The Supreme Court on Tuesday ordered a ban on tourism in the core areas of tiger reserves. This will effectively lead to the closure of all eco-tourism activities in Mallela Teerdham and Farhabad at the Nagarjunasagar-Srisailam Tiger Reserve in Nallamalla. The proposed project in Kawal Tiger Reserve will also be shelved. While ordering the ban on tourism in the core areas of tiger reserves, the apex court also criticised the state government for not notifying the buffer area in the Nagarjuna-sagar-Srisailam Tiger Reserve. The buffer area is the zone that surrounds the core area of a tiger reserve.
Mallela Teerdham and Farhabad are the attractions in the thick forests of Nallamalla, where the local tribals have formed eco-development committees (EDC) and conduct trekking tours to the water bodies where tigers and other wildlife are spotted. “With the ban, the EDC members will lose their livelihood. Tribals are employed as tiger trackers and also as EDC members so that they do not get attracted towards Naxalism,” said a police official.
However, forest department officials welcomed the move. The Chief Conservator of Forests (Project Tiger), Mr A.K. Nayak, said: “We will implement the Supreme Court ban orders at Nagarjunasagar-Srisailam Tiger Reserve. There are no permanent structures in Mallela Teerdham and Farhabad except the protection sheds for the guards. Once we receive the orders we will stop tourism activities.”
Chief Wildlife Warden S.V. Kumar said: “We have sent the proposals for notifying the buffer area in Srisailam Tiger Reserve and are expecting a notification from the government maybe in the next 10 days.”
Environmentalists have been demanding a ban on cattle grazing in the tiger reserve core areas and other biotic interference and restrictions on vehicle movements. The SC issued the orders following a PIL filed by Prayatna, an NGO.