The future of Wildlife Tourism, especially Tiger Tourism in the Tiger Reserves of India has become a question mark with the recent interim order of ban on all tourism activities in core areas of Tiger Reserves by the Supreme Court of India. The final hearing on the issue is slated for August 22, 2012. While the order, although interim has been welcomed by conservationists and environmentalists, the same has been a jolt to industry stakeholders and others who favour tourism in Tiger Reserves, National Parks and Sanctuaries.
While majority of the proponents of Wildlife Tourism agree that some regulation is needed, they have called the interim ban as a retrograde step. Peeved by the irresponsible attitude and inordinate delay of certain states in notifying Core and Buffer areas based on the guidelines of the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA), the Supreme Court bench comprising of Justice Swatanter Kumar and Ibrahim Kalifullah passed an interim order banning all forms of tourism in core areas of Tiger Reserves till the final direction of the Court on the matter. This interim order was passed during the recent hearing of a special leave petition by Ajay Dubey, a Right To Information activist based in Bhopal. He had filed the petition in Supreme Court in July 2011 after his petition to ban tourism in the core areas of Tiger Reserves was rejected by the Madhya Pradesh High Court in January last year. The Travel Operators for Tigers (TOFT), a wildlife association which favours Responsible Tourism activities in the Tiger Reserves, has called the decision “a fundamentally retrograde step” and said that it would only help poachers, illegal grazers and woodchoppers in the country. While debate is raging about the Supreme Court’s order, Ministry of Tourism, Govt. of India has ironically adopted a “wait and watch” strategy on the evolving scenario. When approached for comments, Subodh Kant Sahai, Minister for Tourism, Govt. of India said that states should take matters of conservation more seriously. “Our heritage and wildlife required to be preserved. States need to play more constructive role in this direction. The record is not satisfactory and that has led to this order. We must wait till the final verdict,” he said.
Click here to see the original article>While majority of the proponents of Wildlife Tourism agree that some regulation is needed, they have called the interim ban as a retrograde step. Peeved by the irresponsible attitude and inordinate delay of certain states in notifying Core and Buffer areas based on the guidelines of the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA), the Supreme Court bench comprising of Justice Swatanter Kumar and Ibrahim Kalifullah passed an interim order banning all forms of tourism in core areas of Tiger Reserves till the final direction of the Court on the matter. This interim order was passed during the recent hearing of a special leave petition by Ajay Dubey, a Right To Information activist based in Bhopal. He had filed the petition in Supreme Court in July 2011 after his petition to ban tourism in the core areas of Tiger Reserves was rejected by the Madhya Pradesh High Court in January last year. The Travel Operators for Tigers (TOFT), a wildlife association which favours Responsible Tourism activities in the Tiger Reserves, has called the decision “a fundamentally retrograde step” and said that it would only help poachers, illegal grazers and woodchoppers in the country. While debate is raging about the Supreme Court’s order, Ministry of Tourism, Govt. of India has ironically adopted a “wait and watch” strategy on the evolving scenario. When approached for comments, Subodh Kant Sahai, Minister for Tourism, Govt. of India said that states should take matters of conservation more seriously. “Our heritage and wildlife required to be preserved. States need to play more constructive role in this direction. The record is not satisfactory and that has led to this order. We must wait till the final verdict,” he said.