Community based Ecotourism- A case

study in Bhopal Division.Bhopal(MP)

L.Krishnamoorthy I.F.S.
Conservator of Forests, Bhopal Division, Forest Sports Complex, 74
Bunglows, Bhopal-462003 Madhya Pradesh
Email: kichump@rediffmail.com

Abstract
Community Based Ecotourism has been perceived as one such tool to
ensure the participation of local communities in conservation of forest by
ensuring their livelihoods as ecotourism service provider. The initiatives taken
by Bhopal Forest Division to promote Ecotourism activities at Samardha and
Kerwa in Bhopal with the help of Madhya Pradesh Ecotourism Development
Board(MPEDB) has shown the marked improvement in employment
generation to local communities in one hand and creating environmental
awareness to the City dwellers.
It has been observed that if the communities are trained in different
trades of eco-tourism services such as Nature Interpretation, Hospitality &
Catering, Camp Management, Housekeeping etc, and provided with
infrastructure requirement, they can as a group perform the duties of ecotourism service provider and cater to the tourists visiting forest areas. This not
only provides them livelihood opportunity but also sensitize them towards
forest & wildlife conservation. They also become the messenger for spreading
the message of conservation education amongst the masses.
Key Words
Ecotourism, Livelihood, Employment generation,Wildlife.
Introduction
Ecotourism is responsible form of nature based tourism, oriented
towards conservation of resource, development of livelihood opportunities for
local communities and dissemination of conservation education. Ecotourism
has been broadly defined as Tourism which is ecologically sustainable.
The total contribution of travel and tourism to Indian GDP was INR
6385.1bn(6.6%of GDP)in 2012 and is forecast to rise by 7,3%in 2013-14 and
to rise by 7.9% pa to 14722.3bn in 2023. Of course this is generic figure that

Government of India has provided. There is no sectoral evaluation of the

metric regards to Ecotourism, hence one would not be able to comment on the
aspect of GDP contribution through Ecotourism. However, considering that
multitude of tourists visiting India and domestic tourists to visit destinations
that fall in the categories of Ecotourism and nature based tourism, it is
pertinent that studies in this sector will add value and bring about positive
growth and development to the Ecotourism sector.
Madhya Pradesh has largest geographical area under forest cover. The
rich floral & faunal biodiversity spread across the 96000 km2 forest land
makes it the preferred choice for travellers. Although the major tourist influx
for the tourists has been observed in PAs ( 10 National Parks & 24 Wildlife
Sanctuaries ), but with increasing numbers of tourists and limited carrying
capacity of national parks, reserved forest areas of MP have seen a increase in
tourist influx over the last few years. Madhya Pradesh is well endowed with a
rich gamut of picturesque and relatively undisturbed landscapes, forests,
wildlife and cultural diversity. More than 80% of the tourism in Madhya
Pradesh is centred on nature and wildlife. It is in this context that
Ecotourism has gained its bearing in the state. The Ecotourism has also
potential to play an important role in creating environmental as well as cultural
awareness amongst all the stakeholders like local communities, tourists,
government and private sector.
In order to harness the potential of Ecotourism in state and to reduce
the pressure on national parks, Forest Department, Government of Madhya
Pradesh has created Madhya Pradesh Ecotourism Board(MPEDB) on 12th july
2005 under Madhya Pradesh Societies registration Act 1973. Madhya Pradesh
Ecotourism Board has started the initiative of promoting Community Based
Ecotourism in various Forest Divisions of MP. MPEDB is the first Ecotourism
Board created in India to promote Ecotourism in Forest areas. MPEDB
provided a new structure, policy, Guidelines and framework, infrastructure,
funds and awareness to promote Ecotourism in Madhya Pradesh.
Materials and Methods
The study area includes Samardha and Kerwa ecotourism destinations
of Bhopal division. The JFM committees operating in this area and ecotourism
sub-committees are interviewed using
questionnaire to collect all the relevant
data to analyse the impact of ecotourism
on the livelihood of the members in the
form of primary data. The income and
expenditure details are collected from
the committee records.

