WILDLIFE SANCTUARIES - Visited 1996

[‘ಭಾರತ ಅ-ಪೂರ್ವ ಕರಾವಳಿಯೋಟ’ - ೧೯೯೬, ಸಾಹಸಯಾನ ಮುಗಿದ ಕೆಲವೇ ವಾರಗಳಲ್ಲಿ ನಾನೊಂದು ಇಂಗ್ಲಿಷ್ ವರದಿಯನ್ನು ಬರೆದಿದ್ದೆ. ಅದರಲ್ಲಿ ನಾವು ಭೇಟಿ ಕೊಟ್ಟ ಪ್ರಾಕೃತಿಕ ವೈಶಿಷ್ಟ್ಯಗಳನ್ನಷ್ಟೇ ಲೆಕ್ಕಕ್ಕೆ ಹಿಡಿದು, ಸಂಬಂಧಿಸಿದ ಇಲಾಖೆಗಳಿಗೆ ಹೀಗೊಂದು ಪ್ರಾಮಾಣಿಕ ಅಭಿಪ್ರಾಯವನ್ನು ತಿಳಿಸುವ ಕರ್ತವ್ಯವನ್ನು ನಿರ್ವಹಿಸಿದ್ದೆ. ಇದರಲ್ಲಿದ್ದ ಅಸಂಖ್ಯ ಭಾಷಾ ಸ್ಖಾಲಿತ್ಯವನ್ನು ಅಂದೇ ನನ್ನ ತಂದೆ ತಿದ್ದಿ ಕೊಟ್ಟಿದ್ದರು. ಉಳಿದಂತೆ, ನನ್ನದು ಕೇವಲ ಹಕ್ಕಿನೋಟ ಮತ್ತು ಅವಸರದ ದರ್ಶನ ಎಂಬ ಅರಿವು ನನಗಿದೆ. ಇವೆಲ್ಲವುಗಳ ಮೇಲೆ ‘ತಜ್ಞ ವರದಿ’ ಕೊಡುವಲ್ಲಿ ನನಗೆ ಪ್ರಾಮಾಣಿಕ ವನ್ಯ ಪ್ರೀತಿಯೊಂದೇ ಬೆಳಕು, ವಿಸ್ತಾರ ಅಧ್ಯಯನ ಅಲ್ಲ ಎಂಬ ಅರಿವೂ ನನಗಿದೆ. ಎಲ್ಲಕ್ಕೂ ಮುಖ್ಯವಾಗಿ ಇದು ಇಪ್ಪತ್ನಾಲ್ಕು ವರ್ಷಗಳ ಹಿಂದಿನ ಪ್ರತ್ಯಕ್ಷ ಅನುಭವದ ಅಂದೇ ಬರೆದ ಸಾರಾಂಶ ಎನ್ನುವುದನ್ನೂ ಗಮನಿಸಿ.] 

From 14-4-96 to 18-5-96 we were on brief natural trail-cum-sight seeing tour of (mostly) eastern India. The travelogue in full is in Kannada - ಭಾರತ ಅ-ಪೂರ್ವ ಕರಾವಳಿಯೋಟ (16 parts) . This is a separate brief about the Wild life Sanctuaries or National parks visited by us, sent to different authorities listed in the end. 

MYSELF: For the last 21 (1996) odd years as a mountaineer settled at foot hills of western ghats I developed deep interest in the surrounding flora and fauna. I was lucky to have had the small opportunity to work with Dr Ullas Karanth, a world known Wild life Scientist. First I worked as a volunteer In the animal census held at Nagarahole. Later, with Dr. Krishnamohan (a young surgeon from Moodabidri) I took the responsibility of educating the people in our district about the importance of Tiger Conservation. Dr. Karanth gave us the video Cassette `Tiger crisis'. We addressed nearly 35 different troupes (including the remote corners of the district which border the Kuduremukha National park, Pushpagiri W.L.S and Mookambika W.L.S.) within a span of 45 days. 

MENU: In the 1990 tour of ours - India a cross section trail (ಪ್ರಾಕೃತಿಕ ಭಾರತ ಸೀಳೋಟ (13 Parts) -we had a day's visit to each of Melghat, Shivpuri. Ranathombhara, Bharathpur and Corbett National Parks. This time (1996) we had charted many but could reach only a few : In the order of visits are Sunderbans, Mahananda, (Padmaja Naidu Zoo), Jaldapara, Betla (or Palmau), Panna, Bandhavgarh, Kanha, Tikarpara, Bitterkarnika, Chilka and Srishailam (or Nagarjunasagar). 

