The Centre presented the new guidelines to regulate tourism in and around tiger reserves in the Supreme Court on September 27.
The guidelines were submitted to the Supreme Court on September 26, despite concerns raised by some of the members of the panel that the ministry set up on September 12 on the directions of the court to finalise new guidelines. The members objected to some of the provisions that favoured industry and the fact that the guidelines did not take into account rights of local communities.
Last month, the ministry withdrew its previous eco-tourism guidelines that called for phasing tourism out of core tiger habitats and imposing tax on hotels and resorts for eco-development. The new guidelines were framed after the tourism industry aggressively protested against the government's guidelines and the Supreme Court order that put an interim ban on tourism in tiger reserves.
The court has now asked the state governments and other aprties concerned to submit their comments on new guidelines within three days.
Track change
In the new guidelines, several changes have been made to pacify the agitated tourism industry. For instance, the panel has recommended that up to 20 per cent area of the core zones of the tiger reserves can be opened up for tourism. The earlier guidelines called for allowing only community-based tourism in 10 to 20 per cent of the core zones, depending on the size.
The old guidelines restricted tourism activity in the areas of tiger reserves from where forest dwellers have been relocated to make space for the big cat. The new guidelines have tweaked it to say that no tourism infrastructure will be allowed in the areas from where relocation has taken place. This artful play of words does not make much sense because infrastructure development is in any case not permitted in core tiger habitats under the Wildlife Protection Act. It was the tourism activities in these areas which left the forest dwellers that have been shifted out unhappy.
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The court will hear the matter on October 3.