Mysuru: Donning camouflage clothing and a hat, Prime Minister Narendra Modi was on a safari at Karnataka’s Bandipur Tiger Reserve (BTR) on Sunday.
PM Modi also visited Theppakadu elephant camp in Mudumalai Tiger Reserve (MTR) in neighbouring Tamil Nadu, bordering Chamarajanagar district after a 22-kilometre safari at BTR, and interacted with the Bomman-Bellie couple, the main stars of the Oscar Award-winning documentary “The Elephant Whisperers”.
The safari was a part of programmes to mark 50 years of Project Tiger. He interacted with frontline field staff and SHGs involved in conservation activities.
This was PM Modi’s 8th visit to poll-bound Karnataka this year, and he spent two hours at the wildlife sanctuary.
Tight security cover was thrown in and around Bandipur Tiger Reserve, following the visit of PM Modi on April 9, BTR officials said.
PM Modi then visited Theppakadu elephant camp in Mudumalai Tiger Reserve in neighbouring Tamil Nadu, bordering Chamarajanagar district, and interacted with Oscar-winning stars and also with mahouts and kavadis of the elephant camp.
Located amidst the picturesque surroundings of the towering Western Ghats on the Mysuru-Ooty highway in Karnataka, BTR is an important part of the Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve that comprises Karnataka’s Rajiv Gandhi National Park (Nagarahole) to its northwest, Tamil Nadu’s Mudumalai Wildlife Sanctuary to its south, and Kerala’s Wayanad Wildlife Sanctuary to its southwest.
Once the private hunting grounds of the erstwhile Maharajas, and nestled in the foothills of the Nilgiris, Bandipur has had a long tryst with tigers.
Over 200 species of birds and a diversity of flora add to its attraction. Bandipur also supports a wide range of timber trees, including teak, rosewood, sandalwood, Indian laurel, Indian kino, and giant clumping bamboo.
