Bid to relocate sambhars from Sarika goes awry

JAIPUR/ALWAR: It was another relocation bid that went awry. The animal in question this time was the meek sambhar.

Planned on the lines of the tiger relocation from Ranthambore tiger reserve to Sariska, it entailed relocating 70 sambhars from Sariska to Sajjangarh, Kumbhalgarh sanctuaries in Udaipur district and to Rajgarh in Alwar to help establish a bigger population of the animal there.

But having relocated some sambhars on Wednesday, the brakes came with the ministry of forest and environment taking a strong exception to the relocation without the assistance of a technical person. Objections were also raised as this would destroy the prey base of tigers at Sariska where the ministry has already spent crores for reestablishing a tiger population.

While the Sajjangarh Wildlife Sanctuary, located 5 km from Udaipur, the Kumbhalgarh Wildlife Sanctuary is 65 km from City of Lakes. Rajgarh is 35 km from Alwar, spread amid lovely wooded valleys.

"We had relocated two sambhars on Wednesday from Sariska to Udaipur. But after objections from the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) we have stopped," forest department officials said. However, sources added at least six Sambhars, two females and four males, may have already been relocated.

"The issue is all of them may not have reached there alive," the source added.

Similar attempts had been made twice earlier but the project had to be cancelled after strong objections from certain quarters due to the death of many of these animals.

"In case of sambhars, all animals tranquillised are not in the best of health. They may be suffering from disease and when tranquillised many fail to regain consciousness," said a forest official.

"Moreover, in the absence of a technical person what was happening was sambhars were being taken from the Kalighati area in Sariska which is the core area for tigers. This would not only disturb the prey base for tigers but the remaining sambhars may flee to the periphery leaving little food for the tiger," an expert said.

He suggested instead sambhars should have been caught from the outskirts of the forest. "Too many sambhars can be seen roaming in the periphery and are often hit by vehicles plying on the the nearby highway," he said.

Contacted, officials of the forest department said, "We were not for the project but often one has to act under pressure." In fact, sources revealed that Union minister for forest and environment Jairam Ramesh has written to chief minister Ashok Gehlot seeking his personal intervention to stop the project.

But reports are that the project is not shelved completely and officials from Udaipur were still in Sariska and might resume relocation of sambhars any time.

Forest officials refused to comment as the project was initiated at the behest of a senior state bureaucrat.


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