Tiger spotted in Chandrapur residential area

CHANDRAPUR: There were some anxious moments in Hindustan Lalpeth colliery no. 2 locality here, on the fringes of the forest area of Ballarpur range after repeated intrusions by a tiger. The tiger was seen in the front yard of a residence on Thursday morning, while it had killed a bull near the residential area on Wednesday. Forest officials have warned people to avoid venturing into the jungles nearby.

According to reports, one Prem Tore saw a tiger moving in the front yard of his neighbour Ramlu Munjum in Samruddhi Nagar area in Lalpeth locality at around 5am. When he raised an alarm, the tiger jumped over the compound wall and fled into the jungle.

Apparently the same tiger was seen near the WCL bunkers adjoining the locality. It had killed a bull in the area and was seen by a couple of WCL workers on Wednesday.

After the residents informed forest officials on Thursday afternoon, a team of forest department staffers was sent to the area. RFO Chandrapur Abhay Bedkelwar confirmed that there was presence of tiger in the adjoining forest under Ballarpur forest range.

"We have received complaints about the intrusion of tiger into residential areas. The locality is situated adjacent to the jungle and our men found tiger pugmarks in the nullah flowing into the fringe forests," said Badkelwar.

Forest department staffers have warned people against venturing into the jungle. People should avoid going close to the jungle during evening and morning hours, and in case of extreme necessity people should go in groups into the forests, he added.

The man-animal conflict in the fringe forest areas around the town is on the rise. A tiger had killed a person in Chandrapur forest range on the outskirts of the town on Saturday last. So far, 11 people have been killed in tiger attacks in the district.



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Doubling tiger count by 2022 realistic goal'

The World Bank is keen on funding a tiger recovery programme in the countries where the big cats still roam free today – including Russia, China and India – with the motive of doubling the count. India has so far turned down World Bank's money and expertise for conservation, but 13 countries came on board, at a recent "tiger summit" in St Petersburg hosted by Russian premier Vladimir Putin. Dr Y V Jhala, senior wildlife biologist at Wildlife Institute of India, who was part of India's delegation, tells Sudeshna Chatterjee that the Russian forum may mark a significant turn.

At the Global Tiger Recovery Program, it was pledged to double the number of wild tigers from around 3,200 to 7,000 by 2022, the next year of the tiger according to the Chinese lunar calendar. How hopeful are you of that target?

The Tx2 goal is a catchy phrase to attract global attention of funders and leaders. However, for tiger conservation, it is more important to consolidate existing source populations through strict protection. Once this is achieved, we should strive to enhance the quality of the habitat that connects several breeding tiger populations. Yes, the tiger numbers can be doubled within the stipulated timeframe. The goal is realistic. In India, we have more than 300,000 sq km of tiger habitat, of which only 93,000 sq km have tigers.

Some tiger reserves like Srisailam (Andhra Pradesh), Simlipal (Orissa), Palamau (Jharkhand), Sanjay and Panna (Madhya Pradesh) and Achanakmar (Chhattisgarh) are below their carrying capacity. Good management, protection and increase of prey can easily double or treble the number of tigers in these reserves.

What is the outcome of the Russian forum?

The national leaders of the Tiger Range Countries adopted the Global Tiger Recovery Program by endorsing it. The GTRP consists of National Tiger Recovery Plan of each range country, which spells out the details of how each country will achieve its committed goal of tiger conservation along with the financial requirements to implement it. There is a pledge to raise funds to the tune of $350 million to be paid by rich countries such as Germany and US and agencies like World Bank, Global Environment Facility and World Wide Fund for Nature. The figure is very encouraging, though there will still be a significant amount of deficit.

How important is this forum for tiger conservation?

For the first time ever, commitment at the highest national level was convened to discuss the saving of one species other than humans.

Has there been any change of attitude in countries like China which is a major market for tiger body parts?

China and South East Asian countries are the major consumers of tiger body parts - this is the primary reason for the endangerment of the tiger. Initially, when the Global Tiger Initiative consultations began in early 2009, Chinese delegates were quite unwilling to even consider that China was a problem for tiger conservation. Gradually, I believe the Chinese attitude has become more positive and their government is now taking stringent steps to curb poaching and illegal trade in tiger parts.

