They have asked the government not to allow such elephants into the CNP, arguing that it would seriously undermine conservation efforts. They have also flayed the government for not conducting an Environment Impact Assessment (EIA) for allowing private tuskers into the CNP even as a decision to allow is likely to be taken. [break]
The government plan to let private elephants carry tourists into the CNP came about after Sauraha-based hoteliers demanded that their elephants be allowed into the park just like government-owned elephants.
The Department of National Parks and Wildlife Conservation (DNPWC) had formed a panel to assess the hoteliers´ demand. The panel led by the chief warden of the CNP ironically included as members hoteliers demanding that private tuskers be allowed into the park.
The panel dominated by the hoteliers submitted a report to the DNPWC one month ago, favoring private tusker entry into the park. Conservation activists speculate that the government is likely to take a decision on the basis of that report.
They say that the entry of herds of elephants owned by hoteliers into the CNP would have a negative impact on the biodiversity route. “We are against this move as it affects conservation efforts and should be halted,” says Laxman Upreti, chairman of Nepal Forum of Environment Journalists (NEFEJ).
At present, tourists wanting to go on safari in the park have to use elephants owned by the CNP. Elephants belonging to hotel owners are not used for safari inside the park. Private elephants have so far been serving tourists only in community forests in the buffer zone of the park. There are 46 elephants owned by hoteliers in Chitwan.
Four different community forest user groups in the CNP buffer zone have also objected to the entry of private tuskers into the park.
“Private elephants should not be allowed into the park without a scientific method in place for monitoring them,” Yam Bahadur Pariyar, chairman of the park buffer zone management committee, said. “But it seems the government is in a hurry to fulfill the interests of a handful of hoteliers.”
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