The Uttarakhand High Court has asked the director of Jim Corbett National Park to explain why newly registered local vehicle owners have been left out of the list of authorised gypsy operators allowed to offer safari services inside the park.
Hearing a public interest litigation filed by Chakshu Kargeti, Savitri Agarwal and others, the court directed the director to file a detailed report within 10 days, specifying the criteria used for registering new vehicle operators.
The petitioners told the court that despite holding valid permits, several new operators had been excluded from the list issued by the park administration. They argued that under existing guidelines, all new and old permit holders who meet the required conditions are entitled to participate in the lottery system through which gypsy operators are allotted turns for safari operations.
According to the plea, the park has recently created a “special category” for registering gypsy operators, effectively barring local vehicle owners who obtained RTO permits within the last two years from participating. This, the petitioners said, violates earlier court directions permitting all eligible permit holders to take part in the allocation process.
They added that many of these operators, who invested in vehicles and completed the necessary formalities last year, have now been left without work due to the park’s latest move.
The matter will be taken up after the director submits the report on the registration criteria.