Bangladeshi PM Sheikh Hasina has called for international support to declare Sunderbans one of the new seven wonders of the world. Do you think it can help in increasing the tiger population in the Sunderbans of both India and Bangladesh?

The increased tourism may bring in more revenue to the region. If this money becomes available to the conservation agencies, then it could assist tiger conservation in the region.

What is the state of funding in India?

The Centre spends about Rs 300 crore a year for tiger conservation that includes a lucrative incentive of Rs 10 lakh per family for voluntary relocation out of core areas of tiger reserves. This is over and above the state funding for staff salary, infrastructure and other costs. I believe India invests the maximum in tiger conservation, compared to any other country in the world. The Planning Commission of India has assured a sum of over $1 billion over the next 5 years to meet this expenditure. This is a significant commitment towards conservation since the tiger serves as the umbrella species for conservation and it can only survive in a forest if the entire ecosystem is intact and functioning naturally.


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Plan to shift male tiger to Sariska reserve put on hold

Rajasthan government has put off plans to shift one more male tiger to Sariska reserve for now to ensure disturbance-free habitat to a tiger couple which has mated.

"I have been told by the state wildlife officials that the tiger couple have met. We are hoping for some good news (birth of cubs). The relocation of another male tiger at this moment can be risky as it might disturb the couple. Hence no new male tiger in Sariska for now," environment minister Jairam Ramesh said.

The news of mating of the tigers had brought some cheer to Sariska which last month lost one of its five translocated big cats. The reserve in Rajasthan had lost all its native tigers by 2004-05, mostly to widespread poaching, after which the five tigers, two of them males, were translocated there since 2008 to revive their population.

After the male tiger was found dead in mysterious circumstances, with strong possibility of being poisoned, the Centre had approved the state government's proposal to bring a stray tiger to Sariska reserve which had moved from Ranthambore park to Bharatpur sanctuary.

But it has been put on hold now.

"We are monitoring the movement of the radio-collared tiger couple and we have got signals that they are in contact with each other. Their mating might result in birth of the cubs, we are hopeful," an expert from Dehradun- based Wildlife institute of India (WII) said.

"Introduction of a new tiger in the habitat presently may lead to a fight between the two male big cats," he said.

Both of them were spotted together in Kalighatti area of Sariska reserve. Also, this time the tigress is different and not from same gene pool as that the male as was feared earlier, he added.

While Sriska waits to get its first litter, translocation of felines in Panna sanctuary in Madhya Pradesh has yielded results with two tigress giving birth to cubs, much to the delight of wildlife enthusiasts.

Tiger cub hope in Sariska

A relocated tiger couple has met in Sariska, raising hopes that the big cat population in the park will increase, while two new cubs have been born in Ranthambore. "Rajasthan is sending some positive signals on the tiger population," environment minister Jairam Ramesh said, indicating the new tiger


census to be announced in December will show increase in tiger population in India.
As of the last census in 2007, there were 1,411 tigers in the country.

The minister hopes that the tiger couple --- T-4, a male tiger and T-2, a female --- mates and Sariska gets its first litter after the tigers went missing from India's first tiger reserve.

Many wildlifers are not enthused, saying tigers coupled have mated earlier, but there were no cubs. The reason for hope this time is that the tigress is different from the one who had mated earlier and was relocated from Ranthambore in 2009.

"She is vocalising," Ramesh said, meaning she is ready for mating.

Her vocalising has caught the attention of the tiger, who had gone missing earlier this month and has now returned to be with her. Both of them were spotted together in Kalighatti area of Sariska reserve, considered auspicious for birth of cubs.

A team of scientists from the Wildlife Institute of India and Rajasthan forest department is monitoring the couple through radio collaring devices. If all goes well, the forest department officials expect Sariska to have cubs by next monsoon.

About 200 km south in Ranthambore, the reserve got two new cubs.

A relocated tiger was apparently poisoned in Sariska and tigers faced the ire of villagers in Ranthambore for killing a woman. Both the incidents happened earlier this month.

