PTR DFO orders staff’s character verification

Pilibhit: Divisional forest officer of Pilibhit Tiger Reserve, Manish Singh, on Tuesday sent a letter to SP Avinash Pandey to make arrangements for character verification of the reserve’s tourist guides and safari vehicle drivers.
This comes after a tourist guide captured pictures and videos of eco-tourists at Chuka tourist spot and circulated them on social media on Sunday.The matter was taken up police by the eco-tourism section of the reserve after women raised objections. Singh said the reserve deployed 96 tourist guides and 62 safari vehicle drivers, adding, this step was taken to ensure safety of tourists, especially women and foreigners. The DFO added that those found to have any kind of criminal background or with criminal cases registered against them would be expelled with immediate effect. “The persons were directed to deposit their requisite documents with PTR headquarters without any delay,” the DFO added.
Officials said it’s first time in history of PTR that steps were taken for character verification of staff.