Socio-Economic and Ecological Consequences of the Ban on Adventure Tourism in Nanda Devi Biosphere Reserve, Western Himalaya

Biodiversity and Conservation 13: 2237–2252, 2004. # 2004 Kluwer Academic Publishers. Printed in the Netherlands.

Socio-economic and ecological consequences of the ban on adventure tourism in Nanda Devi Biosphere Reserve, western Himalaya

CHANDRA SHEKHAR SILORI The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI), Darbari Seth Block, Habitat Place, Lodhi Road, New Delhi 110 001, India; (e-mail: [email protected])

Received 9 May 2003; accepted in revised form 29 July 2003

Key words: Adventure tourism, Biotic pressure, Eco-tourism, Nanda Devi Biosphere Reserve, - Peoples’ participation, Sustainable development

Abstract. Prior to 1982, the uncontrolled mountaineering activities to the Nanda Devi peak led to the heavy destruction of the biological resources of the region in the form of poaching of wild animals, tree felling by expedition parties, collection of medicinal herbs and accumulation of garbage. To curb the biotic interference, the area was declared as Nanda Devi National Park (NDNP) and adventure tourism was stopped in 1982. Further in 1988, an area of 2236.74 km2 was designated as Nanda Devi Biosphere Reserve (NDBR) with an inner core zone (NDNP) surrounded by a buffer zone. A ban on tourism activities, followed by the designation of NDBR directly helped in a signiﬁcant improvement in forest cover and density. The better status of wild animals, including rare and endangered species such as musk deer (Moschus chrysogaster) and blue sheep (Psuedois nayaur), is an indicator of such improvements. However, from a socio-economic point of view the loss of income from adventure tourism forced local people to migrate from the area, a phenomenon that was reﬂected in the human population trends, registering 15% decline between 1981 and 1991 and another 13% between 1991 and 1996. In the absence of alternative income sources, marginal agriculture and animal husbandry became the major sources of income for the locals. Nonetheless, the low density of human population kept the level of biotic pressure under control in NDBR. Promotion of eco-tourism and natural resource based employment generation schemes are suggested to compensate for the economic loss to the local people and to maintain the biodiversity of NDBR.

Introduction

Nanda Devi Biosphere Reserve (NDBR), designated in 1988, is reputedly one of the most spectacular wilderness areas in the whole of the western Himalaya (Green 1993). It is known for thick forests of blue pines, oaks and cedrus, vast alpine meadows and tough hilly terrain with snow-laden peaks. Large altitudinal variation (1800–7817 m) with some of the highest peaks of the country and rich biological and cultural resources made NDBR one of the hotspots of adventure tourism and it remained so until 1982. Prior to 1982, Nanda Devi peak (7817 m), the second highest peak in India, was the most popular among mountaineers and trekkers, after Mount Everest (Kandari 1982). The ﬁrst recorded attempt to enter the Nanda Devi basin was by W.W. Graham in 1883 (Green 1993), but he was unable to proceed beyond the gorge of the Rishi Ganga river. Subsequently, T.G. Longstaff in 1907, 2238

Figure 1. Nanda Devi Biosphere Reserve in the western Himalaya, showing the location of trekking routes to Nanda Devi peak and proposed trekking routes for promotion of eco-tourism in the buffer zone. 2239 and Hugh Rutledge in 1926, 1927 and 1932 also met with failures. Finally in 1934, Eric Shipton and W.H. Tilman pioneered a 52 km long route to Nanda Devi basin through the steep and narrow Rishi Ganga river gorge, which takes nearly 10 days (Tak and Kumar 1983). There are only two entry points to the route leading to the Nanda Devi peak from Chamoli district. The first one is at the point of confluence of the rivers Rishi Ganga and Dhauli Ganga, near Reni village through the Rishi Ganga river gorge, while the other one originates at Lata village about 3 km further north to Reni village (Figure 1). Both these treks meet at Debru Gheta and continue as the main route to the base of Nanda Devi peak. As in most of the Himalayan areas, unplanned tourism (Singh 1989) also affected the ecology of the Nanda Devi region. In the case of NDBR, uncontrolled tourism caused deforestation (especially along the trekking routes and near the timber line), poaching of wild animals, collection of medicinal herbs, accumulation of garbage (polythene bags, toilet paper and tin containers), forest fires, soil erosion, and erosion of cultural values (Khacher 1978; Kandari 1982; Mehta and Kapadia 1990). To curb the anthropogenic pressure, the catchment of Rishi Ganga river was designated as Nanda Devi National Park (NDNP), and human activities, including adventure tourism, were banned in 1982. This article is based on a study conducted in NDBR during 1994–1997 and attempts to evaluate the impact of a ban on adventure tourism on the socio-economic and ecological aspects of the Nanda Devi region.