MP PCCF pro-tourism stance draws green ire

NAGPUR: Union environment and forest minister Jairam Ramesh has been urged to take action against chief wildlife warden of Madhya Pradesh for instigating tour operators to go against a PIL demanding ban on tourism in core areas of state`s tiger reserves.

Ajay Dubey of Prayatna, a Bhopal-based NGO working for environment protection for the past 10 years, filed a PIL against NTCA and others on September 8, in Jabalpur high court seeking ban on tourism in core zones of reserves. The respondents have been directed to file affidavits and the next hearing is slated for December 6.

Kishor Rithe, member of National Board for Wild Life (NBWL), on Tuesday sought Ramesh`s intervention in the matter mentioning that even though the matter was subjudice, an email from chief wildlife warden H S Pabla asking tour operators to go against the PIL was disturbing.

Pabla, on September 14, wrote to high-profile resort owners and tour operators in MP and apprised them of the case. The mail stated that although the government would oppose the PIL, if lodge owners, travel operators, guides etc. should also intervene if they did not want it to succeed.

"As the case may have serious consequences, kindly take whatever steps you think will be appropriate to protect your interests. As I`m travelling and do not have the mail ids of all, please inform others," Pabla wrote to select operators. Pabla confirmed having sent the mail, but refused to comment saying the matter was subjudice.

"This is a serious issue," Rithe said. It seems that chief wildlife warden has joined hands with the tour operators to oppose the petitioner, who is trying to implement the provisions of Wildlife Protection Act (WPA) 1972 and the NTCA guidelines about tourism in core areas.

"When the states and centre are shifting villages in reserves to make the core areas inviolate for tigers, will it be wise to open up the same areas for tourism," asked Rithe. Petitioner Ajay Dubey had filed the PIL following debacle in Panna where all 35 tigers vanished in five years

"Pabla is a government servant and it is very sad that he is using his position to lobby against the PIL like this. The words in the letter like `take whatever steps.." sound threatening," Dubey told TOI. Dubey urged the chief secretary of the state to provide security against such threats and constitute an inquiry against Pabla.

The NTCA in its reply admitted that Section 38V (4) (i) of the WPA provided for keeping the core/critical tiger habitats (CTHs) inviolate. The revised guidelines of the centrally sponsored schemes (CSS) of Project Tiger (February 2008) states, "Core and CTHs would 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."

On August 7, Ramesh had written to MP chief minister Shivrajsingh Chouhan cautioning about Pabla`s initiative `Patrolling the tiger land` involving tourists in patrolling of protected areas and reserves.

NTCA meet on NH6 inconclusive

NAGPUR: The meeting called by the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA), on Tuesday, to look into the violations in four-laning of national highway No 6 in the 85-km patch between Deori and Lakhni in Gondia and Bhandara districts remained inconclusive.

This was for the first time in the past two years that the NTCA called a meeting in Delhi. It was attended by joint director SP Yadav, chief conservator of forest (CCF) Nagpur Wildlife Circle, AK Saxena, National Highway Authority of India's (NHAI) VK Sharma, assistant inspector general of forests (IGF) Umakant and manager of Wildlife Trust of India (WTI) Milind Pariwakkam.

Sources said the meeting remained inconclusive as the principal chief conservator of forests for wildlife is yet to give his opinion on the report submitted by the CCF on series of violations and how the four-laning work cuts tiger corridor. Another meeting will be held on December 20.

Although the official from the state supported his stand of constructing open span bridges (flyovers) in five vulnerable patches which will threaten wildlife, the NHAI official from Delhi was non-committal.

Sharma is learnt to have told the NTCA that the NHAI had appointed consultant RN Indurkar, retired chief wildlife warden, to study the vulnerable areas and accordingly prepared a mitigation plan. However, the report has been rejected by the CCF's office.

On October 13, the standing committee of National Board for Wild Life (NBWL), headed by union environment minister Jairam Ramesh, has already rejected NHAI's proposal to divert 85 hectare forest land (now curtailed to 38 hectare) for four-laning under the Forest Conservation Act (FCA) 1980.

