The Karnataka Tourism department and Forest department have launched a two-month long conservation and awareness campaign- ‘Our Wild Life’’ with multilingual actor and director Prakash Rai as the brand ambassador.
Speaking to media at the launch of the campaign in Bengaluru on Wednesday, Forest, Environment and Ecology Minister Ramanath Rai said that the idea is to create awareness among locals, especially those residing in areas bordering forest patches, that there is a need to co-exist. Tourism minister Priyank Kharge said that 2017 has been declared as the Year of the Wild and the department was striving to promote sustainable eco-tourism.
Both Forest and Tourism departments will be roping in various educational institutions and gram panchayats as the campaign is being taken to the grassroot level. Awards for gram panchayats and their presidents are also being introduced to motivate people. Street plays will be staged to create awareness on the impact of encroachment and, how man and wildlife can co-exist. As part of the campaign, Prakash Rai will be visiting five tiger reserves and two national parks.
Published 19 April 2017, 19:39 IST