The Hindu : Karnataka News : A one-man green brigade

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Karnataka

Karnataka

A one-man green brigade

Shankar Bennur

John Wakefield has been living in the forests of Nagarahole for the past 27 years

John Wakefield

KARAPUR: It has been 27 years since John Wakefield, the brand ambassador of Jungle Lodges and Resorts Limited (JLR), has been living in the forests of Nagarahole as the torchbearer of Karnataka’s first eco-tourism project — the Kabini wildlife resort, on the banks of Kabini backwaters — at Karapur in Heggadadevanakote taluk.

The 92-year-old Wakefield, who is instrumental in the success of JLR, has been promoting wildlife conservation and sensitising visitors on the importance of protecting forest wealth and wild animals since 1981.

Son of the former manager of the erstwhile Maharaja of Tikarey in Bihar, Mr. Wakefield, whose memory is as sharp as his eyes, came to Karnataka as the representative of Tiger Tops Jungle Lodge (TTJL), a wildlife resort with its headquarters in Nepal, to set up a jungle lodge at Nagarahole on an invitation from the late R Gundu Rao, who was impressed with his stay at Tiger Tops Lodge in Nepal.

Consequently, the government allotted land inside the forests in 1980. With the declaration of Nagarahole as a national park, the idea of setting up jungle lodge inside the forests was dropped. Instead, it was set up at the erstwhile hunting lodge of the Maharaja of Mysore at Karapur, known as Kabini River Lodge, under the joint venture of the Government of Karnataka and Tiger Tops.

After Tiger Tops pulled out of the project, the Government of Karnataka established JLR to run the resort, which is today the world’s fifth best wildlife resorts.

Thanks to its success, wildlife resorts and nature tourism camps such as Cauvery fishing camp at Bhemeshwari, Bannerghatta Nature camp, BRT Tented Camp, Bandipur Safari Lodge, Dubare Elephant Camp in Kodagu, Devbagh Beach Resort in Karwar, Kali River Camp in Dandeli, River Tern Lodge at Bhadra and Old Magazine House in Ganesh Gudi in Uttara Kannada were subsequently established.

Mr Wakefield, on the request of the Government, stayed back at Kabini to promote ecotourism as the brand ambassador of JLR.

“The lodge had bookings from foreigners amounting to Rs. 12 lakh in 1984. All bookings were cancelled when Indira Gandhi was assassinated, fearing volatile law and order situation. It has overcome such days and Kabini is a big brand abroad offering five-star wildlife resort,” Mr. Wakefield, who is fondly known as “Papa,” told The Hindu.

Mr. Wakefield, who is well-known for his concern towards wildlife conservation and awareness on nature, says: “Kabini is the only resort which had 92 per cent occupancy for the whole of 2007. Visitors from Harvard Natural History, American Natural History and many naturalists from abroad stay once or twice a year at Kabini. Such is the popularity of the place.”

Contradicting that ecotourism projects would harm wildlife and forest conservation efforts, Mr Wakefield quips: “The recent findings have proved that tigers are safe in Nagarahole and Bandipur. Had we disturbed the wildlife, the situation would not be the same as it is today.”

He adds further: “In my view, ecotourism projects work like anti-poaching initiatives.”

Unlike other States, the national parks and wildlife sanctuaries in the State are open throughout the year. “Our forests are not closed during monsoon like other parks in the country. That’s one of the reasons why the wild animals are safe here compared to other parks.”

However, instead of conducting wildlife safaris on vehicles, tourists should be taken on the backs of domesticated elephants, he suggests.

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