The four-laning work has seen large-scale violations of Forest Conservation Act 1980. It has also destroyed the tiger corridor in many patches connecting Nagzira Wildlife Sanctuary and Navegaon National Par.

Poaching threat: High alert sounded at R’bore

JAIPUR: A high alert has been sounded at the Ranthambore national park by the forest department after threats of possible poaching. Forest guards, police and eco-development groups have all been alerted to maintain a strict vigil in and around the park.

Interestingly, the threats from poachers come at a time when the park does not have an officiating DFO. The former DFO of the reserve R S Shekhawat has been promoted and sent to the Sariska reserve and is holding additional charge while the new DFO R P Gupta is yet to assume charge. Gupta is likely to assume office later.

According to H M Bhatia, chief wildlife warden, Rajasthan, "The National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) has received an email from Dharmendra Khandal warning of possible attempts by poachers from the Mongia tribe of entering the park. The NTCA alerted us after the receipt of the mail and we have increased our vigil in the reserve." Khandal is a conservation biologist of the Tiger Watch.

"There are a group of people from the Mongia tribe who have been killing wild boar around the tiger reserve and supplying its meat to Kota and other places. They have about 57 illegal guns and have been nesting here around the park. The threat lies from them," said Khandal.

"I had the information and passed it on to the forest department for action along with my name and phone number. It will require a dedicated group of people to initiate action against them and bring them to book. But sadly even after seven days no concrete action has been initiated," he added Though no additional force has been deputed for the park, but the existing forest guards have been put on high alert. They have been asked to maintain a round-the-clock vigil in the park and stay in touch over wireless."Even the eco-development groups have been asked to report any suspicious activity or person in the park," Bhatia said.

The forest department has sought the help of the police. "We have asked the police to chip in with any input on possible movement of poachers in the city or around the park," he added. However, feels Rajpal Singh, member, state wildlife board, "The forest officials are always on the alert throughout the year. They monitor every tiger closely and they have a good track record. There is no need now to press the panic button." The poaching threat come at a time when the state is yet to get over the incident of a Bengal tiger being poisoned at the Sariska reserve by villagers inside the forest.

The male tiger ST-1 was the first relocated tiger to Sariska but days after its radio signal went silent the forest department recovered its rotting body from beside a cattle track in the reserve. Though the forensic test is awaited, but the post mortem report failed to find any possible clue hinting to what the department had been harping as the outcome of a possible territorial war with another male.

'Creating reserves alone won't help protect tigers'

Panaji, Nov 30 (IANS) Creating reserves is not the only way to conserve tigers, liquor baron and Rajya Sabha member Vijay Mallya said here Tuesday.

Mallya was speaking at an event at the 41st International Film Festival of India (IFFI) being held here.

He said that tribals living within the Bilgiri Rangana wildlife sanctuary in Karnataka were protecting tigers in their unique way and making the area a tiger reserve would actually upset the delicate balance they had preserved over centuries.

'If they are displaced, then there will be no protection for them,' Mallya said, adding that he had raised the issue in parliament recently.

Located in the Chamrajanagar district of Karnataka, the Bilgiri Rangana wildlife sanctuary is a protected forested area and has been shortlisted as a tiger reserve by the union ministry for environment and forests.

Mallya said that forest dwellers can exist along with tigers and there was no need to displace the tribes.

'They have been living together for centuries. Frankly, when I did more research, I myself began to think. It is easy to say protect the tiger and declare as many areas as you can as sanctuaries. I started thinking and my own eyes started opening,' he said, adding that initially he was supportive of making the area a tiger reserve.

'The flip side is there are many adivasis living in this area who actually protect the tiger and they say that if they are displaced, then there will be no protection for the tigers, who would be exposed to poachers,' he said.

PIL on tiger tourism: MP turns to ‘affected parties’

To defeat a public interest litigation that seeks to ban tourism in core areas of tiger reserves, the Madhya Pradesh forest department has clandestinely sought the help of very people whose activities endanger the wild cat.