Study area

Geographical description and climate

NDBR was the second biosphere reserve of the country, designated in January 1988. The geographical area of the reserve spreads over 2236 km2 with two distinct zones, namely, the core zone and around this the outer buffer zone (Figure 1). The human habitation is distributed in 19 villages of the buffer zone while the core zone is free from human habitation. The core zone of the reserve comprises the catchment of the Rishi Ganga and eastern tributary of Dhauli Ganga river, which joins the Alaknanda river at Reni village in district Chamoli. The boundary of the core zone is formed by a series of high peaks such as Dunagiri (7066 m), Changbang (6864 m), Kalanka (6934 m), Nanda Devi East (7434 m), Trishul (7120 m) and Nanda Ghungti (6368 m), while Nanda Devi West peak (7817 m) is located within the core zone (Figure 1). The entire area has distinctive micro-climates owing to the varied topography. The annual rainfall ranges from 750 to 2000 mm with a declining trend from south to north. The annual temperature varies between below 08 C (December–January) and 358 C (June–July). The higher reaches of the reserve (above 4500 m), which make up about 81% of the core zone and 60% of the buffer zone, remain snow covered round the year (Sahai and Kimothi 1996). 2240

Biological and cultural richness of the area

The entire Nanda Devi region is rich in its biological wealth. A total of 793 plant species have been recorded within the bounds of the biosphere reserve (Hajra and Balodi 1995) including 76 rare and endangered species. Six of these are classified as endemic to the area and 36 as near endemic (Samant et al. 1993). Of these, eight species are also listed in the Red Data Book of Indian Plants (Nayar and Sastry 1990). Of the total forest cover of the reserve, about 47% has dense forest cover (>40% crown cover), 35% with open cover (10–40% crown cover), and 17% is in the miscellaneous and degraded forest categories (<10% crown cover) (Sahai and Kimothi 1996). The forest composition shows a clear pattern along the altitudinal gradient, starting from dry deciduous forest types in the lower altitude areas to the alpine meadows above the timber line. These meadows exhibit a high range of diversity of flowering plants such as Primula, Potentila, Anemone, Geranium, Pedicularis, and Saussurea, while some other species such as Rheum australe, Aconitum heterophyllum, Arnebia benthamii and Dactylorhiza hatageirea also have very high medicinal value (Hajra and Balodi 1995). The inventory of faunal composition of the region lists 17 mammals, including endangered species such as snow leopard (Uncia uncia), Himalayan black bear (Ursus thibetanus), Himalayan brown bear (Ursus arctos), Himalayan musk deer (Moschus chrysogaster), blue sheep (Psuedois nayaur), serow (Capricornis sumatrensis)and Himalayan tahr (Hemitragus jemlahicus) (Lamba 1987; Sathyakumar 1993). About 141 species of birds have also been reported from the reserve and adjoining areas (Shankaran 1993), besides about 28 species of butterfly (Baindure 1993). The human habitation in the region is largely restricted to the buffer zone, whereas the core zone, centre of tourism activities prior to the ban, is free from human presence. Of the 19 villages of the buffer zone, 12 are located in district Chamoli, two in district Almora, and the remaining five are in district Bageshwar sector of the reserve (Figure 1). The findings presented in this article are based on a study conducted in the 12 villages of district Chamoli, where tourism activities were in operation prior to the ban. The area, being close to the Tibetan border, is rich in its ethnic diversity. The human population of the region is dominated by a tribal community known as Bhotiya, who are Hindu Rajputs, with Indo-mongoloid features (Silori and Badola 1995). They have settlements at two places and practice seasonal and altitudinal migration to adjust to the harsh environmental conditions especially during the winter season (October–April). Human and livestock popu- lations of the area migrate to the winter settlements at lower altitudes, mostly outside the buffer zone in October and return to summer settlements at higher altitudes in May. Prior to 1962, the major occupation of Bhotiyas was international barter trade with Tibet. After the Indo-China war of 1962, trade was stopped and the economy of the area was totally shattered. People shifted to adventure tourism and took up agriculture, animal husbandry and wool-based handicrafts as subsidiary occupations. The ban on tourism in 1982 was another major blow to the economy of this region, forcing people to depend on the marginal agriculture and animal husbandry for their subsistence. 2241

