Wildlife safaris in Dachigam

Wildlife safaris in Dachigam new attraction for tourists

The commencement of wildlife safaris in Kashmir’s Dachigam National Park has become a new attraction for the locals and

the visitors here.

Launched in 2009, the eco-friendly battery driven cars, serving as safari vehicles, provide a real time experience of the nature and its beauty. The visitors are taken in by the scenic wilderness in the silent eco-friendly cars amid the green virgin forests where one gets to see all kinds of wild animals.

"We have launched these battery driven cars in the Dachigam so that people can see the wildlife of Kashmir," said Rashid Naqash, wildlife warden, Dachigam.

The people wishing to take glimpse of the animals are taken in the car which drives through the park. The wildlife department charges Rs 500 a car to carry a maximum of four people through the Dachigam wildlife sanctuary.

"We take the visitor close to nature where they see different wild animals. It is completely safe," said Naqash. The drive through the park takes over an hour. Tourists observe the animals from their cars.

The Dachigam wildlife sanctuary sprawls over an area of 140 square kilometers. It is home to endangered red deer, black and brown bears, musk deer, leopards and large bird species such as black partridge and pheasants.

"It is really wonderful to visit this wildlife sanctuary. This gives a new face of Kashmir," said Manisha, a visitor from West Bengal, who had come to Dachigam.

"We spotted black bear and deer during our trip into the sanctuary. It was for the first time I saw them so closely," said Vineet, Manisha’s son.

"During the drive through the sanctuary, one does not realize that we live in cities. You feel cut off from the world," says another visitor.

For locals, the pleasure of the going into the sanctuary is no less.

"We are happy that government has started these cars like safaris. Kashmir has unique wildlife and it has to be made attractive to people," said Firdous Ahmad.

"Dachigam has always been my favorite place. And these safaris have added to its attraction now," adds Maqbool, a student.

In the past two decades of conflict, no facilities of safaris were available in any National Park of the state. The presence of security forces and militants in the forest kept people largely from going to such places. Initiatives were taken only after there was a dip in the militancy related activities in the forest areas.