COUNT DOWN: During the preparatory days I had written to all the heads of the Sanctuaries that we had planned to visit. Our credentials in brief and permission for a brief visit to the Sanctuary with the facility for the night's accommodation were sought. 

The only reply received was from Mr.V.K.Yadav I.F.S, West Bengal. He commended our programme and passed the message to his subordinates at different Sanctuaries. He gave us additional information about the newly formed Sanctuary - Mahananda, near Siliguri. Further he made himself available to us over the phone even at his residence. Dr. Ullas Karanth had given me letters of introduction to different heads of Sanctuaries who were well known to him. I had them posted with a covering letter giving them our tentative dates of visit. By this time our date of departure was nearing and so I did not (either expect or) receive any reply. 

Sri Eric D'Cunha working as a naturalist for Indian Adventures, Kanha is a very good friend of mine. Even at the outset of our programme I kept him informed and was in constant touch with him through letters. The communication facility at Kanha is very much limited. So I was fully confident of getting the best at Kanha but was not sure of other Sanctuaries that would come under Sri Eric's influence. 

At Calcutta my contact was Swamy Jagadatmanandaji, the venerable Principal of the Ramakrishna Mission Training Center. I had requested him to provide us the best possible sight seeing facility for Sunderbans. He in turn had requested his brother in robe Swamy Asaktanandaji, of Narendrapur Ashram to attend to our needs. Swamiji purchased four tickets from WBTDC and gave them to us free of cost with his compliments! 

SUNDERBANS: On the morning of April 20th we left Calcutta to Basanti by WBTDC bus. From there we were taken on special Ship for two days and a night for a nature trail of Sunderbans. The ship sailed at a steady speed through numerous Khalis (canals/watery lanes) showing us the varied mangrove islands. Occasionally the ship would stop near some island where the Forest Department had constructed watch towers. The small boat would take us to the protected Jetty, through which we would be passing on to the protected lanes and tower. The strong wire mesh protection is necessitated by the fearsome residents of the Sundarbans i.e., Royal Bengal tigers. 

At Sajjankhali (habituated by the Forest Department) we met the Chief Forest Officer, and found that they had kept a boat in reserve for us to go round the Khalis under instructions given by Sri Yadav. At Sajjankhali we also met a group of tribals who had harvested the honey from those islands. Marketing of the honey is regulated by the Department. 

Suggestion - A. Sighting the Wild life on these trails was understandably poor. But most of the tourists on board were ill prepared to face this hard fact. They were not either given any brochure or handbills by the WBTDC or orientation by the Forest Department. The TV., VCR available on board were used for exhibiting third rate feature films. The visits to the Island and back were just exercises in vain. The questions like: why this wire-mesh, what are we suppose to look for from the towers, why are we roaming in the nook and corners of the Mangrove islands etc never arose to most. 

The Ship with the tourists on board rests for the night near Sajjankhali. There at least the forest Officials could have been invited on to Ship for to address the tourists. Without any such efforts by the WBTDC our Sunderbans concluded with good conveyance, good food and good stay. As a part of the drill the tour conductor had given us a form to fill in our suggestions (if any) to improve the package. But I have my own doubts about it being taken seriously. (Hence this letter) 

MAHANANDA: On the evening of 24th April we went to Sukhna and met Sri Singh, the Chief of Mahananda Wildlife Sanctuary. The sanctuary is not directly under the jurisdiction of Sri V.K.Yadav. Even then Sri Singh obliged the letter and gave us the accomodation in the guest house. The four bedded double room with attached bath was decent and the rent was just Rs.7 per day! There was no proper tourist facility to see the Sanctuary. So we were allowed to take the motorcycles up to river Mahananda bridge inside the Sanctuary with a forest guard. The 7 km ride was on a clean plain tarmac road. The Sal tree forest and the basin of Mahananda with the Himalayan rubble are worth seeing. However except for two-three deers and a few monkeys the animal sighting was poor. 