Within days of the PIL in the high court, MP’s Principal Chief Conservator of Forests (PCCF) (Wildlife) H S Pabla sent an email to people involved in tourism industry asking them to intervene “as affected parties if you want to be sure that this PIL does not succeed”.

Pabla, who was removed from the same post after the debacle in Panna but made a comeback after a few months, advised the affected parties that “the case may have serious consequences for you people, kindly take whatever steps you think will be appropriate to protect your interests”. The PIL was filed by Prayatna, a Bhopal-based NGO, on September 9 seeking a ban on tourism in core areas, notification of buffer zones and implementation of annual conservation plans.

Tiger troubles

At Kaziranga: Tigers face a threat.
Another tragedy has hit Kaziranga National Park. Two carcasses of tigers have been found in different spots in the Park. Officials from National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA), the apex tiger conservation body, investigated the deaths and ruled out poaching as a cause. With this, the tiger casualty toll has increased to four this year in Kaziranga. Between November 2008 and September 19, 2009, a total of 12 tigers died in Kaziranga.

Forest dept's resettlement plan to protect remainder tigers

Shashikant Trivedi / New Delhi/ Churna (bori Wildlife Sanctuary) November 30, 2010, 0:01 IST
Paucity of funds and non-availability of land are still major hurdles in the state government’s path towards making Bori wild life sanctuary, India’s first reserve forest, free of human interference although tribal families have unwillingly succumbed to the state forest department’s demand to evict the area sprawling more than 500 sq km. Satpura Tiger reserve located in south Hoshangabad district in Madhya Pradesh includes the Bori wildlife sanctuary located in its south-west region.

The local villagers inside the sanctuary are ready with an emphatic denial of not having heard tiger roars since the last decade, a strong evidence of how the tigers have disappeared from the state, yet the forest department is keeping the hope alive of attaining the “Tiger State” status once the range is freed of the villagers.


The department is in the process of eviction of the area, albeit at snail pace, having obtained the villagers’ consent. It’s a difficult task for the officials to arrange for arable land for the families of 18 villages. Alternatively, a meager compensation of Rs 10 lakh to each family seems to be the only other option.
“We are convincing them to accept this compensation, yet it requires a huge fund, Rs 32000 crore to resettle all 735 villages out of all tiger reserve,” says Sartaj Singh, state forest minister while speaking to Business Standard, “We have no option but to depend upon Union government’s release of funds.”

Interestingly the forest department has demanded permission from the Supreme Court so that it can convert the tourist town Pachmarhi, also under the Satpura Tiger reserve, into a revenue land. “Resettlement of Pachmarhi is next to impossible,” the minister says.

It took almost ten years for the department to resettle two villages namely Dhain and Bori at a new location where officials faced protest and the process reportedly claimed another forest.

Tribals in Satpura tiger sanctuary, where even radio signals are shy to reach let alone basic amenities, have withstood government decisions since British Colonial rule. Rising to an altitude of 1,300 meters above sea level, Satpura range of mountains are not only the tallest mountains but also have rich bio-diversity, wildlife species and perennial fresh water sources ideal for human settlements.

“The tribal people are suffering the most in this area since 1860, as it is yet to be ascertained how their interference has adversely affected tiger population. And who will ensure that tourism activities will not be allowed in the area when a resort and guest house has been set up by the department itself in Churna,” said Sunil, coordinator of Kisan Adivasi Sangthan, Kesala — an organisation that is fighting for the cause of the tribal people. “It is a tough task for state government to arrange arable land in the vicinity. The plain area is highly fertile, which farmer will be ready to sell his land to the forest department at a throwaway price. Most of the buyers in this area are either industrialists or influential people. You can still see the suffering of the villagers of Bori and Dhain village who have been settled at a new location near Sohagpur tehsil.”

But for the forest department eviction is an ongoing process as tiger population has dwindled to an alarmingly low rate (census results are likely to come up by this month-end). “We have resettled two villages Dhain and Bori, two more are likely to be resettled this year,” TR Sharma, additional principal chief conservator of forest said. His team is convincing the forest dwellers to accept the “Golden Handshake” package in which each family and the adult member will get Rs 10 lakh. A portion of this will be deposited in fixed deposit in any bank and the rest will be spent on arranging a developed residential plot and construction of a house on it. “We are trying to convince them to take the Golden Handshake offer as arranging five acres of land for each family is a tough task for us,” he said.

