Why Supreme Court Banned Tiger Safari in Some Jim Corbett Areas? What Does It Mean for Tourism?
At present, the Jim Corbett Reserve is spread over 1,288.31 sq km, including 822 sq km of core zone and 466,31 sq km of buffer area. The core forms the Jim Corbett National Park while the buffer zone contains reserve forests as well as Sonanadi...Read More
The Supreme Court on Wednesday banned tiger safari in the core areas of the Jim Corbett National Park, reprimanding the Uttarakhand government for illegal construction and felling of trees in the Reserve that is causing danger to wildlife.
It slammed former Uttarakhand forest minister Harak Singh Rawat and then divisional forest officer Kishan Chand for illegal constructions and felling of trees in Corbett Tiger Reserve. “They have thrown the public trust doctrine in the waste bin," the court said.
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The Supreme Court also directed the Centre to form a committee to alleviate environmental damage and seek damage from those accountable. It has also asked the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to submit an interim report on the investigation conducted so far in three months.
The SC bench comprising Justice BR Gavai, Justice PK Mishra, and Justice Sandeep Mehta, was presiding over a petition filed by environmental activist and lawyer Gaurav Bansal, who opposed the Uttarakhand government plan to build a tiger safari and a zoo in the national park where the animals will be held captive.
The court highlighted the detrimental impact of establishing a safari in the core area, while acknowledging the employment opportunities it could create. The court, however, permitted establishing tiger safaris in the peripheral and buffer zones of the reserved forest Jim Corbett subject to conditions.
The Supreme Court’s decision has been taken to ensure a delicate balance between promoting tourism and preserving sensitive ecosystems within the Jim Corbett National Park.
What are Jim Corbett’s Core Areas?
Jim Corbett National Park is one of the 13 protected areas under World Wide Fund For Nature under their Terai Arc Landscape programme. It aims to protect three of the five terrestrial species – tigers, Asiatic elephants and green-horned rhinoceros.
At present, the Jim Corbett Reserve is 1,288.31 sq km, including 822 sq km of core zone and 466,31 sq km of buffer area. The core forms the Jim Corbett National Park while the buffer zone contains reserve forests as well as Sonanadi Wildlife Sanctuary.
The national park has six buffer zones, which are part of wildlife safari – Bijrani, Jhirna, Dhela, Dhikala, Durga and Sitabani.
How Many Tigers in Corbett?
According to the latest tiger census report, there are 260 inside the Corbett Tiger Reserve (CTR) and 229 outside the reserve in Kumaon.
“There are more tigers outside Corbett, than (in) some of the major tiger reserves in the country like Bandhavgarh (135) and Kanha (105). In the western forest circle (WFC), 216 tigers have been found, while in Champawat, 11 tigers have been found. One tiger each has been found in Nainital and Almora", Deepchand Arya, conservator of forests (CF), western circle, Kumaon, had said, as quoted by Hindustan Times.
The Shivalik-Bhabar tracts of the state are home to several tigers and has habitats that have the potential to hold more tigers including in areas such as Almora, Nainital, and Champawat forest divisions, the Wildlife Institute of India (WII) had said, as quoted by Hindustan Times.
Uttarakhand has reported the third highest tiger population in the country with 560 tigers, while the CTR has reported the highest population of wild cats among the 53 tiger reserves in the country.
Impact of Tourism on Locals & Wildlife
Locals depend on tourism as direct income from direct and distant regions of Jim Corbett National Park. According to a case study of Jim Corbett National Park in Uttarakhand by Harish Kumar from the University of Delhi, “The transportation and tourist safaris are major tourism related sources of income in this region. Transportation and tourist safari both together comprise the 37% share of total income from tourism. The activities such as food centres and dhabas or restaurants are also making favorable profit. Further, resident facilities such as resorts, hotels are also gaining profit in Jim Corbett National Park".
A study conducted for the Ministry of Tourism underlined how “tourism infrastructure is blocking tiger and elephant corridors that connect Corbett with adjoining forests. Dhikuli, on the eastern part of Corbett is a prime example, with a concentration of resorts—over 65 and counting. The resorts at Dhikuli, coupled with the encroachment in Sundarkhal together effectively block the Kosi wildlife corridor, which connects Corbett Tiger Reserve to Sitabani and other forests in the Ramnagar Forest Division. This is one among the 10 corridors identified as crucial to conservation efforts, by the Wildlife Institute of India and also by the state forest department".
The study stressed that the Dhikala tourism complex “must be phased out" as it is not only a long-standing proposal but a “legal requirement as per the Wildlife (Protection) Amendment Act 2006, which allows for no structure inside the core critical tiger habitat".
What SC Said in Past?
The SC had in the past told off the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) that it won’t allow a tiger safari on the lines of the zoo within a national park, as envisaged at the Jim Corbett National Park. The approach has to be “animal-centric" and not “tourist-centric", the court had stressed.
At the time, a bench headed by justice BR Gavai said, “We will not permit animals in the zoo to be kept (in cages) at national parks," while commenting on the 2019 NTCA guidelines, which provided for establishing tiger safari in buffer and fringe areas of tiger reserves to reduce the pressure of tourism from the core or critical tiger habitats.
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