It is not even kissing the horizon when Ravi Gond starts the morning ritual. He is a third generation forest guide in Madhya Pradesh, not only taking the tourists around the Kanha National Park, he is sharing stories that his grandmother used to tell him about tigers that once freely roamed around his village. This is the emerging face of wildlife tours in India, where the local communities are not only said to be participants but they are the pioneers of sustainable tourism at large.
More than the Safari Vehicle
The usual perspective of traditional wildlife tourism placed the locals as outcasts who could only just observe, but that has since been changing in just a short period of time. The surrounding villages of India finest national parks are currently designing genuine experiences which extend well beyond the run of the mill jeep safari.
Rabaris, people of Jawai region in Rajasthan, who traditionally practiced livestock farming have now become the nature-keepers of the leopards. The family has known every leopard by name, Kailash explains: generations living in their midst. It is not just the tourists who want to view animals, but they need to learn how we relate with the animals.
These ground-up movements are transforming the way the world enjoys the wild setting in India. Rather than dashing in and out of tiger sightings, travelers now make village tours, take part in traditional food demonstrations and listening to stories after which old folklore is revived.
Ripple effect of Community Tourism
The financial loadings are much more than that of point households. Female cooperatives in the Spiti Valley region of Himachal Pradesh set up homestays where females lead snow leopard tracking tours. The income remains in the community supporting everything and anything related to children entering education to conservation projects of wildlife.
Previously, just the loss of the livestock to the predators has translated to monetary demise, as Dolma, a homestay owner in the Kibber village comments on the subject. In order to thrive, we used to be afraid of the same leopards that today are a huge attraction. We have simply learned to be together and make a profit.”
This is being replicated throughout the various ecosystems in India. Sundarbans Former fishermen have turned into skilled mangrove guides revealing tips about tidal patterns and crocodile behaviour which could not be learnt out of a book. Elephant tracking in Kerala is done with the help of the tribal groups that focus on conservation rather than fun.
Triumphs and Tribulations
It has not been a smooth ride. There were the language barriers, the lack of knowledge in marketing and there seemed to be the skepticism of the tourists initially. Nevertheless, agencies such as Wildlife Trust of India and different state tourism boards have come in and are offering training programs.
Maya Sharma, a coordinator of community tourism, says they train the villagers on hospitality management, standard English and digital marketing. However, what is more important is we make them appreciate their traditional knowledge as unique selling point.
The Future of being Truly in the Moment
With wildlife tours in India, evolving it is becoming clear that the desires of discerning travellers are to build a connection rather than to take a pretty picture. This is exactly what is provided by community-based tourism because it offers the original experiences to tourists and populations.
The stories of success are increasing. Around Corbett there are villages that provide a bird-watching tour even farmers can distinguish species solely by their call. Tribal folk in the Western Ghats collectively pass knowledge of medicinal plants when out in a forest walk. Ex-poachers of Assam became the defenders of rhinos and use their understanding of animal behavior to their advantage, using it as tools of conservation.
A New Paradigm of Tourism
Indian wildlife tourism today does not merely concern only featuring the Big Five or crossing tigers off the lists. It is about learning how difficult it is to understand the complexities of the relationship between people, wildlife and landscape which has existed over thousands of years.
As Ravi Gond is fond of explaining to his guests, when they see new pugmarks in the mud, “It is not just that we show you what the tigers pass over — but how we have learned to walk along with them.”
This is where India wants to go with the future of wildlife tourism: community based, culturally rich and conservation oriented. A few village stories at a time.
