Ranthambore: Advanced bookings of full-day, half-day tiger safaris to be honoured
The visitors are still being taken on half-day tiger safaris and new bookings are being accepted.
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The state government has discontinued full-day and half-day tiger safari bookings.
JAIPUR: While the confusion still prevails over the closure of full-day and half-day tiger safari at Ranthambore National Park in Sawai Madhopur, sources said that the advanced bookings made by the visitors will be honoured. The park authorities have bookings for full-day and half-day safaris for up to June next year.
The decision has left the wildlife lovers who were in support of a ban on full-day and half-day safaris disappointed. They said that it’s a tactic of the park authorities to delay the implementation of the state government’s orders.
Sources also said that while the park authorities have stopped accepting bookings for full-day safaris, the visitors are still being taken on half-day tiger safaris and new bookings are being accepted.
While the routine safari costs about Rs 7,000, the full-day and half-day safaris are costlier. “The half-day safari booking price ranges from Rs 30,000 to Rs 55,000 for Indian nationals, while it ranges from Rs 42,000 to Rs 75,000 for foreign tourists,” said Abhishek Sharma, a booking agent in Ranthambore.
The local wildlife activists accuse the park authorities of working under the pressure of the hotel lobby that is against the closure of full-day and half-day safari.
Recently, principal secretary (Forest, Environment and Climate Change) Shikhar Agarwal had recently tweeted about the government’s decision to discontinue the full-day and half-day safari at the park.
“In the larger interest of wildlife, it has been decided to stop half-day and full-day safaris in Ranthambhore Tiger Reserve,” he tweeted. Shikhar Agarwal is currently on a foreign tour.
