Hindi English Translation || Editorial || A slippery slope: On the Jim Corbett National Park case, tourism and conservation

A slippery slope: On the Jim Corbett National Park case, tourism and conservation

Tourism in wildlife parks should not be at odds with conservation (संरक्षण) efforts

The Supreme Court of India has come down heavily (strongly, intensely) on the Uttarakhand government for the felling (cut down, chop down, knock down, bring down, topple, demolish, raze) of about 6,000 trees in the Jim Corbett National Park (Ii is a national park located in the Nainital district of the Indian state of Uttarakhand. It was established in 1936 as Hailey National Park and was later renamed in 1957 in memory of Jim Corbett, a famous hunter and conservationist who played a key role in the establishment of the park. Covering an area of over 520 square kilometers, it is one of the oldest and most popular national parks in India. It is known for its diverse flora and fauna, including Bengal tigers, Indian elephants, leopards, sloth bears, deer, and over 600 species of birds). That forest officials and a top politician in the State connived (conspire, collude, collaborate, be hand in glove; disregard, overlook, deliberately ignore) to vastly (extremely, highly, hugely, exceedingly) expand the scope of a tiger safari (a trip/journey to see, photograph or hunt wild animals in their own environment) in the park precincts (an area which is restricted/enclosed with walls or some definite boundaries for specific purposes) was a travesty (a false representation of something; misrepresentation, distortion, perversion, poor imitation, caricature, farce, joke, mockery, parody, sham) of conservation practices, according to the Court. In the judgment by a three-judge Bench (a court of law with a number of judges), Justice B.R. Gavai observed (comment, remark, mention, say), “The presence of tigers in the forests is an indicator of the well-being (healthy state/condition) of the ecosystem (पारिस्थितिकी तंत्र). Unless steps are taken for the protection of tigers, the ecosystem which revolves around tigers cannot be protected… Events like illegal construction and illicit (अवैध, ग़ैरक़ानूनी) felling of trees like the one in Corbett cannot be ignored.” The link between political corruption and environmental damage is especially relevant in this case as the Court’s judgment has consequences (outcome, end result, implication, ramification, repercussion) for the management of wildlife parks, particularly on the question of whether ‘tiger safaris’ in the buffer and fringe zones (सीमांत क्षेत्र) of wildlife parks gel well with conservation measures (action, procedure, operation, programme). The Court also alluded (refer to, suggest, imply, hint at, mention, cite, speak, call attention to something briefly/indirectly) to various resorts in the vicinity (surrounding area, locality, neighbourhood) of the park that often played loud music and posed (constitute, present, create, cause (a problem or danger or risk)) a threat to animals.

Both the Central Zoo Authority (it was established as a statutory body under the Ministry of Environment & Forests by the Government of India in the year 1992. The main objective of this Authority is to complement and strengthen the national effort in conservation of the rich biodiversity of the country, particularly the fauna as per the National Zoo Policy, 1998. Other objectives of this Authority include- enforcing minimum standards and norms for upkeep and healthcare of animals in Indian zoos and to control mushrooming of unplanned and ill-conceived zoos) and the National Tiger Conservation Authority (it has been constituted under section 38 L (1) of Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972. It is a statutory body under the Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change constituted under enabling provisions of the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972, as amended in 2006, for strengthening tiger conservation, as per powers and functions assigned to it under the said Act) are expert bodies affiliated (संबद्ध) to the Union Environment Ministry, and tasked with the conservation and protection of wild animals. These organisations, in principle (सैद्धांतिक रूप में), have no objection (आपत्ति) to the existence of tiger safaris, provided (on the assumption that, on the condition that, on the understanding that, assuming (that)) these are conducted within the ambit (range, scope, extent, reach) of an array (collection, range, group, raft) of guidelines. Wildlife safaris in a designated (निर्दिष्ट, नामित) spot draw attention away from (से ध्यान हटाओ) the core zones of the forest and hence promote its inviolate (undamaged, unhurt, unharmed, unstained, perfect) nature as well as raise public awareness about conservation. This is the underlying (अंतर्निहित, आधारभूत) rationale (reason, justification, cause, grounds, explanation, reasoning) for safaris. Their overarching (comprehensive, all-inclusive, across-the-board, all-embracing, all-encompassing, sweeping, extensive, broad) aim, thus, ought to (करना चाहिए) be eco-tourism (it is defined as “responsible travel to natural areas that conserves the environment, sustains the well-being of the local people, and involves interpretation and education”) and not commercial tourism. However, in recent times, the argument that this could be a source of employment opportunities for locals, and that State governments should be promoting this, has been gaining ground. The recent translocation (स्थानान्तरण) of cheetahs from Africa to Kuno National Park, Madhya Pradesh, also aims to revive (पुनर्जीवित) the cat’s presence and promote tourism. This, however, is a slippery slope (a series of actions that can’t be controlled over once it has begun and the series of actions are going to create a lot of problems) and can very easily lead to political capture (राजनीतिक कब्ज़ा), as the proceedings (कार्यवाही) in the Corbett Park demonstrate. The Court has recommended that the Centre evolve (develop gradually; expand, extend, adapt, transform) guidelines on the conduct of safaris and the government would do well to deliver on this at the earliest and be extremely circumspect (careful, heedful, vigilant, watchful, attentive, cautious) on its messaging regarding tourism and conservation.