PN ZOO: On the 26th morning we visited Padmaja Naidu Zoo at Darjeeling. In the limited space and improper enclosures the Zoo has packed a few mammals like Tigers, Wolves, Gaurs etc.. I fear that the news of tiger baiting and leopard mauling at Bannerghatta has not reached the authorities here. Can anybody be happy at the loss of an arm or something more by an ignorant tourist at the Padmaja Naidu Zoo? Even the Red panda and the Snow leopard breeding centres do not speak high of the authorities intentions. A separate enclosure with separate entry fee for Snow leopard is a wasteful experience to a general tourist. Suggestion B.

JALDAPARA: On the 27th evening we reached Jaladpara WLS. Here we met the Chief Sri Shubhankar Sen Gupta at this residence-office. Sri Yadav had lots of hope with Sri Gupta. But even after seeing our brochure and Mr Yadav's letter Sri Gupta did not provide us the accommodation, nor did he find some time to talk to us. But to our surprise he gave us the Elephant ride (next morning) free of charge. At Jaladpara for the first time we saw the Nature Interpretation Centre (NIC). But later on we saw similar set ups at Betla, Kanha and Tikarpara. All of them just lack life! Few photographs, few models and few recorded sounds with variations in light could be put together by anyone provided there are funds. But the devotion in putting them to good use by the personnel concerned is missing everywhere! 

Suggestion C : (i) Attendance at NIC must be made compulsory to all the tourists prior to a nature-trail. (ii) At least at NIC a naturalist must be present to make the exhibits meaningful and the following nature-trail an experience. (iii) The Mahuts (Elephant drivers), Jeep drivers and the guards who generally accompany the tourists must stick to jungle rules like keeping their mouths shut, ears and eyes open, wild animals first, non smoking etc. 

At Jaladapara we saw an animal rehabilitation centre. Wherein the enclosures held few wild Leopards and other animals caught in some Village encounters. But we failed to find the answers to doubts like i) Why are they kept here? ii) Are they injured in the process of capturing ? If yes, what is the treatment given? iii) What are the norms and modes of relocating these animals ? iv) The animals in the enclosures were as exposed to the tourists as any animal in the Zoo. Isn't there a chance of these animals becoming Man-eaters when let free? 

On the following morning a hired Jeep took us to the Jungle from where the Elephants carried us to the Jungle trail. All the five Elephants (plus a baby Elephant) went in a herd! The Mahuts were constantly exchanging their views about the paths to be followed. Moreover the tourists had confused the means i.e., the Elephant ride, to the ends i.e., nature-trail. The chit-chat was never ending and we hardly saw any wild life! 

PALMAU: On 3Øth April after-noon we went to Betla WLS (Palmau). The sign boards to direct the common tourists enroute were missing! At Dubiakhed (Chandwa-Daltonganj road) we enquired the Police station. Further at two more junctions we had to rely on our luck to find Betla without wasting our time and distance. We reached Betla at 2.30 p.m. 

Sri Bhojrang Dubey, man at the canteen table near the reception office, posed himself to be the Manager of the Sanctuary. He was unaware of our letter sent in advance. The usual Govt. style of functioning says "stay at Betla but reserve at Daltonganj (23 km away)". Any how Sri Dubey was kind enough to scribble something on some waste paper. He asked us to go with a private middleman to the Dormitory. He also directed us to arrange a jeep for the evening's nature-trail through the same middleman. Luckily for us that day all the local jeeps were busy on election duty and as such the middleman failed in arranging one for us. But the sad part was that we could not spend the evening worthily. Elephant ride was strictly in the mornings. We had a visit to the NIC. This centre had a vast compound wherein very crude models of wild animals (inclusive of the Jurassic age) arranged amidst a badly maintained ornamental garden. Usefulness of the NIC was as usual neglected! 

The dormitory was in very bad shape. We had to clean the backyard debris to see the bathroom free from water logging. The only fan in my room was not in a mood to run at its full speed! Added to these discomforts was the situation of the power supply. It was regularly irregular. But the dormitory was not equipped even with a candle. So we had to run to the nearby petty shop to provide light for our rooms! In the morning we went on an Elephant for nature trail. The brief visit did not yield any big sighting but was successful in introducing the terrain very well. Unlike Jaladapara here the two elephants on duty were moving independently. 

Betla dormitory rent was settled with the room boy. The only official receipt we received at Betla was for the Elephant ride. And the only entry we could make at the Sanctuary was in the Visitor's book at NIC. The Police out-post next to Dormitory, the unholy mixture of the villagers with the Sanctuary office, the loaded lorry which came through the forest with full stereo music blaring were a few things which filled our cup of wrath against the Betla set-up! 