Results and Discussion

Community Based Ecotourism in Bhopal Division
Forest Department is always faced with the paradox of Forest Conservation on
one hand & Livelihood Security of the forest dwelling communities on the
other hand. The symbiotic relation of the one on the other is so complex that
there is no possible alternative for the Forest Department to ensure justice to
both without compromising the interest of the other. The need of the hour is to
incentivise local communities for Forest conservation by providing them such
livelihood alternatives which can inherently ensure their participation in Forest
& Wildlife Conservation.
How we started - Samardha Forests
Samardha is a reserved forest area and has been famous from the time
of erstwhile Nawabs of Bhopal, who frequently visited Samardha for hunting
& recreation. From that time Samardha is famous as Shikargah of Nawab.
There is a small revenue village called Samardha on fringes of Samardha
Reserved Forest with 100 households. The village is mainly inhabited by
Yadav community and has taken up settled agriculture and Dairy farming as
their major occupation.
Forest Department in the year 2011, with the financial help from
MPEDB,decided to start an ecotourism destination in the vicinity of Samardha
Forest for Nature based recreation of Urban tourists of Bhopal. The vision was
to provide alternative livelihood opportunity to the local villagers and to
sensitize the tourist about the forest & wildlife.
Capacity Building of Local Youths
The Village Forest Committee (Gram Van Samiti) , Samardha was
consulted and 20 identified youths of village were trained in different trades of
ecotourism services such as Nature Interpretation, Hospitality & Catering ,
Camp Management, Adventure
Activities . A Self Help Group of
trained youths was formed under the
VFC, Samardha. The SHG was named
as Eco-tourism Committee, Samardha
and a resolution was passed by VFC,
Samardha that Ecotourism Committee
Samardha will work with following
objectives:

1. To provide eco-tourism services (Guiding, Food, Accommodation

facilities etc) to the tourists and
earn revenues.
2. To help Forest Department in
Forest & Wildlife Conservation.
3. To protect Samardha Forest Area
from illicit felling, Wildlife
Poaching, Forest Fire or any
incident, which might have
detrimental impact on forest & wildlife.
Ecotourism Committee were provided with basic infrastructure facilities of
Kitchen, Store Room. Public Utilities to start their own enterprise as
ecotourism service provider. Different Brochures, Hoardings and leaflets
were also prepared for the wider publicity of the destination.
An operation model of the ecotourism committee was also finalised by
Ecotourism Board in consultation with VFC & Ecotourism Committee,
Samardha.
Constitution: Ecotourism Committee has one elected President & Secretary
to look after the management (Operations, Account & Store Management) of
Ecotourism Committee.
Roles & Responsibility of Divisional Forest Staff, Ecotourism Board &
Ecotourism Committee
1. Divisional Forest Staff is entrusted with the role of overseeing the
work of Ecotourism Committee
a. To ensure that Ecotourism Committee members or tourist are
not involved in any activity which are against the prevailing
law of Forest.
b. To ensure that the Ecotourism committee is working as per the
operational guidelines prepared for them
2. Ecotourism Board
a. To identify & train local youths in different trades of
ecotourism services
b. To provide financial support for developing infrastructural
requirement ( Camp Equipments, Public Utilities, Kitchen
Equipments etc)
c. To do marketing & promotion through various available
medium ( Print & Electronic Media)
d. To take bookings and overlook the operations of ecotourism
committee thro appointed Ecotourism Manager.

3. Ecotourism Committee: To provide ecotourism services for the

tourists.
a. Nature Based Activities (Trekking, Nature Walks, Bird Watching, Star
Gazing): Tourists are accompanied by guides on designated trekking
routes and are
also
briefed
about the do's
& don'ts of
Jungle.

b. Cultural Activities ( Folk Songs, Bullock Cart Ride, Village Tour)

Tourists are taken on village tour in Bullock Carts, in evening time
they can dance on the beats of local folk songs sung by the committee
members. Local people of
Samardha has embraced
ecotourism with positive
spirit and are more than
willing to share their
experience of Jungle with
the tourists.