Methods

Impact of tourism

The major objective of the study was to understand the impact of the ban on adventure tourism on socio-economic and ecological aspects of the Nanda Devi region. To start with, a rapid survey was carried out in 12 villages of the district Chamoli sector of the buffer zone to understand the various aspects of the tourism prior to the ban. For more detailed study, the study villages were broadly divided into two groups, on the basis of their location with respect to the centre of tourism activities and the level of involvement in these activities. Group I consisted of those villages located within 15 km radius of entry points of trekking routes and which were relatively more involved in tourism activities, while Group II villages were more than 15 km away from entry points of trekking routes with less involvement in tourism activities. Reni, Peng, Muraina, Lata, Tolma and Suraithota villages were classified in Group I, while Phagati, Segadi, Kaga, Garpag, Dunagiri and Malari villages were classified in Group II (Figure 1). To gather information on the tourism activities prior to the ban, participatory meetings at village level were conducted, largely focussing on the flow of tourists from different parts of the world, the role of the villagers in these activities, the pattern of direct and indirect incomes from tourism and perception of locals towards the ban on tourism. For detailed information a questionnaire survey was carried out at household level and data were collected on the involvement of the number of family members in the tourism activities, average number of man days per month engaged in tourism activity, average monthly income and other kinds of income. In addition, information on the present socio-economic structure of the respondents was also collected to understand the pre- and post-ban scenarios. In- formal discussions with the older respondents helped in understanding the various socio-economic and ecological aspects associated with tourism activities prior to the ban. In addition to the primary surveys, the official records of human census (between 1961 and 1991) were gathered for the study villages to understand the demographic changes due to the ban on tourism.

Ecological changes

To document the ecological changes after the ban, besides compilation of information from published literature, ﬁeld sampling was carried out to assess the distribution of biotic pressures and status of forests in terms of density and regeneration. Forest trails used for biomass collection and livestock grazing were taken as transects to quantify the biotic pressure. On the transect line at 200 m intervals, two circular plots, each of 10 m radius, were laid on either side of the transect keeping a distance of 20 m in between two plots. The transect was continued until a pressure free zone was reached (where cut=lopped trees were neg- ligible or not recorded at all). The wood cutting and lopping pressure was assessed 2242 based on the following parameters: (a) species-wise enumeration of uncut=cut and un-lopped=lopped trees (plants with above 20 cm GBH were considered to be in the tree category), (b) their girth at breast height (GBH), and (c) ocular measurement of intact canopy cover. Grazing pressure was assessed by recording grazing and browsing signs, number of dung piles, number of tracks, etc., from three quadrats of 50 cm 50 cm laid within each circular plot of 10 m radius. The proportion of cut and lopped trees is calculated against the total number of trees sampled for the entire study area and also for two trekking routes. The gradient of wood cutting and fodder lopping pressure was plotted with the help of the proportion of cut=uncut and lopped=un-lopped trees against the distance from the village boundary at every 400 m for the entire study area and at every 200 m for two trekking routes. The presence of wild animals was also recorded in the form of indirect signs such as pallet groups, scats, pug marks, footprints, hoof marks and kills, etc., within the smaller plots laid for gazing pressure assessment. Wherever possible, direct sightings of wild animals and number of individuals were also recorded while the distance to the nearest human settlement from the sampling point was noted to understand the impact of human disturbance on the presence of wild animals.

