Forest officials allowed the Eco-Development Committee (EDC), made up of youth from the village, to collect taxes from tourists. Without taking any money from the Forest Department, the youngsters spent nearly all of the Rs 10 lakh they collected from tourists last year in cleaning up the park with the help of 26 sweepers and hundreds of mules.

An Indian Forest Service (IFS) officer, Sitling and her colleague A.K. Banerjee, DFO, Valley of Flowers National Park, were responsible for successfully implementing the ‘Manage people to manage animals’ approach, giving the park a fresh lease of life. “When I took charge in June 2001, the park was in ruins,” said Jyostna Sitling, director of the Nanda Devi Biosphere Reserve. “Our basic aim was to involve the 76 families from Bhyundiar village, who are dependent on the park for their livelihood, and involve them in a long-term conservation process.”