Get ready for jungle safari at Kawal reserve in Mancherial
The Covid-19 pandemic had forced people from all walks of life to remain indoors for quite a long time, and nature lovers missed out on activities such as trekking, bird watching, jungle safari, among others, due to the lockdown.
Mancherial: The thrilling jungle safari at Kawal Tiger Reserve (KTR) is back on the trail after a gap of about a year, but in a new form and with additional features. Nature lovers can visit more spots and soak in nature’s lap than they could in the past. They will, however, have to pay a little more as the forest department is planning to increase the rates for the safari.
The Covid-19 pandemic had forced people from all walks of life to remain indoors for quite a long time, and nature lovers missed out on activities such as trekking, bird watching, jungle safari, among others, due to the lockdown. They, however, can now indulge in jungle safari in KTR with the government relaxing norms.
“The Forest Department in collaboration with the Tourism Department will formally restart the safari service in a couple of weeks. Bookings were launched on January 26 in a special control room. Tanks, watchtowers, machans and birding spots will be included in the trip covering 30 km. It will be both educative and entertaining,” Jannaram Forest Division Officer Madhav Rao told ‘Telangana Today.’
The forest official said the department was planning to increase fares to offer better facilities and to meet maintenance costs. “As per proposals, the prices will be increased from the existing Rs 1,000 to Rs 1,500 for using vehicles and Rs 500 per head as against Rs 200 charged so far,” he stated.
The authorities are creating enclosures and demarcating the space that can be used by visitors and nature lovers. They have already launched counters and deployed staff to facilitate the booking of tickets.
Besides, the department has also urged people to report crimes such as smuggling and poaching of wild animals besides wildfires on 08739-246399.
KTR, the second reserve of the country
The 42nd reserve of the country, KTR was created in 2012. The Core zone of the reserve is spread over 893 sqkm and buffer zone in 1,120 sqkm covering certain forests of the four districts, Adilabad, Kumram Bheem Asifabad, Nirmal and Mancherial.
The reserve is home to a host of wild animals including tigers, leopards, wolves, wild dogs, spotted deer, wild cats, Indian gaurs, foxes, blue bulls, wild pigs, mongooses, Sambar deer, etc. It is endowed with an abundant prey base, hillocks and teak-mixed bamboo forests, rivulets and streams.
How to reach
Visitors can reach Nirmal from Hyderabad and then take Nirmal-Mancherial route to reach KTR.
Visitors can reach Mancherial from Warangal or Hyderabad before taking Mancherial-Jannaram route to reach the reserve.
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