Formed with the objective of forest conservation and development of rural livelihood, Madhya Pradesh Ecotourism Development Board is engaging local communities in tiger reserves to run eco tourism initiatives in buffer zones By Sudipta Dev
The state of Madhya Pradesh has the largest forest area in the country, including almost 10,000 sq km of protected areas. Considering the fact that almost 80 per cent tourism in the state is focused on wildlife and nature, eco tourism is of particular significance in the state. Madhya Pradesh Ecotourism Development Board was formed in July 2005. It is an autonomous organisation under the Forest Department of Madhya Pradesh and has been established to take care of the tourism part in the forest areas of the state. The vision is conservation of forest and development of rural livelihood. “Our basic role is to identify those areas that have the potential for eco tourism initiatives and tie-up with the local communities of those places in the tourism trade so that while they get employment, tourists also get to move inside jungles, learn about the flora and fauna and interact with the forest in the right manner,” says Anuj Sharma, manager projects, Madhya Pradesh Ecotourism Development Board.
Madhya Pradesh Ecotourism Development Board has identified many destinations and has been working in the buffer zones of the tiger reserves. “The core areas of tiger reserves have limited tourist capacity. We need to provide a diversified eco tourism facility to the visitors,” says Sharma. Consequently, Madhya Pradesh Ecotourism Development Board has been opening up the buffer zones of tiger reserves so that people can go inside those areas, do walking safaris, camp there, do night safaris so that their interaction with the jungle increases. “Only the gypsy safaris are not enough interaction with the jungle. Similarly we are doing initiatives in the reserve forest areas which are near the already existing tourism circuits of Madhya Pradesh. For instance, if it is the sites near Bhopal, we are exploring them, as these are on existing tourist maps of Madhya Pradesh,” points out Sharma.
Engaging communities
All these facilities are run by communities living in these areas. Madhya Pradesh Ecotourism Development Board provides them training related to tourism services. “We have given them all the equipment and capital funding that is required initially and they have been running these destinations for us,” mentions Sharma. Training for local communities include guide training, camp management, hospitality and catering, adventure activities, nature interpretation, eco tourism management training for eco self help groups.
The buffer zone has been opened in some places, for instance in Satpura there is a Forsyth Trail that has been operational for the last one and a half years now. The name is derived from Captain James Forsyth, a forester from the British era who found Panchmarhi by walking on these trails. Then there are areas in the buffer zone of Pench where there are facilities for walking, bird watching, safari. These initiatives have been taken by the local communities in collaboration with the park management. Recently initiatives have started in Bandhavgarh, where tracks have been identified for trails in buffer zones. “We are in the process of making local communities open new camping sites. We are also getting in touch with private investors who could fund these kind of initiatives and make sure that these projects are run professionally in the buffer zones of tiger reserves,” informs Sharma. There are also plans to open up other areas of tiger reserves. Kanha and Panna are also in the pipeline.
In the future, Madhya Pradesh Ecotourism Development Board is focused on strengthening its initiatives. “We need to run these projects more professionally and come into the market with more visibility. These are our basic targets,” states Sharma.