Results

Pre-ban scenario

The best season for tourism in Nanda Devi is between late May and early October when the trekking routes and forest trails remain free from snow-cover. The elders of the study villages revealed that on average about 2000 tourists visited the Nanda Devi region every year for mountaineering and trekking, the majority of whom were foreigners. The villagers were mainly engaged as porters while a few of them also worked as tourist guides. Each expedition party used to take about 35–40 porters and 75–100 baggage animals from the local villages, depending upon the size of the expedition team. During every season, on average about 1000–1200 villagers used to get employment with expedition teams. Goats were mainly used as baggage animals, since they have the skill of walking comfortably on tough hilly terrain. Thus, tourism activities also provided employment to shepherds who took their sheep and goats to the alpine pastures during the summer months (May–September). To understand the economic aspect of the tourism, a total of about 350 families were interviewed, including 170 families from Group I while the other 180 families were from Group II villages. A signiﬁcant variation (t-test; p < 0.0008) was observed in terms of proportion of families involved in tourism activities between the two groups, with 80% (SE 9.59) of the total families of Group I and 15% (SE 3.38) from Group II villages (Table 1). The involvement of families from some of the villages of Group I such as Reni, Lata, Muraina and Peng was more, averaging 87% (SE 6.67; n ¼ 127), due to their location close to the trekking routes. Similarly, in the Group II villages Dunagiri, Kaga and Garpag, which were 2243

Table 1. Number of families in the study villages of NDBR involved in adventure tourism prior to the ban in 1982. Villages Total families Number of families involved in tourism

Group I Reni 50 40 (80) Peng 25 20 (80) Muraina 6 6 (100) Lata 72 61 (85) Tolma 14 5 (36) Suraithora 3 3 (100) (x ¼ 80.16 SE 9.59) Group II Phagati 19 2 (11) Segadi 14 2 (14) Kaga 11 2 (18) Garpag 7 2 (29) Dunagiri 37 6 (16) Malari 92 4 (4) (x ¼ 15.33 SE 3.38) Figures in parentheses indicate percentage of total families involved in tourism. located near trekking routes to Dunagiri, Kalanka and Changbang peaks, a greater number of people were involved in trekking as compared to other villages of the same group. The number of members from each family involved in tourism also varied in both the groups. Against three working male members (above 16 years) from Group I, only one working male member from Group II was involved in the tourism activities. Residents of Group II villages used to get employment from the tourists visiting comparatively less popular peaks such as Dunagiri, Changbang and Kalanka. The daily wages of a porter varied between Rs. 8 and Rs. 45, depending upon the distance travelled and the load carried, while the daily wages for a baggage animal ranged from Rs. 25 to Rs. 60. Thus the average seasonal income per family varied between Rs. 14,724 and Rs. 26,244 for Group I villages, while for Group II villages, it ranged between Rs. 2400 and Rs. 10,008. The average seasonal income for Group I villages (Rs. 17,802 SE Rs. 1731) was signiﬁcantly higher as compared to the Group II villages (Rs. 4591 SE Rs. 1234; t-test; p < 0.001). At household level also, the average income per month during the tourist season was much higher (Rs. 2967; SE Rs. 288) for Group I villages as compared to Group II villages (Rs. 504; SE Rs. 206) (Table 2).

Post-ban scenario: socio-economic changes

The impact of the ban on tourism activities on socio-economic structure was observed in two different ways. The demographic changes were recorded in the form 2244

Table 2. Average income generation from adventure tourism in the study villages in NDBR prior to the ban in 1982. Villages Average income Average income (Rs. SE per family per month) (Rs. per family per season)

Group I a Reni 2688 110.11 16128 Peng 2454 73.38 14724 Muraina 4374 163.51 26244 Lata 2751 77.91 16506 Tolma 2610 248.30 15660 Suraithora 2925 142.33 17550 Group II b Phagati 1200 152.75 7200 Segadi 570 30.00 3420 Kaga 400 50.00 2400 Garpag 438 12.50 2628 Dunagiri 675 75.00 4050 Malari 1668 463.81 10008 aAn average of three members per family were involved in tourism. bAn average of one member per family was involved in tourism.

Figure 2. Occupation pattern in the study area after the ban on adventure tourism.

of large scale migration of youths from the area, while the older people and women largely concentrated on the marginal agriculture, animal husbandry and wool-based traditional handicrafts for making a living. The analysis of demographic data of the study villages revealed a steady increase from 1961 to 1981, while after 1981 a decreasing trend was recorded (Figure 2). The growth in the human population in two decades, between 1961 and 1971 and 2245

Figure 3. Human population trends in district Chamoli (study area) in comparison to districts Pi- thoragarh and Almora.