PANNA: On the evening of 2nd May we reached Panna town. There we approached the Forest officials about our stay and nature-trail in Panna WLS. They were not tourist friendly. But an attender was kind enough to guide us to a nearby Lodge for that night. In the morning we went in search of the Sanctuary! On the way to Chatrapur at the 10th km stone we followed the sign board and deviated. After 10 km we ended up in a dusty remote backyard of an industrial village! The mounds of black industrial waste is a mar on the face of the Sanctuary. The guard with a massive gate and numerous boards heralding the flora fauna statistics of the Sanctuary with illustrations in colour were all that we could collect at that end! The guards said the tourists are supposed to approach the other gate near Madla, a village little ahead on the same Chatrapur road. At Madla just for curiosity we enquired and found that i) for dormitory reservations one had to run back to Panna town (25 km back) and ii) for nature-trail one had to rely on the conveyanace provided by the private lodges at Khajuraho (25 km ahead). 

The main road to Chatrapur also runs a few length through Panna WLS. On that part a brief visit to Pandava Jaladhara, a natural waterfalls with some small historical constructions was a memorable deviation (half a km). Perhaps the nominal entry fee charged by the department discourage the polluting crowds. To our wonder we could identify only one broken bottle in the pond and two-three pieces of waste paper & plastic thrown! 

A little further to Pandava Jaladhara we saw few private hoardings heralding artificial beaches (as there can't be any sea at M.P), tree top lodges, which we happily bye-passed (we are from the real beach land). 

BANDHAVAGARH: On the way to Bandhavagarh National Park on may 4th afternoon we reached Umaria, the main town enroute. The enquiry at the Field Director's office was not fruitful. We were asked to meet the Director himself at Tala, the entry point to WLS, some 30 km away. At Tala the Officer in-charge was neither aware of our letter nor was interested in knowing our present situation. After our insistence he was kind enough to provide us the available cheap and best accommodation at his disposal. No doubt it was an independent two roomed dormitory and a new construction too. But the reality was disgusting: the electrical fixtures were torn off, the taps seemed to be born dry, the wooden works were nearing disintegration and the floor no better than the outside yard! Without second thought we went to Tala in search of some private Lodge. 

Indian Adventures, a private jungle lodge welcomed us. The independent two bed dormitories with all basic necessities were excellent. The Lodge manager, Sri Manish Mogia was more a naturalist and a good friend. He made arrangements with an outside Gypsy driver for our morning's nature-trail. The trail gave us a good variety of scenes - the jungle, the hill, the historical constructions, the open-air temple of Sheshashayi, the cave etc. 

Wе left Tala in the morning to Umaria. A good length of this road runs through the National Park. 6 km enroute to our horror we found two dead Monkeys in the pool of blood, perhaps run over by some passing heavy vehicle. We reported the same at the next checkpost. Obviously the rule of the WLS i.e., (at least) inside the WLS Animals have right of way, has been totally neglected by the culprit, agent of death. 

FOSSIL PARK: On our way to Kanha WLS, we paid short visit to Fossil Park. The publicity, the hoarding by the roadside about this park are quite unimpressive. The arrangements in the designated area of the park, the security to the exhibits are in very bad shape. But the old man-in-charge was all enthusiastic and was prepared to share all his knowledge with us. Quite naively and without any extraneous considerations he was even prepared to give any exhibit as a Memento to us. (Let me be clear, the generosity was ignorance and certainly not for monetary benefits!). 

KANHA: The evening we reached Mocha village off Kanha WLS. Here we had no hesitation in driving directly to The Chalet, the branch of Indian Adventures where Sri Eric D'Cunha, the naturalist, was virtually the Head of the Lodge. This is an older branch when compared to their Bandhavagarh counterpart. Equally well maintained. Here we stayed two nights and one whole day. Kisli is the entry point and the actual Kanha village is inside the WLS. At the entrance is NIC and in the middle of Sanctuary an extra Museum. The area of the Sanctuary is wide and naturally the nature-trail demands lot of running in the dusty roads. To cover the sanctuary by Elephant ride would take umpteen sessions. Whereas on Jeep or Gypsy some justification. Even then after taking two sessions of nature-trail we could not make it to the museum. Even at NIC at Kisli, we had to beg for the time. NIC was no better to the other two seen at Jaladpara and Betla. 

