Conscious Wildlife Travel

“As with any interaction with nature, the only way to do it is to be mindful of not taking up more space than absolutely required.”

- Sutirtha Lahiri

A PHOENIX CALLED PANNA

MADHYA PRADESH

When you next go tiger-spotting, go to Panna Tiger Reserve, the inspiration behind The Jungle Book.

The tale of Madhya Pradesh’s Panna is one of deep lows and a flush of success— it’s a story of a wildlife sanctuary that started with 40 tigers at the turn of the century, and a decade later lost them all to hunting, poaching or natural deaths. In the last decade, forest officials worked closely with the NGO Last Wilderness Foundation (LWF) to rehabilitate tigers in the reserve. LWF worked with the Pardhi tribe, originally hunters, to train and reeducate them, opening up other avenues for work, which do not involve hunting the tiger. Today, they lead several walking tours in Panna’s buffer zone. The reserve now has 54 tigers, which has only been possible due to conservation efforts.

These very efforts have been lauded globally, and the tiger reserve is now a UNESCO Protected Biosphere Reserve as of this year, making it the twelfth such in India. The tiger state of India has justifiably held on to its crown. —Lubna Amir

Panna Tiger Reserve is a 290 km/8 hr drive from Kanpur, and 385 km/9 hr drive from Bhopal.

LAUGHING WITH THE GULLS OF YAMUNA

DELHI