Folk
tales
narrated
by
senior
aged
people
of
samardha have
long
lasting
impression on
the guests.

c. Adventure Activities ( Archery, Monkey Crawling, Cycling etc)

Tourists also get opportunity to do various adventure activities conducted by
trained committee members, these activities are the major attraction of
Samardha Jungle Camp.

d.

Food ( ethnic food cuisines)

Community provide basic
food menu for the tourists
combined with their local
cuisines.

e. Accommodation
(Tented/Cottage)
Samardha
has
two
prefabricated cottages and 25 alpine tents which can accommodate
maximum group size of 60 people.

Booking Process & Operations

The SHG gets their booking either through MPEDB, DFO office or
directly. The tourist may provide cash on the site or transfer the amount into
the SHG account to confirm their booking. The SHG depending on the type of
booking and the requirement of guests do the preparations.

The Ecotourism committee from its own funds arrange for the recurring
expenses of the event.
Account Management
The Ecotourism Committee manages their account as per the set
protocols of accounting principles generally followed by SHGs. They manage
Cashbook, Vouchers, Bill book, Event Expense sheet & Attendance register
for their record. The accounts are being audited by Ecotourism Manager on
monthly basis and the progress report is submitted to the CEO, MPEDB.

Money Flow
The money received from tourists is first deposited in the account of
Ecotourism Committee.
Ecotourism Committee depending on the requirement & tourist
bookings takes out the money for the recurring expenses.
The Ecotourism Committee calculates the number of mandays each
individual member has contributed and after deducting all the recurring
expenses and share of Ecotourism Board & VFC distributes the profit
amongst the members of the SHG.
The Samiti also keeps minimum 10 % of their profit as reserved fund,
for working capital requirement and for off season repair &
maintenance expenses.
Benefit Sharing Mechanism
Ecotourism Committee currently offers two types of standard packages

Package

Rates

Day
Package

500

DayNight
Package

1300

Inclusion
Food: Lunch
Activities: Bird Watching,
Cycling, Archery and other
activities
Food: Breakfast, Lunch &
Dinner
Accommodation:
tents/cottages
Activities: As per choice

Village
Ecotourism
Forest
Ecotour
Board
Committee Commit
Charges
Charges
100

15/pax
50 /vehicle

385

300

15/pax
50/vehicle

985

The ecotourism committee Samardha has been working for past 2.5 years and
on the basis of the experiences learnt from Samardha Jungle Camp, a similar

kind of initiative has been started in Kerwa. The operational model has been
kept same for the Ecotourism Committee Kerwa.
Community Based Ecotourism, Kerwa
Kerwa is one of the famous urban getaways of Bhopal. The proximity
to the city and good road connectivity makes it favourite place for the urban
tourists to visit this area. The undulating landscapes, precipitous hills, verdant
forests & Kerwa lake makes it the most sort after place for appreciating the
pristine beauty of nature.
Kerwa Lake out of which 2 ha has been earmarked for Ecotourism. There are
3-4 villages in the
vicinity of Kerwa
Forests. Similar type of
eco SHG has been
formed
from
the
identified youths of
these villages and they
have been trained in
different trades for
providing ecotourism
services.
Amenities developed
at Kerwa Jungle
Camp
1. Cafeteria ( Managed by eco Self Help Group, Kerwa)

2. Adventure Activities:
(Paintball,
Archery,
Kayaking,
Boating,
Rappelling, Sky Zipping
etc)
Rappelling: tourists climb down an 80 feet high hill by balancing themselves
through 10mm high tensile rope.
Kayaking: Tourists gets opportunity to try their hand on inflatable kayaks and
row through paddles and glance at the picturesque view of Kerwa Dam.
Paint Ball: Paintball is an artificial war zone game, played by two teams
inside a battle zone arena. Number of players in a team may range from three
to five. The objective of the game for each team is to capture the flag of the
opposing team and to eliminate as many opposing players as possible by
shooting through your marker while capturing and returning the opposing
teams flag to its own flag station within a limited time period.
3.Trekking and Bird watching: The tourists are taken to adjoining forest area
in the predetermined routes for trekking and bird watching. The trained guides
explain the important spots like rock paintings, direct and indirect evidences of
wild animals seen in the route, water bodies, rocks etc in the trekking route.