As many as 18 villages have been earmarked for eviction. Villagers of Khakrapura, Sakot, which are to be displaced and resettled soon, are ready to move out provided the government offer them a house and five acres of land. The other villages namely Kakri, Jam, Bharbhur, Podhar, Malni, Mallupura, Suplai, Jhalai, Khamda and Mana have yet to wait for another two to five years as the process of resettlement is very slow.

“One could, 20 years back, spot tigers, leopards, chital, sambhar near the Churna guest house. Today we see a decreasing number of carnivores with the poachers killing them,” says a local villager, adding, “We are ready to move out because life is too difficult for us here as we remain clueless about what is happening in the rest of the world, especially during the rainy season. The nearest town Bhawnra is 50 kms away from Churna and we often encounter wild animals there. As many as 735 villages remain to be displaced from all tiger reserve sanctuaries and national parks of Madhya Pradesh.

Tiger found dead, territorial fight suspected

CHANDRAPUR: A partially decomposed carcass of a fully grown tiger was found in the Junona forest range under West Chanda division of Forest Development Corporation of Maharashtra (FDCM) on the outskirts of Chandrapur town around 3 km deep into the jungle, on Saturday evening. Initial probe has revealed that the tiger might have been killed in a territorial fight with another tiger.

Forest officials said that the guard on patrolling duty in compartment no. 482 of Junona range of FDCM sighted the carcass after tracking foul smell in the vicinity. Regional manager, North Chandrapur circle, FDCM Sheshrao Patil confirmed the death of the tiger, but ruled out the possibility of poaching. "It was a fully grown male tiger (aged around 7-8 years). All the body parts of the tiger were intact and we have found no signs of poaching. It is likely that the tiger died due to injuries caused during a territorial fight with another tiger," he said.

Inquest and postmortem were carried out on Sunday. Dozens of youths from Chandrapur and Junona rushed to the spot in the morning to have a glimpse of the dead tiger on Sunday.

Senior forest officials including regional manger Patil, CFO and field director, TATR, Vinay Sinha, divisional manager, FDCM West Chanda, Raut, ACF TF Durge, ACF, TATR, Ajay Pillariseth visited the spot and searched the jungle to locate signs of another tiger and the place of scuffle.

Forest department staffers claimed that they have measured the length of the tiger (tip to tail) 2.60 metres (around 11 feet). They discovered several pugmarks and scrap marks of tiger on the jungle trail and the nullah passing through nearby. "We have discovered some pugmarks in the area around the carcass. Their comparison with the pug marks of dead tiger would help to identify the presence of another tiger in the same area," said forest officials.

Post-mortem was carried out by veterinary doctor PD Kadukar in the presence of representative of NTCA, Kishor Rithe and senior forest officers on the spot in the afternoon. Dr Kadukar said, "The body of the beast was petrified suggesting that tiger had died more than 72 hours before. We have found some linear injury marks that could have been caused by nails of another tiger. Moreover, the left fore limb of the beast was dislocated, suggesting that it might have died due to injuries caused during fight with another tiger."

He said that they have gathered samples of viscera to be sent to forensic laboratory to check possibilities of the poisoning. The wildlife activists, who visited the spot, expressed concern over lapses in patrolling as the body was discovered more than two days after the death. They also stressed immediate need of identification and location of the other tiger that had moved into the territory. The body of the tiger was later cremated on the same spot.

Eight tiger cubs born in Pench reserve

Bhopal: Two tigresses have given birth to eight cubs in Madhya Pradesh’s Pench Tiger Reserve in a span of just two months. “Last month, a tigress with five newly born cubs was sighted and this month our ground duty officials have spotted another feline with three cubs,” Pench deputy field director O P Tiwari said on Sunday. He said both the tigresses have given birth to cubs under Karmajhiri range of the reserve. With the news of the new-born cubs, monitoring in and around Karmajhiri has increased, officials said.

