Initiative increases inflow of foreign tourists to region
Project Snow leopard, a flagship species programme of the country covering Jammu & Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Arunachal Pradesh and Sikkim, has shown success in ladakh. The area, which has nearly 60 per cent of the 400-500 individual species found in the country, has succeeded in boosting the recent efforts in ecotourism, an essential component of the project.
This has been achieved by the participation of local communities, which has increased the inflow of international tourists in the area. In February this year, the ecotourism initiative of the Department of Wildlife Protection in ladakh was accredited as the ‘Best Responsible Tourism Project’ in the country.
Snow leopard is included in the list of species under Recovery Programme of the Environment Ministry which is funded through the umbrella scheme of Integrated Development of Wildlife Habitats.
According to sources in the Ministry who are reviewing the project, one of the major thrusts of the project was the promotion of eco-tourism. The project aimed at ensuring the participation of local communities who were to host the tourists in their homes. This was expected to serve dual purpose of promoting tourism and snow leopard conservation through community participation.
Since its launch in 2009, the ecotourism activities in various protected areas of ladakh including Hemis National Park, Changthang Wildlife Sanctuary and Karakoram Wildlife Sanctuary, had been working to promote various aspects of ecotourism which had been attracting international tourists. This year around 90 per cent of over 3,000 tourists, mostly foreigners, who visited the park sighted Snow leopard in its wild habitat, informed the sources.
Sources pointed out that an integral part of ecotourism in ladakh has been the promotion of recycling, effective use of renewable energy, water conservation and creation of economic opportunities for the local communities. Today, there are more than 700 homes in ladakh, where local communities offer shelter to the visiting tourists, informed the sources in MoEF. The project includes compensation packages for livestock and to preserve the natural habitat of snow leopard for its conservation.
The best season to visit ladakh to see Snow leopard is from November to March, when there is heavy snowfall in the upper slopes of the mountains which drives the big cats to the lower terrains which are rather easily approachable.
In view of the huge rush, the bookings of tourists are being made well in advance, latest by July 2014, to enable the department to have a strict regulatory regime in place for the sighting season starting November, the sources said.
Poached for its skin and body parts, major threat to the Snow leopard, according to experts, is drastic decrease of its ungulate preys including wild sheep and goats.