Amenities Proposed: With the increase in the influx of tourists to Kerwa, the
following amenities are being developed in the current financial year 2014-15.
1. Kids Entertainment Zone
2. Camping Accommodation
3. Tree House & Cottages

Financials for last two years

Ecotourism
Destination

people
No. of years Total
engaged of operation Revenue
Year-1

Total
Revenue
Year-2

Average
Monthly
Income/membe

Samardha,
14
2.5
6,20,000
10,30,817
Bhopal
12
3 months
NA
2,50,000
Kerwa, Bhopal
*Average monthly income has been calculated after deducting the operating
expenses, JFMC share & forest department charges.
* Operation cycle for above mentioned sites is mainly July to March. April to
June is off season in which they do other works like agricultural works,
Labour work etc.

4000
4200

* Average monthly income mentioned is purely from providing ecotourism

services and is exclusive of their income from other sources such as cattles,
agricultural work, labour wage.
*These data are based on cumulative expense, benefit sharing sheets of
respective ecotourism Samiti and the records sent by them to Ecotourism
Board on monthly basis.
Conclusion:
Ecotourism in its purest form is the only non consumptive use of forest
resource, where a tourist derives pleasure from the aesthetic value of nature.
An organised form of tourism helps in minimizing the impact on the resource
and helps in conservation of forest & wildlife. Due to ecotourism activities in
these areas the overall protection to the forests has improved. Until & unless
tourists get a chance to interact with Jungle through different ecotourism
activities it is not possible to sensitize them towards the need for conservation
of forest. Since the last three years the income to the members of ecotourism
committees is increasing and if the trend continues it could sustain many
members in the years to come. Though at present around 26 members of the
committee are getting direct employment from the ecotourism activities, with
more influx of tourists in to these destinations more members will directly
benefit in the coming years and have the potential to develop as community
based ecotourism model destination in Madhya Pradesh.
Although its a start but from the learnings of past three years and tourist
feedback, the following ideas could be way forward
1. Waste Management Plan for all ecotourism destination
2. Soil & Water Conservation ( Rain Water Harvesting, Grey Water
Management, Gabian Structures)
3. Good Interpretation Materials about existing flora & fauna of the
destination
4. Energy Conservation ( Maximizing use of renewable energy resources,
reducing energy consumption)
5. Institutional tie-ups with traveltour operators, schools, colleges &
other corporate institutions.
6. Carrying Capacity Analyses
Acknowlegment
1.Shri. Satish Tyagi I.F.S, APCCF& CEO, Madhya Pradesh
Ecotourism Development Board(MPEDB), Bhopal.
2. Shri. Mahendra Yadvendu I.F.S, Chief Conservator of Forests,
Bhopal circle, Bhopal.

References
1. Anonymous 2014. Annual report 2013-14.Madhya Pradesh Forest
Department, Bhopal.
2. RBS Rawat. Jogmohan Sharma March 2003. Developing
stakeholder based ecotourism in Uttranchal. India. The Indian
forester, volume 129, issue 3
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2006 Environmental auditing in ecotourism: A study on visitors
management in Vanvihar National Park, Bhopal. The Indian
forester,volume 132,issue2,
4. Bhattachariya A.K, Suchitra Banerjee. March 2003Relevence of
carrying capacity and eco-developmental linkage for sustainable
Ecotourism. The Indian forester, volume129,issue3,
5. Ayesha E Prasad,Phd, G.Selva Kumar,IFS and Manoj Kumar,IFS.
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