Sanctuary | The Last Word
Sanctuary | Last WordDon’t get angry... get involved. Follow us on http://www.sanctuaryasia.com I Facebook I Twitter I Instagram I YouTubeDR. ANISH ANDHERIA
Wildlife tourism is a vital conservation tool, but can be
a double-edged sword. Unimaginative tourism of the kind
we see in this image shot in the Tadoba Tiger Reserve is
detrimental to wildlife. This ‘circus’ plays itself out virtually
every day in national parks and sanctuaries across India.
In a mad quest for prized tiger sightings and great
images, we tourists seem unwilling to adhere to even the
most basics ethical standards. Correcting such anomalies is
vital to the future of wildlife tourism (see page 34). As of
now, however, the National Tiger Conservation Authority
(NTCA) is playing the role of a spoiler. The NTCA doggedly
insists on foisting its fl awed, one-size-fi ts-all tourism policy
across India. This forces hundreds of vehicles carrying
thousands of visitors into handkerchief-sized territories,
much to the distress of tiger society. Far from decongesting
our parks, a laudable objective, this short-sighted policy
often causes dusty traffi c jams in forests in the worst
possible way. The animals suff er. The forest suff ers. The
tourism experience suff ers. Much to their chagrin, those
who travel from afar for peace and solitude are confronted
with ‘yahoos’ yelling and screaming. It’s time most wildlife
departments were directed to focus their attention to
what they are good at – the critical task of habitat and
wildlife protection.It’s time wildlife departments were directed to focus
their attention on what they have proved they are good
at – the critical task of habitat and wildlife protection. This
is the primary task that Kailash Sankhala, the fi rst Director
of Project Tiger set for them in 1973. They should not try to
become either tourism experts or social workers.
There are enough creative, ethical tourism professionals,
who know how to manage the buff ers of our most biodiverse
forests in ways that can prepare such lands to receive
spillover populations of herbivores and carnivores from well-
protected core zones. Here, location-specifi c, proven rewilding
strategies such as Community Owned Community Operated
Nature Conservancies can off er self-employed local people
dignifi ed livelihoods by making them the primary benefi ciaries
of wildlife tourism. Working with nature as owners of rewilded
lands and homestays might even staunch the tragic farmer
suicides that have traumatised those who feed us.
It’s a simple idea that links social justice with economics and
biodiversity conservation by using nature’s complex
systems to our advantage. That in my view is probably
the best option we have in the coming decades of fi xing the
conundrum that defi nes India’s wildlife tourism initiatives today
as exemplifi ed by ungainly vehicle to vehicle shouts of “Tiger
dekha? Tiger dekha?” t