By IANS,
Thiruvananthapuram : India’s low cost airline Deccan has decided to promote eco-tourism in the Periyar Tiger Reserve in Thekkady, Kerala in an attempt to help preserve its tiger population and biodiversity.
Deccan has teamed up with the Kerala forest department and the Periyar Tiger Reserve to offer ‘Simplifly Periyar’, a unique eco-tourism initiative aimed at promoting responsible and sustainable tourism in the region.
The partnership would provide convenient access to Periyar, Deccan said in a statement Monday.
‘Simplifly Periyar’ will offer wildlife enthusiasts and leisure travellers the opportunity to travel, stay, explore and closely experience the spectacular wildlife and the natural heritage of Periyar, it said.
Deccan Executive Chairman G.R Gopinath said: “India is blessed with some of the world’s richest wilderness areas and some of its rarest and grandest species, one of which is the tiger.”
“The Deccan-Periyar Tiger Reserve partnership goes far beyond a commercial relationship. We are committed to a shared vision of preserving our tiger population and natural heritage by successfully engaging local communities in tourism and improving their livelihoods,” he said.
Padma Mahanti, a top official of the state forest department and also the brain behind the project, said: “In the present-day scenario when pressure on forests is high, we need partners in conservation from all walks of life because our forests have to be preserved for posterity.”
‘Simplifly Periyar’ offers 10 ecotourism packages which can be viewed on the Deccan website.
Travellers opting for any of the packages will be flown to Madurai or Kochi on Deccan. The Periyar forest department will then drive them to the tiger reserve in Thekkady.