Once facing a grim future, Indian wildlife tourism is beginning to show glimmers of hope—thanks to enlightened lawmaking, a few committed individuals, and some truly wonderful lodges. Lisa Grainger reports.
Driving through the state of Madhya Pradesh, in the heart of Indian tiger country, it was difficult to reconcile the tranquil scenes flashing past my window with nonstop reports about the animal’s slide toward extinction. Tigers, it seemed, were the topic of the moment. As I set off from New Delhi on a six-day safari, global specialists were converging to discuss how many of the world’s largest felines are left, and how best to save them.
With so many vested interests resting on the creature’s survival (it’s estimated that just six of India’s tiger reserves are worth US$1.2 billion to the Indian economy), it’s hard to know whose version of reality to believe. On the one hand, the World Wildlife Fund and Global Tiger Forum claim the worldwide population has risen by 22 per cent since 2010, to 3,890. On the other, in spite of investment of about US$500 million since the start of former Indian prime minister Indira Gandhi’s Project Tiger in 1973—when nine tiger reserves were created and dozens of camps built—global tiger populations have plummeted. Since 1993, numbers worldwide have halved, and in the past 80 years, three of the nine subspecies have become extinct from habitats including Indonesia and Central Asia.
In India, where two-thirds—or about 2,200—of the world’s tigers live, in and around 49 reserves, there is grounds for cautious optimism, with one study recording an increase of 30 per cent in numbers between 2010 and 2014. Having been on five tiger safaris in India in the past decade, I wanted to see if there was any perceptible improvement in terms of the numbers that were visible and the protection they were being given.
Bu hikaye Travel+Leisure India dergisinin August 2017 sayısından alınmıştır.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Giriş Yap
Bu hikaye Travel+Leisure India dergisinin August 2017 sayısından alınmıştır.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Giriş Yap
Lunching In Leh
Turtuk, the last town of India in Ladakh, is having a culinary and hospitality renaissance, discovers Harsh Surti
The Medieval Charm of Elsinore
Elsinore, in eastern Denmark, is a charming city full of surprises, such as its interesting link to Shakespeare, discovers Ami Bhat
Natural Selection
In other parts of the world, natural wine production can be raw, wild, and a little messy. But a road trip through southeastern Austria reveals that, in a land where order and understatement reign, even the low-intervention bottles are elegant and refined.
Where the Wild Things Are
Uncovering Rwanda's natural treasures-and the gift of multigenerational travel
FROM THE VOICE WITHIN
A hit new season of a cult show, a brand new production venture, and a baby girl-it seems Ali Fazal is on top of the world right now. Amid a new parenting journey, the actor talks to SAMREEN TUNGEKAR about his travel persona, his instincts, and what feeds the artiste within him
MONSOON IN THE WILD
For nature lovers craving the lush serenity of monsoon forests, off-season safaris in national park buffer zones offer rare rewards and vital support to local economies, discovers Chandreyi Bandyopadhyay.
Ray of Sunshine
Getting diagnosed with life-threatening ailments can spell doom, but for actor Lisa Ray, it became a testament to her resilience. Diagnosed with multiple myeloma in 2009, the former model maintained a positive outlook, blossomed into a vocal advocate for cancer awareness and support, and turned author with a book chronicling her story. In a chat with Bayar Jain, she gets candid about her journey of hope and healing
Championing Change with Conversations That Matter
Aditi Mayer is a responsible storyteller who likes to look at fashion through a lens of social and environmental justice. She tells Samreen Tungekar about how she manages her own mental health and wellness despite work that promotes positive change and requires mental bandwidth
Travelling Through Conscious Well-Being
In the ever-evolving landscape of wellness, where data meets intuition and science aligns with ancient practices, Deepak Chopra stands as a unique bridge between these worlds. Chopra talks to Dipali Patwa about how travel, when intertwined with wellness, becomes a powerful catalyst for personal transformation.
Transcending The 'Trend'
For Rimzim Dadu, the creation of a collection is about lending the pieces a timeless quality. Samreen Tungekar talks to the designer about her creative process, and how her travels intersperse with her approach to design