It is Environment minister Jairam Ramesh versus Uttarakhand chief minister Ramesh Pokhriyal over killing of a tiger, claimed to be man-eater, near Corbett tiger reserve. Ramesh on Tuesday asked the state government to impose section 144 of Code for Criminal Procedure (prevents gathering of more
than four people) where tiger attacks a person to ensure safe capture of animal. On Wednesday, the locals decided to stage a demonstration against Ramesh, assisted by local BJP leaders, against the suggestion.
“How can we prevent people from gathering at a site where a tiger attacks a villager,” said a state government functionary. And, added that tiger conservation cannot be done sitting in the air-conditioned offices in Delhi.
Pokhriyal has so far not agreed to Ramesh’s suggestion of a joint inspection of Corbett and nearby areas. According to officials, many of the suggestions made by the union minister were not implementable.
Another twist in the controversy has emerged as instead of relocating the Sunderkhal village from the buffer zone of the Corbett as suggested by Ramesh, the state forest department, headed by CM, has demanded a study to examine presence of four to five tigers near the village.
“It is an unusual behaviour,” said Anil Baluni, vice-chairperson of State Forest and Environment Advisory Board, who claimed that they four to five tigers have been caught on camera near the village.
Tiger being a territorial animal has an area of about 10 sq kms and another tiger can enter the area only after killing the present there. “We want National Tiger Conservation Authority’s suggestion on how to deal with this situation,” Baluni said.
Jairam Ramesh has asked the state government to immediately send a proposal for seeking 100 % assistance to relocate Sunderkhal village, which is there since 1974. At least five persons of this village, in buffer zone of the reserve, were mauled to death by a tiger, killed last week, in a month’s time.
Coming down strongly on the state government for brutally killing the tiger, Ramesh has suggested that two units of rapid response units should be set up to capture the animal to avoid lethal encounters.
To overcome the problem of increasing tiger population in Corbett and reduce man-animal conflict, Ramesh has suggested that parts of Lansdowne, West Terai and Ramnagar divisions should be declared as buffer of Corbett. He also wants the state government to monitor movement of tigers and killing cattle by them to avoid conflict.
The minister has also said that the state government should appoint Brijendra Singh, as honorary wildlife warden for Corbett for appropriate guidance. Singh in the recent past had been critical of officials at Corbett on management of the reserve.
Thursday, February 3, 2011
Chourakund, Shahanoor MTR's new tourism hubs
SEMADOH (MELGHAT): With a view to keep core and critical tiger habitats (CTHs) inviolate as per National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) guidelines, the management of 2000 sq km Melghat Tiger Reserve (MTR) is developing Chourakund, Harisal and Shahanoor as new eco-tourism hubs.
The new guidelines of centrally sponsored schemes (CSS) of 'Project Tiger' states, "core and CTHs should not be used for any form of tourism, and the ongoing tourism activities in such areas should be phased out to fringe and buffer areas without affecting its corridor value."
At present, in MTR, 55 sq km area is open for tourism at Semadoh. Tourists gain entry to see wildlife from Semadoh and Chikhaldara side. Whereas tourists from Khandwa and Burhanpur side in Madhya Pradesh are isolated. With development of Chourakund and Harisal ranges in Sipna Wildlife Division, 30-35 km from Semadoh, all tourists will stand to gain.
The guest house at Chourakund will be handed over to Forest Development Corporation of Maharashtra (FDCM), which has signed an MoU with Maharashtra Tourism Development Corporation (MTDC) to commercially exploit eco-tourism in wildlife areas by developing facilities. In Melghat, apart from Chourakund, guest houses at Hatru, Chunkhadi, Rangubeli and Tarubanda will also be handed over to the FDCM.
"Chourakund and Harisal have one of the best forest patches with presence of leopards and tigers and other wildlife. It has huge tourism potential, which will be spread over 100 sq km area and will also be included in the working plan. It will take some time before we throw the area open for tourists," said A K Mishra, field director of MTR.
