ecosystem all through the park. It should be avoided at all costs before we damage one of our most treasured assets.
The legendary BBC India journalist Mark Tully, former Chief of the BBC’s India Bureau, also put his weight behind the campaign and explained his reason for endorsement at Change.org saying, ‘Forests work for our good, conserving water, giving us clean air, and are home to the wild flora of irreplaceable medicinal importance. A tiny area of India is left with the forest of this quality. We should see it as a sacred duty to preserve it undisturbed. It is Bharat Mata. The road can easily go round it.’
An online plea on change.org states ‘Stop construction of highway through Corbett Park, Uttarakhand. It will lead to environmental disaster’. The plea makes an appeal to the newly sworn-in CM not to go ahead with the project.