At Kanha WLS we saw a vast grass land protected by steel meshes, with a board - `Grass research station'. We have doubts about the seriousness of the researchers as we found the meshes broken here and there. Naturally the angulates were found grazing inside the protected area. 

TIGER SHOW: Kanha is famous and equally controversial about its `Tiger show'. The modus operandi of the show in brief is as follows. Even before the dawn the departmental Elephants scatter themselves at places where the, tigers were sighted in the previous sessions. The Mahuts are equipped with wireless sets. When they come in contact with the animal the message will be passed to the coordinator near the museum. There the tourist vehicles are given the serial numbers and will be directed to the day's show location. Among the two Elephants in vigil one will keep track of the animal sighted, whereas the other will go to the tourist vehicles arriving point. The Mahut of the tourists Elephant and the other mahut will keep in touch by blowing whistle. 

Kanha has no wild Elephants. So the tigers there face no threat either from Elephants or from Man who ride on them. Even the sound of the whistle occasional conversations do not disturb them. The Elephants (two or more) by turn keep the vigil and allow the tourists to have a close look at the tiger in the wild. The time taken by each elephant to cover the distance between the tiger and the vehicle-alighting-point is the show time for the tourists on the other Elephant. 

On the 6th morning we got the 13th token for the Tiger show. When we approached the tiger (on the Elephant's back) the days temperature had already risen and the tiger was in no mood to rush off to some remote corner The lone male sub-adult (as identefied by the Mahut) was moving from the scanty shade of a bush to another. We went as near as 10-15 feet at places. At times the tiger would be little annoyed and would grimace just like domestic cat! 

All of a sudden the tiger dashed towards an unknown destination. When our Elephant retraced it, to our surprise it had caught baby Chital under its powerful paw! In the next few moments we were doubly surprised by the appearances of two more tigers (mother and brother as told by the Mahut again). As we left the scene the blood of the Chital had not flown and was still panting under the imminent death! 

SUGGESTIONS D: It is a fact that the Wild life tourism in India spins around the sighting of tigers. That is why Ranathombara rated high in the past (the lake tigers). Now it is the turn of Kanha with the tiger show. The authorities at Kanha deny the allegations like i) The tigers are hand fed by the department for the show purpose. ii) The change in behavior. It seems the tigers there feed and breed in the normal and natural way as elsewhere. iii) The Elephants are driven to corner the tigers which is dangerous and also equivalent to animal teasing. I may not subscribe to allegation no i). But with the tiger crisis hot on hand (which has erased the lake tigers at Ranathombara totally) how am I to believe that these animals will not be an easy prey to the poachers (who are just another set of harmless humans in the eyes of these tigers )? Regarding the allegation no. iii) we are the witnesses. Our Mahut was constantly cajoling the Elephant to front cut the tiger's path. At times he even grumbled curses at the tiger for trying to steal the show. The attraction for the men involved is in the money collected. The departmental stipulation per Elephant is Mahut plus 4 adults in the howdah. But all the loads that wе witnessed were not less than 6 in the Howdah (including ours). The amount Rs.40.00 per head collected by the Mahuts (no receipt) seems to go to the show managers (i.e., few forest officials and mahuts). On that morning two Elephants had atleast 20 trips between them which means a minimum of Rs.4800. Isn't it GOOD? 

SATKOSIA GORGE: On 9th May we were on the road from Bilaspur to Cuttack. Just Before Angul we took the deviation (as planned) to Tikarpara crocodile research station which also forms the core area of Satkosia gorge WLS. The 46 km run was through awe inspiring hills which once heralded dense jungle (now denuded by the human greed!).We saw many head loads of wild wines bye-passing the authorities at the gate. Mahanadi, worthy of its name, is the mentor of this famous Satkosia gorge. Tikarpara is small tribal village on bank. Now adjacent to the same village the research station with its numerous buildings and fenced ponds with the neglected look and the guest houses with deserted face welcomed us. The rows of cement ponds had few varieties of crocodiles. But the unkempt dirty ponds discouraged viewing. For the sake of Mahanadi we wanted to stay a night but the usual govt. rule asked us to approach the Officer at Angul for permission. Then come to the Junior Officer stationed 10 km ahead of Tikarpara (50 km back). Finally you land at the mercy of Chaukidar who cannot work without a bribe! At the outset Chaukidar had suggested us to provide him something for Chaypani. Then we needn't have to go to Angul etc. As the dusk fell we preferred the dirty private lodges of Angul to the corrupt dormitories of Tikarpara! 