Courtesy: The Hindu

Important Word List With Meaning

1.conservation (noun)

Hindi Meaning - संरक्षण
English Meaning - conservation, protection, maintenance, environmentalism.

2.ecosystem (noun)

Hindi Meaning - पारिस्थितिकी तंत्र
English Meaning - a geographic area where plants, animals, and other organisms, as well as weather and landscapes, work together to form a bubble of life; complex situation/environment.

3.illicit (adjective)

Hindi Meaning - अवैध, ग़ैरक़ानूनी
English Meaning - illegal, unlawful, prohibited

4.fringe zone (noun)

Hindi Meaning - सीमांत क्षेत्र
English Meaning - perimeter zone, border zone, outer edge zone.

5.affiliate (verb)

Hindi Meaning - संबद्ध
English Meaning - associate with, connect, lin.

6.in principle (phrase)

Hindi Meaning - सैद्धांतिक रूप में
English Meaning - in general, generally, by and large.

7.objection (noun)

Hindi Meaning - आपत्ति
English Meaning - opposition, disapproval, disagreement.

8.designated (adjective)

Hindi Meaning - निर्दिष्ट, नामित
English Meaning - identified, assigned, specified, chosen.

9.draw attention away from (phrase)

Hindi Meaning - से ध्यान हटाओ
English Meaning - divert or distract someone’s attention/focus on something.

10.underlying (adjective)

Hindi Meaning - अंतर्निहित, आधारभूत
English Meaning - fundamental, basic, primary.

11.ought to (modal verb)

Hindi Meaning - करना चाहिए
English Meaning - must, should.

12.translocation (noun)

Hindi Meaning - स्थानान्तरण
English Meaning - the planned movement of plants or animals from one location to another.

13.revive (verb)

Hindi Meaning - पुनर्जीवित
English Meaning - revitalize, resuscitate, rejuvenate, strengthen; bring to life, breathe new life into.

14.political capture (noun)

Hindi Meaning - राजनीतिक कब्ज़ा
English Meaning - also called “state capture”; a type of systemic political corruption in which private interests significantly influence a government’s decision-making processes to their own advantage.

15.proceedings (noun)

Hindi Meaning - कार्यवाही
English Meaning - events, activities, affairs, happenings.

16.slippery slope (noun)

English Meaning - a series of actions that can’t be controlled over once it has begun and the series of actions are going to create a lot of problems.

17.Jim Corbett national park (noun)

English Meaning - Ii is a national park located in the Nainital district of the Indian state of Uttarakhand. It was established in 1936 as Hailey National Park and was later renamed in 1957 in memory of Jim Corbett, a famous hunter and conservationist who played a key role in the establishment of the park. Covering an area of over 520 square kilometers, it is one of the oldest and most popular national parks in India. It is known for its diverse flora and fauna, including Bengal tigers, Indian elephants, leopards, sloth bears, deer, and over 600 species of birds.

