An eventful month complete with mass activities- signature campaigns, photography contests, experience-sharing, wall painting- all of Times of India’s commendable efforts have paved way for Nagpur’s new identity- Waghpur, the Tiger Capital of the World (http://www.facebook.com/waghpur?sk=wall). Although justified that it is by geography, a question that naturally emerges is- from here, where are we headed?
A few quick possibilities come to my mind…
The first and the easiest to occur is that the name and title will remain on paper, with nothing materializing on the field. City streets will be flanked with hoardings welcoming visitors to the newly recognized tiger capital and reminding citizens of newfound distinction. As time passes by, this, like all other events of the city will be a forgotten memory.
The next and most likely possibility is a gargantuan growth in the tourism sector. Now with the city adorned with hoardings of Waghpur, every tour operator would want to cash in on the scenario. Though tourism comes with a package of disasters like overcrowding (both in and out of the park boundary), disturbance to animals, recklessness, illegal land-use; in the flip side it has its own advantages.
One, there is increased vigilance and patrolling, apart from generating huge amount of revenue for forest management. With respect to this, a stark contrast is seen in the Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh (MP) sides of Pench Tiger Reserve.
Two, in tourism zones of MP, guides are well-trained. They can identify miscellaneous wildlife which invites a (less) tiger-centric tourist to look beyond his quarry. They also have a deeper respect for the forest which feeds them. This is found wanting in low tourism protected areas (PAs) of Maharashtra. Tadoba-Andhari Tiger Reserve (the highest eco-tou
rism zone in Maharashtra) had once been infamous for incidents where guides were mute spectators to tourists getting off their vehicles for a better view of the tiger! In MP, guides can be very stern regarding forest rules.
However, it is imperative to stress upon two aspects for ideal conservation-based eco-tourism- ‘the concept of equity’ and ‘creating a sense of belonging’. Equity defines an impartial stake of local tribesmen in the revenue generated from tourism. In early 2009, forest guides had called a strike for demanding an increment in salary. This was a valid demand and put a blot in the name of Central India’s premier tiger country. But some resort houses have been exemplary (while others have been reckless drivers inside the park!). Taj group, since its inception has been running a community development programme. Moreover, recruitment of local boys in the resort staff has given a major boost to creating employment opportunities. This is where eco-tourism can be so instrumental in creating an umbilical relati
onship between locals and tigers, who then get a feeling that their livelihood is dependent on the tiger’s existence (and not in its culling)
But at deeper thought, there are also unavoidable drawbacks with funds being directed towards the tourism industry. Rapid influx of tourists would mean a need for better roadways. Already a louche four-lane highway (for the number of trees felled in laying it) runs in a stretch between Pench and Kanha. Expansion here or creating an alternative highway would add more impact to an already devastating roadway traversing vital corridors. Besides this in-situ crowd control has always been a problem in MP.
The third possibility is the ideal condition where conservation gets a massive headstart. Nagpur has become ‘The Gateway to Tigerland’ not only due to its position on the map, but also because the Central Indian land
scape is fairly rich in tiger densities making it an important conservational zone. The newfound title will fetch Nagpur international recognition, which is precisely the first step towards drawing the government’s attention. This could help in diversion of funds to Forest Depar
tment, NGOs and other affiliate bodies. There are plenty of problems in this region- man-tiger conflicts around Chandrapur (the worst crisis at present), less prey base in Melghat, Naxal infestation in Gadchiroli, corridor disconnectivity in Bori-Satpuda WLS, poaching in Achanakmar and tourism pressures at Pench, Kanha and Bandhavgarh. Eradication of these may require additional funding and international attention (except that of the World Bank!). Very recent news towards this direction is that talks have been in favour of notifying three new tiger reserves in Maharashtra- Navegaon, Nagzira & Bor.
Another significance of the creditable appellation is that all proceedings will be under the watchful eyes of the media, which at least in Nagpur has consistently been reporting environmental issues with fervour.
At this point, it is essential to ensure that positive action actualizes. Ultimately, conservation is the desirable outcome.
Meanwhile, Nagpuris should understand that they haven’t roared merely for a new geographical identity…They have roared to keep the roars alive!
In the bigger picture, it seems more like a purr…The real roar still awaits!
Note: Article is open to critique, comments and debates.