BITTERKARNIKA: We thought a visit to Bittarkarnika WLS would be good compensation for the loss at Tikarpara. So on the 10th morning at Cuttak we went in search of Bittarkarnika. But it was in vain. We just wasted our time by half a day and energy to cover 145 km. At first through local enqiry we went back to Chaudvara. Next we were lead on the Calcutta high way for some 4 kms. Lastly we started from Jagatpur and went upto Kendrapara via Salipur. At that place we believe to have received the correct picture about Bitterkarnika. Which says another 50 kms road and indefinite distance on backwaters with disorganised boat services. Even after that the facilities available may not be tourist friendly! Dejectedly we retraced our way. 

CHILKA: Our run from Bhuvaneswer to Vishakapattanam was supposed to be a memorable one with Chilka lake bordering it a long way. But actually Chilka lake is not easily comprehensible to i) a brief visit ii) a single visit and iii) to an uninitiated common man. We approached the lake firstly at Balugaon. It was just like any other fishing port; smelly, dirty, with the usual petty shops, roaming dogs, scavanging crows etc. 

А little ahead we saw an attractive sign board and we followed it. On the beach was a private Lodge catering package tours to the nearby Islands in the lake. Here OTDC is slowly coming up with its own huge tourist complex. It has already launched a lake of its own. Four massive walls have segregated a portion of the lake (approximately 100 * 100 meters) with a small gate for the water to flow in and out naturally. Few water sport materials have been thrown for the benefits of the fun seeking tourists. As it is Chilka is naturally protected from the ups and downs of the sea. Then why this rubble in the Lake? Who is accountable for the money wasted? Mere buoy marks could have contained the tourists from straying in to the vastness of the lake accidentally Governmentality in general never believes in the saying - Small is beautiful (because there is big money in bigness) 

EASTERN GHATS: Eastern ghats around Borra caves and Arakku valley, Nagarjun sagar and finally Srisailam area were the few more memorable nature spots we visited during our present tour. The tourist arrangements at the Borra caves - the protected and reinforced foot paths inside the cave and the sodium light arrangement are good. But educating the public to check their enthusiasm is lacking. The echo seeking shouts in side cave may upset the natural balance some day to bring calamities! Throwing of bleaching powder as a hygenic measure and dumping the human waste (the remains of eatables and packages brought in by the tourists) must be stopped to allow nature to continue on her course chosen millions of years back. 

Arakku valley is merely a tourism gimmik! 

Nagarjuna sagar WLS is a name of yester-years. NOW except for the Yatipotala waterfalls nothing much remains of nature! The extension of this valley can be seen at Srisailam dam site also. The natural agent which has carved this beauty is seemingly harnessed. Even the remains our developers do not seem to behave properly. On the way to Karnool from Dornala saw bundles of firewood on the roadside sale. The bus, lorry drivers seemed to be the regular agents in purchasing and selling them in the towns. Perhaps this is the tip of the iceberg! 

CONCLUDING SUGGESTIONS E: Wild life sanctuaries in addition to the protection work should open their eyes more benevolently and correctively to tourism. The present tourist groups that haunt the Sanctuaries can easily be identified as either rich Or sponsored class. In general they assume that they are inculcating the goodness of the Sanctuaries in them by whiling their time. Their purchasing power and contacts deny righteous the opportunity to visit Sanctuaries. They are to be discouraged by removing the glamour in the wild life enthusiasm. The measures to be followed may be on the following lines. 

1) Refer to my earlier `suggestion C'. 2) The board and lodging must be privatised and competitive. Star facilities must be cut down to simple food and accommodation for all at nominal rates (A warning: these should never be subsidised!) 

"ENLIGHTENED TOURISTS ARE THE REAL WATCH DOGS", quoted Sri Eric D'Cunha. This spirit is reflected in many voluntary groups like Ranathombara foundation, Wildlife First, Sanctuary Magazine etc. Let this be an incurable epidemic! 

