Sanctuaries closed to visitors till Oct 15

Ahmedabad: Wildlife enthusiasts planning trips to Nalsarovar, Thol and other sanctuaries in Gujarat can put their plans on hold till Oct 15. The state govt has decided to strictly enforce closure of all 23 wildlife sanctuaries and four national parks in the state, including bird sanctuaries, to visitors during monsoon. The decision was taken considering the risk of flash floods besides the season being a critical breeding period for several species.
All major bird sanctuaries — Nalsarovar and Thol in Ahmedabad, Khijadia in Jamnagar and Porbandar bird sanctuary — will be closed till Oct 15. Forest department officials said prohibiting entry to visitors during monsoon has always been part of the wildlife management plan, but many still used to visit bird sanctuaries. “It is for the first time that the principal chief conservator of forests (PCCF) has issued strict instructions to enforce the plan,” said a source.
Nityanand Srivastava, PCCF, said, “According to the management plan, these sanctuaries must be closed during monsoon, and we are strictly going to implement the same. We have restricted entry to all the protected areas this year.”
A notification issued by the state forest department said that heavy rain can create hazardous conditions for visitors due to flash floods and restricting their accessibility on forest trails, potentially compromising their safety. Moreover, the season coincides with the breeding period for many wildlife species, and uncontrolled visitor movement during this time can disrupt the breeding cycles of animals, birds and reptiles, alter their natural behaviour and obstruct the forest department’s wildlife conservation plans.
The notification further emphasized the need to ensure visitor safety, protect wildlife during their breeding season and preserve the ecological balance within the sanctuaries.
Consequently, it was decided to close all the sanctuary areas and national parks in the state from June 15 to Oct 15.
A senior official said that the state’s sanctuaries receive 1,000 visitors a day on average. However, the footfall figure at Polo Sanctuary in Sabarkantha, located near Ahmedabad, touches 5,000 during the weekend. The officials also noted that the roads in the forest areas are muddy, causing difficulties for vehicle movement.
Another official said the forest department’s decision is aimed at maintaining ecological balance and minimizing disturbance to animals during their mating period. However, ornithologists are a disappointed lot, with many saying it stops them from sighting rare birds that visit Gujarat only during monsoon. “In the last week of June, we spotted Pelagic birds, including species like shearwaters, petrels, storm petrels and terns at the bird sanctuary in Kutch. In a rare sighting, we also spotted three Indian skimmers in Nalsarovar in July last year,” said an avid birdwatcher.