From being viewed as the land of sex, snakes and sadhus to a country taking rapid strides in the field of information technology and other areas of science, India has experienced a sea of changes in its image.

But it continues to be the land of diverse natural beauty where Rudyard Kipling’s Jungle Book characters—Mowgli, Baloo and Shere Khan—leaped to life. Gifted with rich flora and fauna widely spread across the peninsula in different climatic zones, India makes an ideal destination for ecotourism.

In the north snow-capped Himalayan range among houses are rare animals like ibex, musk deer, snow leopard and exotic birds. With a mix of coconut grooves, brackish water and tropical forests, southern states are similar to the Caribbean islands and Amazon jungles.

Having a vast potential to be developed and promoted as an ecotourism destination, India has positively responded to the United Nations’ declaration that 2002 is the International Year of Ecotourism.

Indian media, quoting a recent presentation of International Ecotourism Society at Manahattan, reported that some parts of South Asia, like Nepal, have been in the ecotourism business for 15 to 20 years. Reportedly, it has the best-developed adventure and ecotourism infrastructure. But in the rest of the South Asian countries like India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka, political and religious tensions and natural disasters such as the Gujarat earthquake in northwest India in January 2001 or frequent flooding have slowed the growth.

Speaking at the presentation, Fergus McLaren, director of the International Year of Ecotourism project, says ecotourism is still in the nascent stage in these parts, but could be developed in another 10 to 15 years. Parts of northeast India have enormous potential, as do national parks such as Gir Forest and Corbett National Park.

Marketing Ecotourism to Americans

Unlike Southeast Asia, which has been on the radar of North American ecotourists, the task for South Asian tour operators is determining how to market their destinations.
“The American traveler does not have a great deal of experience or awareness of South Asia,” McLaren says. “It hasn’t been marketed very well to Americans, so it is not very well understood.” The challenge is to promote the country as an ecotourism destination, rather than an exotic, historical and cultural country that it is usually perceived as.

According to a report issued by the Indian Tourism Department, ecotourism is the fastest growing segment of the tourism industry that attracts between 40 to 60 percent of about 2.5 million international tourists visiting India annually. India’s total earning from the tourism sector is about $3 billion, which accounts for a mere 0.64 percent of the global market.

The general perception of India as being the land of ancient culture and heritage is rooted in the fact that Indians have built a unique relationship with nature. The tradition of animal worship and other elements of nature originate from the primitive fear of wild animals and natural calamities. Thus, the need to propitiate those that present danger to India’s wildlife.

India in the buff

Seldom has a culture been so deeply and consistently associated with animals and trees as India. The association was probably also catalyzed by the geological events that took place millions of years ago as Gondwanaland—which included Africa, Antarctica, Madagascar, Australia and South America—became separated and drifted across the globe on its molten crust, to crash slowly, but with titanic force, into Eurasia. The Indian plate has continued to thrust under Eurasia and the Himalayas, which have risen in several great upheavals. The great height reached by the range in the late Pleistocene era created a weather barrier, which is responsible for India’s unique monsoon climate and creation of vast diversity of ecosystems in the country.

The diversity of plants, animals and natural beauty is preserved in India’s 247 sanctuaries and 55 national parks, which provide opportunities to see a variety of wildlife. Forest reserves in the northeast, northwest and central parts of the country are home to majestic Indian tigers and leopards. In the extreme northeast, Manas Wildlife Sanctuary is a great shelter for Indian one-horned rhinoceros.

No kindle of kittens here

The forest reserves in the northeast also contain typical tropical grassland animals like gaur or jungle bison, chital or spotted deer, rhesus macaque, assamese macaque, stump-tailed macaque, striped hyenas, jackals, tigers and elephants.

The forest reserves in the north are the places best reflecting the Himalayan wildlife, which includes musk deer, yaks, bharal or blue sheep, Himalayan marmots, Himalayan ibex, hangul or kashmir stag, brown and black bear, chukar partridges and monal or impeyan pheasants. For bird lovers, forest reserves in the northwest include Siberian cranes, great Indian bustard, peacock, dusky horned owl, crested serpent eagle, a myriad parrots and parakeets. And the offshore islands Lakshadweep and Andamans provide a unique serenity and beauty with their own ecosystem surrounded by colorful coral reefs and marine life.

What makes the jungles of India different from African forests is the absence of large assemblages of animals. This is because the forests are thick and animals of such closed environments are generally shy and retiring, living in small, scattered groups or as solitary individuals. Most mammals are largely nocturnal, but it is relatively easy to spot diurnal birds.

One has to seek the specimens here, and this makes it necessary to know where they would be most likely to reside and hide. High temperatures usually put them off and they prefer to rest in the shade. Therefore, the best time for safari is in the early hours of morning. Generally, night safaris are not permitted to avoid interfering with the hunting time of the nocturnal animals. This is the reason a tourist visiting the Gir Forest in northwest India in the afternoon usually finds the Asiatic lions lazing under tree shade. As most animals are not easily seen on a hot sunny day, this may sometimes convey a false message that there are hardly any animals in the forest.

Monsoon Sightings

Indian environment and vegetation are largely dependent on the monsoon season, which clearly affects the availability of food and water. This in turn reflects on the distribution and visibility of the animals. During monsoon season the forests are covered with lush green foliage. But during lean months when rainfall is scanty, most of the national parks close to take up restoration works like desilting the water holes and planting saplings. Therefore, the best time to visit Indian forests is between October and June.

Recently, an Indian newspaper reported, “India is committed to promoting sustainable tourism development, which does not come at the cost of the environment. The courts and the state governments are religious when it comes to preserving ecology.

Ecotourism is a segment of the nature tourism market. It includes travel for enjoying culture or nature, through trekking, hiking or observing wildlife and volunteer or service vacations."

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Arvind Diddi, an international student from India, graduated from MSU with a Master of Arts in Journalism. He will begin working on his Ph.D. in Mass Media at MSU this fall.