(Letter ends) 

[[Copies sent to:1. Dr. Ullas Karanth, Mysore. 2. Sri Valmik Thapar, New Delhi, 3. Sri Bittu Sahagal, Editor, Sanctuary Mag., Mumbai. 4. Sri VK Yadav, Jalpaiguri 5. The Field Director Sunderbans Tiger Reserve, WB 6. The chief of Mahananda Wildlife Sanctuary Sukhna, WB 7. Sri Shubhankar Sen Gupta, Jaldapara W.L.S 8. The Field Director, Palmau Tiger Reserve, Bihar 9. The Director, Pana National Park, MP 10. The Field Dirctor, Bandhavgarh National Park, MP 11. Sri Manish Moggia, Bandhav Garh 12. The Field Director, Project Tiger, Kanha, 13.Sri Erio D'Cunha, Kanha, 14. The Director, OTDC, Orissa 15. The DFO, Satkosia gorge Sanctuary, Orissa 16. Sri KC Kalkura, Kurnool 17. Equations, Bangalore.]

Replies received: Two.

From: The Director, Padmaja Naidu Himayalayan Zoological Park 

Dear Sir,

I have received a letter which ha mentioned visit of your team to PNHZP Darjeeling. In the letter you have mentioned that in a limited space the Zoo has packed Trigers, Wolves, Gaurs etc. While I agree that we should have more space for the wild animals, but it is not clear on which basis you have framed such ideas. For Tiger we have three open enclosures, where we open them by rotation. One of the enclosure is quite big. We are planing to construct one more enclosure and after a pair is gifted to National Zoo, there will be sufficient space. 

Regarding wolves the space seems small because a substantial portion of the enclosure is closed due to planting and after the roots set in, the wolves will have sufficient space. 

We have no Gaurs, still you have mentioned about the Gaurs enclosure. Regarding animal mauling probably your team did not pay attention to the developments taking place in the Zoo. 

It is surprising to see your note that Snow Leopard and Red Panda bredding centres do not speak high of the authorities intentions, Here I would like to mention that these enclosures are considered as one of the best in the world. However nothoing can be perfect, If there are suggestions I would welcome them. 

In the end while I admit there is lot to be done for the development of the zoological park, yet appreciation of good work is essential for moral boosting. 

Regarding ticketing in Snow Leopard enclosure, arrangement is being made to bring a pair in the main enclosure and the area will be kept exclusively for breeding and research and hece restrictions.

yours faithfully

Director

-----------

From PK Chowdhury, Field Director, Panna National Park, 12-8-96

We are in receipt of your summary & synopsis on `India - a coastal run.' I am happy to note that you selected Panna National Park.

You have brought out some of very pertinent points which are related to protected areas management so far as tourism is concerned. I must thank you for the same. Let me also comment on a few of your remarks.

First of all, we did not receive any communication from you or your group about your proposed visit to the park. Although Panna is a small place and we have very very limited accommodation with park management, yet arranging night stay facility for 4-5 people should not have been difficult - that too in the peak summer month of May.

Now about your `unfriendly Forest Officials!' I am afraid, you did not contact the right person. There are three more independent forest offices, besides Park Office, in Panna town. Anyway I regret the inconvenience your group faced on arriving in the town.

The Industrial village mentioned in your letter is HINAUTA. The industry here is diamond mining managed by the National Mineral development corporation (One and only working diamond mine of the country). The black industrial waste (called tailings) is their dump, being heaped at present spot since 1995. I am sure you and your organization can now raise a voice against this and help save the environment.

The Hinauta gate is one of the two entry points for visitors, and one can reach the later through park. However, the visitors are supposed to go in four wheelers with guides. I believe that guard must have had your mobikes in his mind (and view) when he suggested you to travel on Chatrapur road to Madla (on your way to Khajuraho). Sorry, the park doesn't have vehicles to take visitors on round. Regarding booking of rooms in park rest houses at Madla and Hinauta, one can contact the Park Range Officers, stationed at these very places. It seems your team had some mis information here too. Sorry once again. But following your information, suitable instructions have been issued and guidance given to the staff, so as not to put visitors to unnecessary hardship.

We acknowledge with thanks your compliments and positive comments about Pandav falls. They are really encouraging. Let me ensure that you will get still better conditions here on your next visit.

Thanks for writing. Do visit again. A brochure on the park is enclosed for information.

yours sincerely

PK Chawdhury