1972 and 1981, was substantially high at 77% and 89.5%, respectively. This is an important phenomenon to record, despite the fact that following the Indo-China war of 1962 the international trade between India and Tibet was stopped and local people lost their major source of income. Nevertheless, the disruption of trade did not affect the demographic pattern, possibly because of alternate employment in the form of tourism. On the other hand, the human population declined steadily in the villages located in district Bageshwar of the buffer zone after 1961, owing to migration of people for employment after disruption of cross border trade. How- ever, in the study villages, the human population registered a decline of 15% between 1981 and 1991 (Census Abstract 1991) and another 13% between 1991 and 1996 (present study). Thus, it is clear from these trends that in district Chamoli the adventure tourism remained one of the important sources of income to the local people, even after the ban on international trade and a ban on the tourism activities forced people to migrate to lower plains for employment opportunities. Such a trend was also reﬂected in the declining number of occupied houses in the summer settlements inside the buffer zone. For example, Malari village of the study area has about 250 houses but during the household survey, only 92 houses were occupied. From a socio-economic viewpoint more than 60% of the total families in the study villages were engaged in agriculture and wool-based handicraft activities (Figure 3). Farmers depended on the cultivation of traditional crops such as amaranthus (Amaranthus frumentaceous), kidney bean (Phaseolus spp.) and potato (Solanum tuberosum), while some large farmers also raised apple orchards (Pyrus malus). Women continued with their traditional occupation of wool-based handicraft, besides their routine household activities. It is important to mention here that agriculture and wool-based handicraft activities were subsidiary occupations prior to the ban on tourism, because villagers were unable to devote time to these activities in the tourist season, which coincides with the season for agricultural cultivation. 2246

Compared to the income from tourism, the average annual income for each household across 12 study villages at the time of this study was recorded to be Rs. 10,601 (SE Rs. 1133). Of this, 23% was contributed by the agriculture sector while 33% was contributed by sheep and goats in the form of wool and meat and the rest came from other occupations such as government service, manual labour and other employment at local level. Thus, it can be stated that Group I villages suffered more economic loss compared to the Group II villages due to the ban on tourism.

Ecological status of buffer zone forest

One of the important criteria for assessing the ecological status of buffer zone forest in the post-ban scenario was to study the level of destruction of the forest resources. The results of anthropogenic pressure are presented in Table 3. Of the total sampled plots (n ¼ 182) in the district Chamoli sector of the buffer zone forest, 66% showed signs of cutting and lopping, but the proportion of cut trees was only 26% of the total standing trees. Moreover, the girth size of cut stems ranged between 20 and 60 cm and 38% of the total cut trees were rated under the very old cut category. This means at present the felling of large girth class trees was not recorded, contrary to the pre-ban scenario, when expedition parties used to fell the large trees for making bridges and temporary base camps along the trekking routes. Similarly, the lopping of trees was also very much less; only 7% trees (n ¼ 182 plots) were lopped near the timber line zone (Figure 4). This means the villagers do not lop the trees for fodder, whereas lopping near the timber line was mainly because of the migratory shepherds who feed their sheep and goats with the leaves of Betula utilis. Also, of the total lopped trees, 41% were rated under the lowest damage category (having >75% intact crown cover), while only 19% were rated under the very high lopping category (having <25% intact crown cover). The wood cutting gradient in the buffer zone forest in Chamoli sector was restricted to 2–3 km radius with a declining trend from the village boundary (Figure 4). In the case of trekking routes it was limited to 1.4 km from the village boundary with a declining trend (Figure 5). The fodder-lopping, however, was not recorded along the trekking routes close to the villages, while it was recorded around the timber-line in Lata Kharak area in case of trekking route II originating from Lata village. Though a declining trend was observed in the wood cutting gradient, the irregularity in the trend is mainly due to the accessibility to the terrain. Wherever the terrain was accessible the proportion of cut trees was more, but limited within a 2–3 km radius of human settlement.

