SAMBALPUR: Former NITI Aayog CEO and India’s G-20 Sherpa Amitabh Kant visited the Debrigarh Wildlife Sanctuary here on Wednesday and lauded its ecotourism model as the best in the country.
Kant engaged with community members involved in the ecotourism initiative and praised the grassroots-driven model that has transformed the lives of over 85 forest-dependent families, who are actively involved in activities such as jungle safaris, Hirakud cruise, trekking, kayaking and storytelling sessions on wildlife.
Notably, each community member earns between Rs 13,000 and Rs 15,000 per month and 40 per cent of the workforce comprises women including female safari drivers and eco-guides. The sanctuary boasts of 20 tourist cottages, including six stargazing rooms with glass roofs, offering a unique overnight experience in nature.
“The DFO has done a commendable job in Debrigarh. I have seen almost every eco-tourism project in India, but the best one has been implemented here. The participation of the local community is the most impressive initiative. Considering the infrastructure development taking place in this area, it is necessary to increase the green cover here. If the efforts continue in this direction, Sambalpur can become the greenest district of India,” Kant said after the visit.
He also shared his appreciation of Debrigarh’s ecotourism initiative on social media platform X. “I visited the Debrigarh Wildlife Sanctuary in Odisha today and was delighted to see the wonderful work done in terms of community participation. This is by far the best example of local community operating and managing the entire Ecotourism project. The credit goes entirely to a young lady Forest Service officer Anshu Pragyan Das for driving this. Amazing work!” he said in his post.
Kant was accompanied by RDC (Northern Division) Sachin Ramchandra Jadhav, Sambalpur collector Siddheswar Baliram Bondar, Bargarh collector Aditya Goyal, SP Prahalad Sahai Meena and divisional forest officer (DFO), wildlife Anshu Pragyan Das. Notably, Debrigarh ecotourism recorded its highest-ever revenue of Rs 5.11 crore in 2024-25.