In a bid to boost tourism, Madhya Pradesh Forest Department has proposed to develop 12 new wildlife sanctuaries in the state. The state government is reportedly looking for new ways to generate revenue and hence there is a focus on tourism sector. The Forest Department is working with the tourism corporation to provide more tourism activities in forest areas. In addition, district forest officers have been given the mandate to identify areas in their districts where parks and wildlife sanctuaries can be developed. Currently, Forest Department has directed to allocate 200 ha land for each sanctuary. At present, the state has 25 sanctuaries and 10 national parks, which generates around INR 27 crore every year to the government. With the new developments, the Govt. aims to increase the revenue by INR 200 crores from tourism activities. Also, in order to boost revenue from tourism, new wildlife sanctuaries and wildlife environmental zones have been proposed. As per the proposal, wildlife sanctuaries are being planned in districts like Balaghat, Sheopur, Mandla, Chhindwara, Shahdol, Dindori, Sagar, Khandwa, Jabalpur, Indore, Seoni and Hoshangabad. There are also plans to develop Ratapani and Mandhata (Shivpuri) as national parks.
Source: Times of India