3rd Year Special Annual Double Issue Vol 4 Issue 1 & 2 Jan - Apr 2 3rd Year Special Annual Double Issue Vol 4 Issue | Page 39

wildlife they will act like its guardians and wildlife will become more secure. It’s important to remember that tourists are the tiger’s best friends. In zones where tourists are allowed, tigers rarely go missing whereas many go missing in regions where tourists are not allowed. Over the last few years, the number of tigers in India has grown dramatically thanks to the efforts of those who started as wildlife tourists. There has also been a similar growth in the number of elephants and leopards in India because of the efforts of wildlife tourists. Allowing a large number of tourists to visit wildlife reserves is like crowd sourcing the security of the wildlife in such parks. Hence the number of tigers continues to grow in Indian reserves and when the census numbers of tigers are released in January and February of next year, undoubtedly they will show that the number of tigers has grown once again. Other Ways Wildlife Tourism Helps Conserve Wildlife Although there have been instances where visitors to sanctuaries have harmed such sanctuaries, often tourists who visit sanctuaries are the sanctuaries best friend and their greatest benefactors. Visitors to sanctuaries don’t expect to visit just once in their lifetime, they actually expect to visit sanctuaries their entire lives and so it is in their interest to make sure such sanctuaries remain as they are so that future generations can continue to enjoy them. The young children who visit such sanctuaries along with their parents often enjoy giving names to the animals they see and when they visit such parks again they look forward to seeing the same animal. Tourists also often help keep sanctuaries clean. It’s not uncommon for visitors to sanctuaries to help pick up garbage left behind in sanctuaries. While in the past the disposing of garbage inside sanctuaries may have been common, it is far less so today and many visitors to such sanctuaries help authorities dispose of garbage that had been left behind by others. Additional Steps to Conserve Wildlife Much of the money earned by a park is used to help conserve its wildlife. However what is less well known is that the money collected from visitors to a park is placed in a combined treasury where it is distributed to many national parks and sanctuaries in the country. So, as stated earlier, while visitors to parks ensure Vol 4 | Issue 1 |Jan - Feb 2019 the safety of wildlife, the money spent by tourists may not benefit the park that is most popular among tourists. For the better mainte- nance of parks, it should be mandated that the sum spent by tourists in a certain park be used in the same park rather than be placed in a common treasury. This ensures that parks that offer tourists the best experience will benefit monetarily while those which don’t will have to find ways to attract tourists. Such competition is necessary to ensure national parks and sanctuaries remain attractive tourist destination for centuries to come. The Need to Preserve Wildlife Without wildlife, there would be no tourists to exotic wildlife preserves and sanctuaries in India. Hence those who travel to wildlife preserves and national parks are partners in the conservation of nature and wildlife. Second to those who work in national parks, perhaps no one loves wildlife more than those who eagerly visit national parks hoping to catch a glimpse of wildlife. Such tourists will ensure that future generations continue to enjoy wildlife as they become the guardians of such wildlife. Tourists can also benefit national parks if they introduce a policy that ensures that revenues earned by a park are used within the park rather than being placed for common use by all national parks in a treasury. Tourists to national parks can help bring about such change by voicing their concerns about the need to preserve wildlife and by taking suitable actions. Black Panthers Image Credit: Sreedhar Nagaraj 39