KUMAAR HOLIDAYS
No. 42, Chowdary Nagar Main Road,Valsaravakkam, Chennai-87
Cell: 78109 86933 / 78108 96933 / 93810 61000
E-mail: kumaarholidays1@gmail.com
www.kumaarholidays.com
Ayurveda,
houseboats and tea plantations aside, Kerala tourism is looking for ways to
reinvent and introduce niche products to foreign markets. The tourism
department has now set its sights on improving tourist activities in protected
forest areas.
An expert committee set up to
strengthen the management effectiveness of important protected areas in the
state held its first meeting last week. The agenda included non-invasive ways
to increase international tourist awareness about forest reserves and luring them
for a vacation there. "Any activity in a protected zone would require the
forest department's permission. We understand the sensitivity of these eco
systems, which is why a committee was constituted to figure out how to take
this project forward. Marketing such destinations will be through a
coffee-table book that could be sold or given away at tourism fairs, but the
question remains whether the forest department will be able to introduce new
products so that they can be featured in the book. The target is high-end
luxury seeking tourists," a tourism department source said.
However, forest officials have expressed reservations on amending rules enforced in the highly sensitive areas to facilitate more tourists. "We have a good amount of tourists visiting designated areas of Periyar Tiger Reserve. We have some 17 activities tied to the area such as night scouting, boating, trekking etc. These activities draw a large crowd, which we have to often restrict. The committee suggested setting up more camera traps along the migratory path of animals so that people could view a live feed as and when it happens in an enclosure nearby, but we have to take a call on that. We cannot reveal the locations of these camera traps as it could have a detrimental effect," said an official at the office of the field director (project tiger), Periyar Tiger Reserve, who is a member of the committee.
The committee is expected to make its suggestions in the next couple of months. The other members include ecotourism director, tourism director and secretary, principal conservator of forests (wildlife), conservator of wildlife (Palakkad) and a planning board member.
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KUMAAR HOLIDAYS
No. 42, Chowdary Nagar Main Road,Valsaravakkam, Chennai-87
Cell: 78109 86933 / 78108 96933 / 93810 61000
E-mail: kumaarholidays1@gmail.com
www.kumaarholidays.com
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