Status of livestock grazing pressure

The total livestock population at the time of survey was 4817 animals (n ¼ 278 families) of which 73% were sheep and goats, 2% were ponies and the rest were cattle. The ponies were reared as baggage animals for seasonal migration by the 2247

Table 3. Status of biotic pressure in the study area. Pressure parameter Value

Tree density (trees ha1) 242.82 (n ¼ 121 plots) Density of cut trees (trees ha1) 93.58 (n ¼ 121 plots) Density of lopped trees (trees ha1) 29.12 (n ¼ 121 plots) Frequency of occurrence of dung piles (%) 18 (n ¼ 624 quadrats) Density of dung piles (no. m2) 9.64 SE 0.65 (n ¼ 624 quadrats) Frequency of occurrence of grazing signs (%) 52 (n ¼ 624 quadrats) Frequency of occurrence of forest trails (%) 62 (n ¼ 624 quadrats)

Figure 4. Wood cutting and fodder lopping pressure gradient around study villages in district Chamoli in NDBR.

Figure 5. Wood cutting pressure along trekking routes after the ban on mountaineering activities. villagers of remote valleys. In terms of dependence on the forest resources, 63% of the total livestock depended on forest resources for about 6 months, while the remaining population grazed throughout the year inside the buffer zone forest. In 2248

Table 4. Wild animal evidences in the buffer zone of NDBR between 1994 and 1997. Species No. of No. of No. of Minimum sightings individuals indirect distance seen evidences from village boundary (km)

Blue sheep (Psuedois nayaur) 8 110 29 1.5 Himalayan musk deer 3 7 22 2.0 (Moschus chrysogaster) Barking deer (Muntiacus muntjak) 1 1 Nil 2.5 Himalayan black bear (Ursus thibetanus) 1 1 4 3.5 Himalayan weasel (Mustela sibirica) 2 3 Nil 4.5 Flying squirrel (Petaurista petaurista) 1 1 Nil 3.5 Himalayan yellow throated marten 4 9 Nil 1.0 (Martes ﬂavigula) Pika (Ochotona roylei) 15 28 34 0.5 Monal pheasant (Lophophorus impejanus) 7 28 34 2

such a situation, the grazing pressure of a sizeable livestock population shifts outside the buffer zone for 6 months. Besides the resident population every year about 10,000–15,000 sheep and goats also graze in the alpine pastures of the buffer zone and adjoining forests for 5–6 snow free months (May–October). Livestock grazing pressure data revealed that the frequency of occurrence of livestock dung piles was 18% (n ¼ 624 quadrats) while the density (no. m2) was 9.64 m2 (SE 0.65) for the entire study area. Frequency of occurrence of forest trails was 62% while frequency of grazing signs was 52% (Table 3). To understand the impact of livestock grazing, the regeneration pattern of the forest was also observed. It was recorded that of the total 32 tree species recorded in the Chamoli sector of the buffer zone, 26 species (81%) showed regeneration, with some of the species, such as Pinus wallichiana, Abies pindrow, B. utilis, Cupressus torulosa, Rhododendron campanulatum and Cedrus deodara showing a high density of re- generations and recruitment.

Wild animal evidences

The wild animal presence in the form of direct sightings or indirect evidences was recorded and the results are presented in Table 4. During field sampling a total of nine animals were recorded. Of these, Pika and blue sheep were seen most often. The minimum distance of sightings of wild animals from human settlements varied from 0.5 to 4.5 km. Himalayan musk deer, a rare species, was sighted near the timber line (above 3000 m) around Kaga, Garpag and Dunagiri villages and Lata Kharak area above Lata village, while sightings of blue sheep were mainly restricted to alpine scrub around Dunagiri and Malari villages. Blue sheep, pika, musk deer and yellow-throated marten were seen close to the human settlements, 2249 which could possibly be because of the lowering of human induced disturbances in the buffer zone forest. A status survey carried out in 1993 by the scientific expedition team (Sathyakumar 1993) in the region also confirmed the improved status of wild animals. However, more detailed studies are needed to establish the facts.

