V D Satheesan will meet D K Shivakumar in Bengaluru over the Bandipur night traffic ban. A joint alternative plan could shape the states' case before the Supreme Court.Image used for representational purposes onlyThiruvananthapuram,Oct 27, 2026 16:10 ISTKeralam Chief Minister V D Satheesan on Tuesday said he would hold talks with his Karnataka counterpart D K Shivakumar in Bengaluru to seek a permanent solution to the night traffic ban on National Highways 766 and 67, news agency Press Trust of India reported.Satheesan said the two states needed to reach an understanding and jointly present an alternative proposal before there could be any possibility of a change in the case pending before the Supreme Court.Responding to a submission in the state Assembly, Satheesan said both highways pass through Bandipur National Park and Tiger Reserve.
Several wild animals have been killed in road accidents in the protected forest area, prompting demands for restrictions on vehicle movement.A ban on all vehicles from 9 pm to 6 am was imposed by the Deputy Commissioner and later withdrawn. However, the Kerala High Court stayed the withdrawal, and that order remains in force, he said. “Although the matter was taken to the Supreme Court, the Supreme Court has not stayed the High Court's order.
Therefore, the ban remains in force,” Satheesan said, according to PTI.He said an alternative proposal, involving either a tunnel or an elevated road that would not obstruct the movement of wild animals, needed to be examined through a Detailed Project Report. The report could be prepared only after consultations with the Karnataka government and an understanding between the two states, he added. “In the first round, I have already spoken to the Karnataka CM on this issue.
He has informed me that consultations can be held,” Satheesan said.He added that Congress MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra had intervened in the matter and offered to travel to Bengaluru for discussions with the Karnataka government.“Only if the Keralam and Karnataka governments reach an understanding and jointly present an alternative proposal will there be any possibility of a change in the case pending before the Supreme Court,” he said.Satheesan assured the Assembly that the state government would make every effort to find a permanent solution.Responding to the Opposition Left's protests over the issue, he said, “Nothing was done for 10 years. Now that a new government has come to power, protests have started.”He pointed out that the High Court's stay dated back to 2009 and that the Supreme Court had not yet ruled on the matter. “Even so, allegations are being made that the government has done nothing.
It has been only a few days since this government came to power,” he said.Satheesan said the Keralam government had begun talks with Karnataka and would consult other stakeholders before working towards a lasting solution to the night traffic restrictions.- Ends