18.be at odds with (verb)

English Meaning - contradict, conflict with, be at variance with, disagree with, be inconsistent with.

19.come down on (phrasal verb)

English Meaning - criticize, censure, reprimand, rebuke, reproach, scold, admonish, reprove, castigate, lambast (harshly).

20.heavily (adverb)

English Meaning - strongly, intensely.

21.fell (verb)

English Meaning - cut down, chop down, knock down, bring down, topple, demolish, raze.

22.connive (verb)

English Meaning - conspire, collude, collaborate, be hand in glove; disregard, overlook, deliberately ignore.

23.vastly (adverb)

English Meaning - extremely, highly, hugely, exceedingly.

24.safari (noun)

English Meaning - a trip/journey to see, photograph or hunt wild animals in their own environment.

25.precincts (noun)

English Meaning - an area which is restricted/enclosed with walls or some definite boundaries for specific purposes.

26.travesty (noun)

English Meaning - a false representation of something; misrepresentation, distortion, perversion, poor imitation, caricature, farce, joke, mockery, parody, sham.

27.bench (noun)

English Meaning - a court of law with a number of judges.

28.observe (verb)

English Meaning - comment, remark, mention, say.

29.well-being (noun)

English Meaning - healthy state/condition.

30.revolve around (phrasal verb)

English Meaning - to have something as the most important subject of discussion/interest; concentrate on, focus on, revolve about, centre around.

31.consequence (noun)

English Meaning - outcome, end result, implication, ramification, repercussion.

32.buffer zone (noun)

English Meaning - neutral area, neutral territory.

33.gel (well) with (verb)

English Meaning - work well together.

34.measure (noun)

English Meaning - action, procedure, operation, programme.

35.allude (verb)

English Meaning - refer to, suggest, imply, hint at, mention, cite, speak, call attention to something briefly/indirectly.

36.vicinity (noun)

English Meaning - surrounding area, locality, neighbourhood.

37.pose (verb)

English Meaning - constitute, present, create, cause (a problem or danger or risk).

38.Central Zoo Authority (noun)

English Meaning - it was established as a statutory body under the Ministry of Environment & Forests by the Government of India in the year 1992. The main objective of this Authority is to complement and strengthen the national effort in conservation of the rich biodiversity of the country, particularly the fauna as per the National Zoo Policy, 1998. Other objectives of this Authority include- enforcing minimum standards and norms for upkeep and healthcare of animals in Indian zoos and to control mushrooming of unplanned and ill-conceived zoos.

39.National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) (noun)

English Meaning - it has been constituted under section 38 L (1) of Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972. It is a statutory body under the Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change constituted under enabling provisions of the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972, as amended in 2006, for strengthening tiger conservation, as per powers and functions assigned to it under the said Act.

40.body (noun)

English Meaning - commission, committee, panel.

41.task with (verb)

English Meaning - assign a task to.

42.provided (conjunction)

English Meaning - on the assumption that, on the condition that, on the understanding that, assuming (that).

43.ambit (noun)

English Meaning - range, scope, extent, reach.

44.array (noun)

English Meaning - collection, range, group, raft.

45.inviolate (adjective)

English Meaning - undamaged, unhurt, unharmed, unstained, perfect.

46.rationale (noun)

English Meaning - reason, justification, cause, grounds, explanation, reasoning.

47.overarching (adjective)

English Meaning - comprehensive, all-inclusive, across-the-board, all-embracing, all-encompassing, sweeping, extensive, broad.

48.eco-tourism (noun)

English Meaning - it is defined as “responsible travel to natural areas that conserves the environment, sustains the well-being of the local people, and involves interpretation and education”.

49.gain ground (phrase)

English Meaning - make progress, make headway, progress, advance; become popular, become widely known, become widely accepted.

50.cat (noun)

English Meaning - a wild animal of the cat family.

51.lead to (verb)

English Meaning - result in, cause, bring on, bring about, give rise to.

52.evolve (verb)

English Meaning - develop gradually; expand, extend, adapt, transform.

53.circumspect (adjective)

English Meaning - careful, heedful, vigilant, watchful, attentive, cautious.