Comment Pieces

Everyone gets taken for a ride at Bannerghatta Park

Posted on June 01, 2012

Be ready to suffer a huge hole in your pocket when you embark on a trip to Bannerghatta National Park with your family.

A respondent from Bangalore who recently visited the Bannerghatta National park explains how he was forced to pay the drivers at every step of a safari ride with a bribe of 100 for each family member.

Despite the entry fee being hiked by the Karnataka government from Rs 35 to Rs 200 per head, crooks inside the park extract more money from visitors with the promise that they will be taken to view wild animals at close range. They are aided at the back-end by officials in the park.

Officials make a huge profit on this on a daily basis. However, it leaves tourists with a bad taste in the mouth due to the fleecing, recalls a respondent from Sawai Madhopur (Rajashthan)  who recently visited the Ranthambore national park.  School vacations are boom time for officials and their coffers get full. Read more on their operations at  http://www.ipaidabribe.com/bribe-central/rs400-bribe-3-jungle-safari-tickets-banergatta

Since tiger is the major attraction here, the price to view one is undoubtedly high. The belief that sight of tiger brings good luck goads people to pay the extra buck.

By Manisha Yadav