BHOPAL: If you happen to be a wildlife lover with a dash of adventurous spirit, Bandhavgarh National Park and Tiger Reserve is where your calling lies.
Now, you can have an aerial view of the free-spirited big cats roaming about in the reserve in Umaria district courtesy a Hot Air Balloon, which was launched on Friday.
The inaugural flight in the giant Hot Air Balloon had State’s forest minister Kunwar Vijay Shah on board.
“This is in line with Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan’s vision of Buffer Mein Safar. This will go a long way in attracting more tourists to the State,” Shah said after the maiden Hot Air Balloon flight over the reserve’s buffer zone.
The Balloon Safari will be operated by SkyWaltz Balloon Safari, which is the country’s first fully licensed and government approved commercial hot Air Balloon operator.
“We have ensured the safety of the wildlife lovers as well as the animals. We are allowing the operator to offer the service from a safe height. Landing and take off would be allowed only inside the buffer zone,” the forest minister said.
“We have waited for ten years to start the service. It’s only now that we have received the clearance,” SkyWaltz Balloon Safari official Jai Thakur said.
Madhya Pradesh was declared the Tiger State in July 2019. As per the Tiger census report in July 2019, the tiger count in the state had risen to 526 in 2018 from 308 in 2014.