Jungle Safaris Now Fully Opened In Bandipur, Nagarhole
Tigers straying out of forest areas mauled 3 villages and seriously injured a villager leading to protests from villagers and farmer leaders demanded ban safari operation especially in Bandipur. After a 3 month ban on jungle safaris, the jungle safaris resumed with a cut in number of trips
BENGALURU: Temporary ban on jungle safaris came to halt prominently in Bandipur and Nagarahole, both tiger reserves, over straying tigers mauling 3 villagers on the border villages of Hediyala sub-division of Bandipur in previous November has been fully re-opened on the order of Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar, holding Forest and Ecology.
Tigers straying out of forest areas mauled 3 villages and seriously injured a villager leading to protests from villagers and farmer leaders demanded ban safari operation especially in Bandipur. After a 3 month ban on jungle safaris, the jungle safaris resumed with a cut in number of trips.
On Friday, Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar stated “based on the scientifically assessed carrying capacity (of tigers) and the recommendations of the expert Technical Committee, our government has decided to fully reopen the regulated jingle safaris at Bandipur and Nagarahole Tiger Reserves.”
He said “the recommendations of the Technical Committee have been accepted by the State Government and safaris will resume operations under a carefully regulated framework that places conservation and ecological balance above all else.”
Continuing on the resumption of safaris, Shivakumar said “Our commitment is to build an eco-tourism model where conservation, community welfare and responsible tourism go hand in hand, ensuring that our forests, wildlife and the communities that protect them continue to thrive for generations to come.”
A senior forest official, on the emphasis on ecotourism, felt “Wild animals such as tigers lost fear of humans owing to ecotourism resulting in a spike in man-animal conflicts.”
After the jungle safaris resumed in February, Karnataka Eco-Tourism Resorts Association (KETRA) welcomed the move to resume safaris in Bandipur and Nagarhole tiger reserves and termed the step a “constructive” step towards balancing conservation, livelihoods and public confidence.
KETRA observed “regulated ecotourism, when conducted within National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) guidelines and designated routes, is not the driver of human-wildlife conflict incidents.”