Planning for development of community based eco-tourism in Tamia

Abstract

Tourism industry is riding at an all-time high in the global scenario. This has led to the exploration and development of new branches of tourism that weren’t much known or popular some time back. Eco-tourism is one such branch that has taken precedence over other forms of tourism in recent times. The idea of exploring nature and being a part of thrilling and adventures activities conducted in environments rich in ecological content is becoming widely popular. But rapid expansion of such type to tourism can lead to detoriation of the host environment. In order to safeguard the local environment of such areas where eco-tourism activities may take place, it is important to plan ahead for a way to ensure preservation the area despite of conductance of eco-tourism activities and this can be best done by involving a local community that lives in the area and has concern for its sustainability. In India, the communities categorized under Scheduled Tribes have restricted socio-economic development because of lack of upliftment and geographical seclusion. They generally live in hilly regions covered in forests and are more or less dependent on forest resources for their survival. This also makes them an expert on the local diversity and they understand the value of ecology better than other people do. Now, the challenge is to find common linkages between eco-tourism and local tribal community in order to develop a community centric eco-tourism practices which will ensure the required socio-economic development of the indigenous community as well as make sure that the local environment is not detoriated due to the involvement of active tourism which may only focus on the monetary benefits of eco-tourism. The study site selected is Tamia Tehsil located in Chhindwara district of Madhya Pradesh under the shadow of Satpura Forest Reserve. This particular site was selected because Tamia has been recognized as an eco-tourism destination by Madhya Pradesh State Tourism Department (MPSTD) and its majority population comprises of primitive tribes. This region has one of the key areas as Patalkot which was disconnected from the outside world till a few decades ago and is need of external help for upliftment. Moreover, Tamia has a highly rich ecological profile. As Tamia is emerging as a tourist destination, it is important for these tribes to participate and emerge as a self-sustainable entity to keep up with the development. This study involves conducting analyses on determining the eco-tourism potential of Tamia with respect to its biodiversity content and ecological profile as well as the role of local community and other local stakeholders for eco-tourism development. Moreover, it also involves assessing socio-economic status of the tribes, their tribal character, their dependency on forest products, their sources of livelihood and the interlinkages between biodiversity, eco-tourism activities and tribes to find the common community groups. Based on the results of these, a community-centric ecotourism planning is proposed. This planning will ensure that the local community is involved in carrying out eco-tourism activities in the area and they get the required training and incentives to conduct those activities. It also ensures that the benefits from the eco-tourism development goes directly to the community which will give them a new source of livelihood and ensure their socio-economic upliftment. It will also ensure conservation of local environment as a result of increased value of ecological footprints.