Bengal govt readies rural toursim spot in Sundarbans

Kolkata, Aug 17: Traversing through creeks and terrains of the Sundarbans, the mangrove forests of West Bengal, is child's play for Ramu, a poacher turned guide, who is happy with his newly found job.

Thanks to World Wildlife Fund (WWF), West Bengal government and the local NGOs, who have set up a unique eco-tourism destination at Bali Island in Hatkhola, near Gosaba National Park, some 116 kms south of Kolkata.

The Sunderbans though replete with the big cats and mangroves but had not been able to pull tourists despite rich flora and fauna of the delta reserves.

''This new eco-tourism destination in Bali Island is a place where tourists can enjoy village tourism. They can stay and interact with the locals,'' WWF state Director S Banerjee told UNI today.

Developed by the WWF and Sunderbans Tiger Project, the eco tourism project aims at to conserving the forests, wildlife with help of the locals and promote travelling as well.

Help Tourism, which works for conservation of nature and wildlife in East and Northeast India, is also associated with the project.

''The Sunderbans are losing its distinct beauty due to frequent poaching, hunting and timber-felling. Villagers needed an alternative way to earn revenue and sustain themselves. This module aims to support them,'' Mr Banerjee said.

''State forest department is also supporting this project as without its help we can not proceed with this kind of projects,'' he added.

Tourists would enjoy beauty of jungle sitting in camps inside the forests. Keeping in mind the locale and its flavour, the camps have been designed accodingly.

''We will offer a milieu where the tourists will be able to freak out in the jungle, take a ride on the elephant, walk through the villages and get a feel of the local people's life. The Sundarbans are not only about flora and fauna, natural beauty and tigers. They are also about people,'' he said.

The unique aspect of this eco-tourism module is that it stresses on gainful employment of the locals.

Stressing the involvement of the locals in the project, Mr Banerjee said village women maintain the mud cottages, the locals run a nature shop, selling gift and handicraft items. The money that comes in from the shop goes back to the locals.

Ramu, a man of mid forties, along with his wife and fellow villagers, also runs a training centre near the jungle camp. HELP Tourism assists Ramu to sell his items prepared by the local women in this training centre.

UNI