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Safaris in Nagarhole, Bandipur to resume from Feb 19: Khandre
Safari operations in Karnataka's Bandipur and Nagarahole reserves will resume Thursday, following a ban due to human-wildlife conflicts.
Safari operations at two of Karnataka’s most prominent tiger reserves will resume in phases beginning Thursday, more than three months after they were halted following instances of human-wildlife conflict , state forest minister Eshwar B Khandre said on Wednesday.
According to Khandre, the decision to restart tourism at Bandipur National Park and Nagarahole Tiger Reserve was based on recommendations from a technical committee that studied safety, ecological limits and impact on local communities.
Safari activities had been suspended from November 7, 2025, after a series of tiger attacks and rising incidents of human-animal conflict along the forest fringes. The closure prompted protests from residents, including farmers and tourism workers in areas bordering Nagarahole, who said their livelihoods had been severely affected.
Speaking at a press conference, Khandre said the government’s priority had been public safety. “We have ordered a safari ban from November 7 so that no life should be harmed. After becoming the forest minister, I have taken many steps to prevent human-animal conflict. Despite taking steps, 45-50 people die every year. This is a painful thing,” he said.
Under the new plan, safari operations will run for shorter durations and with fewer vehicles. Bandipur’s total safari time will be reduced from eight hours to five hours a day, while safaris will operate for six hours at Sunkadakatte and four hours at Nagarahole during the initial phase. The number of vehicles entering the forests will be cut by half, with some reassigned to patrol forest-edge villages to help prevent wildlife encounters, he said.
To improve oversight, all safari vehicles will be required to install GPS tracking systems and dashboard cameras within two months, the minister said.
The committee also recommended allocating one-third of safari income toward local development programmes, including skill training, fodder cultivation and conservation activities in fringe villages.
The panel, formed after a meeting of the state Wildlife Board chaired by the chief minister on January 2, included forest officials as well as experts from the Wildlife Institute of India in Dehradun and the Indian Institute of Forest Management in Bhopal.
It was tasked with assessing the ecological carrying capacity of the parks and recommending conditions for resuming tourism.