Discussion

Unplanned tourism in and around natural resource rich areas has always led to the degradation of natural resources (Kehchington 1989) and of cultural traditions as well. There are examples from Nepal and the Indian Himalayas regarding the erosion of trails littered with toilet paper, plastic bags, improper disposal of waste, disturbances and even poaching of wild animals and plants (Ceballos-Lascurain 1991; Ahmed 1993). Similar scenes were observed from NDBR prior to the ban on tourism (Hatcher 1978; Singh 1989). It was recorded that the members of the 1993 scientific and ecological expedition brought back more than 800 kg of garbage consisting of polythene bags, tin containers and plastic bottles from the core zone (S. Sathyakumar, personal communication). A study conducted by Rai and Sun- driyal (1997) in the northeastern Indian Himalaya also recorded large scale collection of firewood and fodder for pack animals and degradation of biological resources and cultural vandalism due to tourism activities. The case of NDBR is interesting in the sense that it presents both pre- and post- ban scenarios, as far as the impact of tourism is concerned. The results presented in this article indicate the improvement in the biological richness of the area, corro- borating the findings of the rapid surveys conducted earlier in the region (Rastogi 1993; Sathyakumar 1993). A remote sensing study carried out in NDBR also showed the conversion of 12 km2 of open forest (10–40% crown cover) in the core zone, and 28 km2 in the buffer zone of closed forest category (>40% crown cover), while 6.5 km2 area of degraded forest (<10% crown cover) were converted into open forest (Sahai and Kimothi 1996). The latest expedition carried out by the Indian Army also recorded a low level of human pressure and an improved status of wildlife along the trekking routes (Uniyal 2002). Moreover, the low human density and restricted use of natural resources, unlike in other forests of the Himalayan region (Babu et al. 1984; Singh et al. 1984; Johnsingh et al. 1990; Reynolds and Nautiyal 1990; Sundriyal and Sharma 1996), may not pose serious threats to the natural resources of the NDBR in the near future. The improved quality of forest cover and density has resulted in a better status of wild animals in terms of frequency of sightings and number of animals, especially the rare and endangered ones such as Himalayan musk deer and blue sheep (Tak and Kumar 1983; Lamba 1987; Tak and Kumar 1987; Sathyakumar 1993; Shan- karan 1993). Based on about 20 sightings of musk deer in the core zone, Shankaran (1993) also concluded that poaching pressure appears to be minimal and occurs rarely. The direct sightings of some of the wild animals within 1.5–2 km of human settlements also reflect the fact that improved forest quality and quantity has helped to improve the status of wild animals in the entire region. 2250

However, the socio-economic consequences of the ban on tourism in NDBR proved disastrous to the local population who were dependent on these activities for their livelihood (Pangety 1987; Prasad 1989). The situation was further aggravated by the designation of the biosphere reserve in 1988, which imposed restrictions on the use of natural resources by the local people, including migrating shepherds. Such restrictions, coupled with a lack of alternative income sources, not only forced local people to migrate from the region, but also helped developing a negative attitude towards the NDBR management (Silori 2001). Management practices like these emphasise the need for people’s participation to strike a balance between the biodiversity conservation and socio-economic development of the resource dependent communities (Panwar 1992; Dhar et al. 1999). Understanding people’s perception and their involvement in the planning phase and later in the management of natural resources has been recognised as one of the most important tools of interdisciplinary studies, oriented towards the participatory approach of natural resource conservation (Berkmuller 1986; Berzetti 1993; Fiallo and Jacobson 1995). Some of the alternatives which emerged during a perception understanding survey to compensate the economic loss to the local people include the promotion of eco-tourism in the buffer zone, where there are very interesting and popular trekking routes. The local people, especially the educated youths can be trained with modern techniques of trekking and mountaineering and adequate knowledge of ﬂora and fauna of the region for more meaningful involvement. Such activities should largely focus on establishing linkages among tourists, local people and biodiversity conservation and provide a symbiotic relationship between tourism and the environmental conservation in NDBR (Battisse 1982). In addition to providing economic opportunities to the locals, this will also help to preserve the cultural traditions of the region and thus add to the ‘World Heritage Site’ status of the area. Also the documentation and dissemination of information on the natural and cultural resources of the region will help to generate awareness among local people as well as tourists and avoid the repetition of the ugly story of the pre-ban situation.

Acknowledgements

Financial assistance from the Ministry of Environment and Forests, Government of India, New Delhi, under the Man and Biosphere (MAB) programme is sincerely acknowledged.

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