A campaign group has criticised a decision to ban tourism in some of India’s major tiger reserves, arguing that the move will hinder rather than help a bid to protect the endangered species.
The ruling by an Indian Supreme Court judge will see tourism banned at “core zones” of more than 40 reserves. The majority of tigers in India live in wildlife reserves set up in the 1970s, and the country is said to be home to more than half of the world’s estimated 3,200 tigers.
However, the move has been deemed as flawed by some people who argue that tourism pumps much-needed funds into initiatives that aim to protect endangered species.
“The busiest reserves have the best protection due to revenue from tourists. The problems are outside the park gates, not inside them,” said Julian Matthews, the chairman of Travel Operators for Tigers.
“If tigers hated the interference for a few hours a day, why are there now so many living and breeding in the tourism zones of reserves like Ranthambore, Bandhavgarh and Pench?”
He went on to say that removing tourism from the reserves will just mean that it is supplanted with a wider range of problems.
“Without tourism you get corruption and neglect instead of accountability, media and political scrutiny, NGO support, and better protection through the eyes and ears of guardians and community stakeholders.”
If the idea of seeing tigers up close appeals to you, here are just a couple of the places that you can see the big cats.
Thailand Tiger Temple
Located in Kanchanaburi in the West of Thailand, visitors can get the chance to see tame tigers that walk along the Buddhist compound freely once a day and can even be petted.
Siberian Tiger Park, China
Situated on the north bank of the Songhua River to the northwest of Harbin, visitors can view tigers walking leisurely in the open-air while they tour the park in a bus encircled by wire mesh.
(Images: Luis Carlos Cobo, frankartculinary)