Semadoh Sankul, which has good accommodation facilities, will be discouraged for tourists in future as it falls in core zone of the tiger reserve. However, activities like nature education camps for students will be continued, officials said. Similarly, Shahanoor under Akot Wildlife Division of Melghat will be another eco-tourism hotspot. However, this will not mean discouraging tourists in 12 sq km Narnala Wildlife Sanctuary.
M S Reddy, deputy conservator of forests (DyCF), Akot Division, said Shahanoor is two kms from Narnala and is situated on revenue land. Every year, Rs 40 lakh are being given under the district planning development committee (DPDC) funds to develop Shahanoor. He said that Rs 60 lakh have been proposed for Narnala and Shahanoor. In Shahanoor, plans were afoot to set up additional accommodation, nature trails and education facilities.
The MTR comprises Gugamal National Park (where tourists are not allowed) and four sanctuaries - Melghat, Wan, Narnala and Ambabarwa, besides multiple use area (MUA). Mishra said Melghat's beautiful landscape gave it rich eco-tourism potential. "Considering the large area, flow of tourists is less. In 2009-10, 23,462 tourists visited Melghat, a rise of 962 over 2008-09 figure. More tourists can be attracted if about 15 British-era rest houses and inspection huts in MTR are developed," Mishra added.
The new guidelines of centrally sponsored schemes (CSS) of 'Project Tiger' states, "core and CTHs should not be used for any form of tourism, and the ongoing tourism activities in such areas should be phased out to fringe and buffer areas without affecting its corridor value."
At present, in MTR, 55 sq km area is open for tourism at Semadoh. Tourists gain entry to see wildlife from Semadoh and Chikhaldara side. Whereas tourists from Khandwa and Burhanpur side in Madhya Pradesh are isolated. With development of Chourakund and Harisal ranges in Sipna Wildlife Division, 30-35 km from Semadoh, all tourists will stand to gain.
The guest house at Chourakund will be handed over to Forest Development Corporation of Maharashtra (FDCM), which has signed an MoU with Maharashtra Tourism Development Corporation (MTDC) to commercially exploit eco-tourism in wildlife areas by developing facilities. In Melghat, apart from Chourakund, guest houses at Hatru, Chunkhadi, Rangubeli and Tarubanda will also be handed over to the FDCM.
"Chourakund and Harisal have one of the best forest patches with presence of leopards and tigers and other wildlife. It has huge tourism potential, which will be spread over 100 sq km area and will also be included in the working plan. It will take some time before we throw the area open for tourists," said A K Mishra, field director of MTR.
Semadoh Sankul, which has good accommodation facilities, will be discouraged for tourists in future as it falls in core zone of the tiger reserve. However, activities like nature education camps for students will be continued, officials said. Similarly, Shahanoor under Akot Wildlife Division of Melghat will be another eco-tourism hotspot. However, this will not mean discouraging tourists in 12 sq km Narnala Wildlife Sanctuary.
M S Reddy, deputy conservator of forests (DyCF), Akot Division, said Shahanoor is two kms from Narnala and is situated on revenue land. Every year, Rs 40 lakh are being given under the district planning development committee (DPDC) funds to develop Shahanoor. He said that Rs 60 lakh have been proposed for Narnala and Shahanoor. In Shahanoor, plans were afoot to set up additional accommodation, nature trails and education facilities.
The MTR comprises Gugamal National Park (where tourists are not allowed) and four sanctuaries - Melghat, Wan, Narnala and Ambabarwa, besides multiple use area (MUA). Mishra said Melghat's beautiful landscape gave it rich eco-tourism potential. "Considering the large area, flow of tourists is less. In 2009-10, 23,462 tourists visited Melghat, a rise of 962 over 2008-09 figure. More tourists can be attracted if about 15 British-era rest houses and inspection huts in MTR are developed," Mishra added.
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