Kannur, Sunday 22 August 2010: The mangrove theme park run by the Pappinissery Eco-Tourism Society (PETS) will be reopened today in the wake of the Kerala High Court Division Bench’s order keeping in abeyance the direction of the Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF) that the park be closed down on the ground that it has violated the Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ) rules.

The controversial park is all set to be re-opened in the backdrop of the High Court order subject to certain conditions that the society should not carry out any construction or commercial activities in the park, among others.

A press release issued by the society here said the park would be re-opened at 9 a.m. on August 22 in the wake of the High Court order. The society was trying to elevate it to a research institution of international standard, the release said.

The park run by the CPM-controlled PETS had been mired in controversy as it triggered the allegation from the UDF and environmental activists here that the park was in violation of the CRZ rules. Following a complaint from K. Sudhakaran, MP, and the MoEF had directed the society to close down the theme park.

The society informed that it would strictly abide by the High Court instructions. Prominent personalities from political and cultural fields would attend a function on Sunday morning to mark the re-opening of the park, it said.