India to ban Tourism involving Tigers
Posted in News | July 31, 2012 | Comment NowIt has been proved that tigers promote tourism.The Supreme Court however has recently in the month of July 2012, ordered a ban on the tourism in the main areas of government run tiger reserves. There would be another hearing in the month of August.
This is an announcement that has raised a lot of questions in everybody’s mind and everyone wonders if this is the end of tiger tourism in the subcontinent. It is very crucial to know that this is not a blanket ban on tourists preventing them from entering national parks etc. Instead it is an order to stop tourists from entering the main tiger area of the parks. What exactly is “core area” would be decided in the August hearing. It has already been agreed that the main demarcations would separate the core tiger areas from the main areas of the reserves. So it is being held that the Supreme Court might be meaning this. Tourism is mainly reliant on tigers in many areas like the Pench tiger Reserve where around 63% of tourist activity is in the main tiger zones. In Panna, this is only around155 and in Satpura it is around 7.5% only.
Tiger numbers have increased in the last few years and the tourists have also increased. If one bans it then it would be the end of tiger watching. The crux of the rule is that now game reserves have to be dealt with for tourism in a different way. There would be tour operators who would need to stop the tourists from tiger oriented in the marketing of their tours. Tourists also would have to change their ideas on tiger tourism, wildlife viewing and take a diverse way of watching the beauty of the wildlife parks in the country. Tourists should understand that the tiger is being given a royal privilege over everything.
So exactly what is behind this rule of the Indian government? The Indian Government says that the Indian states are in charge of the welfare of the animals and the parks. So they have to put good initiatives to save the tigers and also they have to bring in the right kind of revenue from the tiger reserves.
So is this actually a wake up call to the states or is it an attempt of just plain rattling is to be seen. Most of the national parks are closed during this time of the year and so it is very unlikely that the announcement would have great value in the minds of the public. But it surely is an indication that the Indian Government endorses the importance of tigers and also knows about the positive growth in economy due to tiger tourism.
There are many wildlife enthusiasts who are quite infuriated by this decision and it is believed that these tiger reserves actually supported a lot of livelihood and the tigers where their means of earning. Whether it be hotels, or wardens, lodges or camps, schools or other facilities, the tigers were surely a tourist’s favourite.
The main reason tourist would visit a tiger park is to keep these very species alive. So where one sees tigers disappearing in forests as also tourists, the presence of tourists in these reserves is a great source of revenue and would be the best way to keep poachers at bay.
If tourists are not allowed into tiger zones, then there is very little to do for the wildlife and they would go to the buffer regions where there is zero or not wildlife. Tigers are very difficult to spot in the main areas. The local communities and the other town people would face a great fall in economy. So many hardworking people would be forced to shift and thus leave the tigers to open attack.
In short, it is the tourists who are a blessing in disguise for the tiger. The Indian Government should reconsider its legislation and stop this rule. Nowhere in the entire world are predators seen surviving without tourism. Tigers are very vulnerable than any other from the cat family. India is the brand ambassador for the tigers and so should do something for the benefit of the tiger tourism being revived.
The recent rule by the Indian Government that the tiger tourism should be banned has created ripples in the wildlife sector.
Save to delicious
Stumble it
