The story so far: The decision to set up a Tiger Safari Park in the northern Kerala region to boost the region’s tourism potential was taken by the Kerala government on September 27, 2023 which came as a surprise for many, including upland farmers and the action councils formed against the continuing wild animal menace in the rural areas located closer to the Malabar Wildlife Sanctuary. An eight-member panel of senior Forest department officials was also constituted following the instructions of Forest Minister A.K. Saseendran to finalise the project area, which is now located in the limits of Kozhikode district’s Chakkittapara panchayat.
Though three locations came to the consideration of the panel, about 40 hectares of land now under the control of the Plantation Corporation in Perambra Estate topped the priority list for several administrative reasons. A team of Forest department officers recently visited the spot to check the feasibility and submit the final report to the Kerala government for implementation. If approved, the identified land would be developed for the project to initially shelter six tigers currently accommodated at the Animal Hospice Centre and Palliative Care in Wayanad’s Sulthan Bathery.
An official declaration regarding the government’s decision is set to be made by the Forest Minister in Kozhikode on October 8 during the culmination of the Wildlife Week Celebrations in Kerala. The Minister is also expected to announce a slew of newly designed projects aimed at reducing man-animal conflict in Kerala.
