Indian Tiger Safari Update

Tiger Safaris in India

With the unfortunate death of a tigress in one of India’s top national parks and Tiger Reserve earlier this year the government have announced a serious clamp down on the tourism industry in central India. The initial thoughts were of banning vehicle safaris and the infamous ‘tiger shows’ (where guests are paraded up to tigers on elephant back) but since the first wave of shock over the sad news more realistic aims and targets have been set.

Instead of the over the top cancellation of all tourism into the Tiger Reserves a major overall of the system needs to be implemented. The tiger in question was a young tigress, luckily it is believed the tigress did not have cubs, was struck by a vehicle during game drive hours for tourists. The way a typical tiger safari works in India is meant to be safe for the guest and the tiger and is meant to be an enjoyable experience which benefits the local people, wildlife, guests and India as a whole. However in reality things never run this smooth. It is not unusual to be driven around the national park (over big bumps, through huge streams, puddles and even off-road (which is strictly prohibited) in the pursuit of the draw-card, tigers.

The reason for the gung-ho approach by the guides is simple and unfortunately understandable. There are two ways you can visit these parks and complete tiger safaris. The first is with a luxury lodge which will provide you with the very best accommodation, food and local guides to escort you into the park. They often have the best and newest cars and more often than not give the environment and the animals the greatest respect. However you can also visit these parks by staying in the cheaper, government run resorts. This is very cheap as you often pay Indian prices and not the foreign prices of elsewhere. However here you tend to get lower paid staff and drivers. The drivers are nearly always just drivers, they have no passion for the natural world and have not grown up longing to work in the wild with these beautiful and as a result they are driven towards making money.

This is where the tigers come into direct danger from the vehicles which are there to observe them. Most of the drivers for the cheaper resorts want to get a tip; especially when their guests are foreigners. As a decent tip will double or treble their monthly wage and the problem comes is when people do not tip or do not tip high enough if a tiger has not been seen. So the guides go around the park like rally drivers in search of the big cats as they know that finding one means a big pay day bonus. No one blames the drivers, they have families to feed and lives to live but what the government need to do is thoroughly vet all drivers who use the park and enforce bad driving when it is evident. Coupled with this the park authorities are also reducing the area which is open to tourists and actually closing the core zones which are where the animals can escape the attention of the jeeps and elephants.

Hopefully these new implementations and with a new view of eco-tourism developing across the Indian population the future is bright for tigers and in the Indian Subcontinent.

If you are interested in our great selection of India Tiger Safaris have a look at our tiger safaris and see if one takes your fancy!