NAGPUR: The state-level expert committee, on Wednesday, cleared the buffer proposal for 2,027 sq km Melghat Tiger Reserve (MTR) in Amravati. The panel headed by chief wildlife warden of Maharashtra AK Joshi and wildlife experts and senior officials held discussions at Van Bhavan before clearing the proposal with some minor corrections.
Joshi told TOI that the proposal would be sent to the state government in four to five days as he was busy with assembly related matters. The committee, on May 12, had cleared 500 sq km buffer proposal for Pench National Park and Tiger Reserve. However, the proposal is still pending with the state and has not been sent to the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA), a statutory body monitoring the tiger reserves.
The Melghat proposal was earlier discussed at a meeting but was put on hold as the panel members felt that some areas in East Melghat, Buldhana and Akola, which are contiguous to MTR, had been left out and should have been included as they act as cushion for wildlife.
The buffer proposal includes 118 villages in six divisions— Sipna (25), Gugamal (14), West Melghat (12), East Melghat (23), Akola (35) and Buldhana (9). The buffer area includes 92,065.49 hectare forested area and 34,738.18 hectare non-forested area, totalling 1, 26,803.67 hectares (1,268 sq km). The new buffer area includes 526 sq km multiple use area (MUA).
Presently, the MTR comprises Gugamal National Park (361 sq km), Melghat Wildlife Sanctuary (1,677 sq km), Wan (211 sq km), Ambabarwa (127 sq km) and Narnala (13 sq km). All these areas are critical tiger habitats (CTHs) and will now have a buffer zone.
The Wildlife Institute of India (WII), on the basis of exercise conducted in 2007, puts number of tiger in Melghat Tiger Reserve between 30-38. However, officials claim there may be over 50 tigers as situation has improved in the last three years.
Notifying buffer zone around tiger reserves has become mandatory under the tiger conservation plan (TCP) after amendments in section 38 V of the Wildlife Protection Act (1972) on September 4, 2006. The TCP aims at protection of tiger reserve and providing site specific habitat inputs for a viable population of tigers, co-predators and prey animals.
The committee included wildlife experts Kishor Rithe, Harshawardhan Dhanwatey and chief conservators of forest (CCF) A K Saxena, CCF for Nagpur wildlife circle Nandkishore, CCF S D Sontakke (Amravati), Melghat field director A K Mishra among other forest officials.
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