Bannerughatta Biological Park gains from safari bans in other popular destinations

The ban on safari at popular destinations Kabini, Nagarhole, and Bandipur has benefitted the Bannerughatta Biological Park (BBP), which saw record numbers during the recently concluded holiday season.

Safari operations in the popular tiger reserves were halted following a series of tiger attacks in the H.D. Kote and Sargur regions.

According to data shared by Surya Sen A.V., Deputy Conservator of Forests and executive director, Bannerughatta Biological Park, the days between December 20, 2025, and January 5, 2026, saw record footfall and safari visitors. This period witnessed 1,95,763 total footfall, of which 1,06,215 were safari visitors and 89,548 visitors to the zoo. December 27 saw a whopping 18,425 take the safari - the highest in the period.

In the same period last year (2024-2025), the total footfall stood at 1,89,309, of which 96,527 were visitors to the zoo and 92,782 took the safari. During the same period the years before (2023-2024 and 2022-2023), these numbers stood at 1,66,330 footfall, 79,754 zoo visitors and 86,576 safari users, and 1,60,590 footfall, 89,283 zoo visitors and 71,307 safari users respectively.

This came even as the BBP had its own share of hiccups in 2025. The park resumed safari operations after a temporary suspension in the backdrop of a second leopard attack during a safari in a matter of four months.

On November 13, 2025, a 56-year-old woman who was taking the non-AC bus safari at the BBP was injured after a leopard clawed her. The woman sustained a minor injury to her hand when the leopard accidentally clawed her while attempting to climb onto the bus. Non-AC bus safaris were suspended temporarily following the incident and resumed after additional safety measures, including no-gap mesh for the bus windows.

Earlier, in August, a 12-year-old boy was clawed by a leopard at the BBP while travelling in a safari bus when he had placed his hand in an accessible place near a window. Following the incident, Minister for Forest, Ecology, and Environment Eshwar Khandre had instructed officials to install mesh and designated photography holes on the windows of all safari vehicles.

Mr. Sen said since the incident, the leopard in question was not allowed to roam in the open during the safari.

According to the park, the safari landscape in the park is a representation of the adjoining dry and moist deciduous forests of the Bannerghatta National Park, which is home to a wide variety of fauna which are often spotted within safari range.