The Forest Department is bracing up to handle the tourist rush during the summer vacations at Bandipur as it has emerged as a popular wildlife reserve in recent years.
With the onset of holidays, the department’s cottages and dormitories at Bandipur have been fully booked.
The national park’s success story in tiger and elephant conservation is the main reason for its popularity as also its geographical location making it a convenient pit-stop for tourists en route to Ooty and Wayanad.
Located about 80 km from Mysuru, Bandipur draws nearly 1,50,000 tourists a year.
“Bandipur earns about Rs. 3 crore a year through accommodation rental and safari fee,” said H.C. Kantharaju, Director, Bandipur Tiger Reserve.
The rush tends to peak during summer vacation, said Mr. Kantharaju. “From the time online booking was introduced at Bandipur and other national parks a few years ago, the popularity of wildlife tourism has increased, and Bandipur is the first preference of most tourists,” claimed a Forest Department staff.
While catering to tourists seeking accommodation at Bandipur is easy as intake is restricted to the number of beds available, it is the weekend crowd that descends on Bandipur for the safari that is getting out of control. Most tourists drive to Bandipur — which is less than two hours from Mysuru — for the safari. The queue for the safari tends to be long, resulting in frayed nerves and arguments among visitors.
Though public enthusiasm for the safari has increased over the years, there are restrictions on the number of vehicles that can be allowed inside the forests at any given time.
To balance this, the duration of the safari has been reduced to allow for more trips when the rush is heavy.
“From the time online booking was introduced at Bandipur, the popularity of wildlife tourism has increased. Bandipur is the first preference of most tourists.”
Forest Department staff