'Tiger Queen', wildlife flick shot in HD, vies for green crown

Tags:Tiger Protection|Save The Tiger

PANAJI: "This is not a 'Save the tiger' campaign film," said S Nallamuthu before anyone even suggested it, "I think there are more NGOs working for the cause of tiger protection than there are tigers left in India. I don't want to be in the crowd."

Nallamuthu who prefers being called Nalla, said of his film 'Tiger Queen', "We have been following machli (the main tigress in the film) in the wild for many years and her life and struggles inspired me to make this film. She is 14 years old and won't live very long, so we decided to follow her life with her last litter."

India's first-ever wildlife film shot on high definition (HD) camera by director Nalla is among the 10 shortlisted environmental films vying for the Indian government's Vasudha award under the Short Film Category. The film premiered on National Geographic Worldwide and was shown on animal planet in the USA.

'Tiger Queen' explores the battle for power and supremacy in the wild tiger family. The action-packed film is set in Ranthambore and Sariska national parks in Rajasthan. "There are no anchors. It's a real story presented by tracking a tiger family in their habitat," said Nalla, who feels that after watching this emotional drama the audience will naturally be moved to protect the tiger.

3 more held for poaching tiger in 2008

CHANDRAPUR: The officials of Bhadrawati forest range on Thursday arrested three more accused in the poaching of tiger a in Tadoba Andhari Tiger Reserve (TATR) way back in 2008. They had on Wednesday recovered the remains of a poached tiger at the border of TATR, near village Doni, after an accused Shalik Gedam pointed out the spot.

The probe into the poachers gang was reinitiated some days back after the arrest of the main accused Shalik Gedam, who was absconding for the last one-and-a-half years. Officials had recovered six-and-a-half kilogram of tiger bones and a nail buried in the ground near a nullah along TATR border on Wednesday. Gedam also named three accomplices and forest officials arrested them on Thursday.

DCF, Chandrapur forest division, MM Kulkarni confirmed the arrests, but he did not gave names or other details. Forest officials are interrogating the three to recover the skin and seven missing nails of the poached tiger.

Meanwhile, authorities of TATR on Thursday said the poached tiger might have been an inhabitant of TATR. ACF Ajay Pillariseth said investigations suggests it could be the tiger which moved in and out of the tiger reserve. "The poaching spot is only a couple of metres away from the tiger reserve, hence the chances of poached tiger belonging to TATR cannot be ruled out. We have initiated investigations and are trying to trace which tiger went missing in that period," he said.

Pillariseth said tigers with territory along the border often move in and out of the tiger reserve, hence it is difficult to keep tabs on them. He speculated that the poached beast might be a tigress which had killed a person from Doni in January 2008.

NTCA wakes up, calls meet on NH6

NAGPUR: Albeit late, National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) has finally woken up to the violations in four-laning work of National Highway 6 in the 85 km patch between Deori and Lakhni in Gondia and Bhandara districts.

The NTCA, a statutory body under the Union ministry of environment and forests (MoEF) monitoring tiger reserves, has called a meeting at 4 pm on November 30, to discuss the violations and four-laning that cuts tiger corridor between protected areas of Nagzira, Navegaon, Tadoba-Andhari in Maharashtra, Kanha in Madhya Pradesh and Indravati tiger reserves in Chhattisgarh.

Forest officials said it was high time that NTCA took a tough stand on violations. Tiger movement has been reported in Bamhani area where four-laning has been stalled as it encompasses forest area and is part of the corridor. This is for the first time NTCA has called a meeting on the issue. It comes at a time when 90% of the four-laning work in 85-km patch has been completed by the National Highway Authority of India (NHAI). The work had started in March 15, 2008. The Ashoka Highways (Bhandara) Limited has already started collecting toll tax from vehicles from October 18.

Rajesh Gopal, member-secretary of the NTCA, was not available for comments. "CCF (wildlife), Nagpur Circle, and field directors of Kanha and Tadoba-Andhari tiger reserves are among those attending the meeting," said NTCA sources. The meeting assumes significance, specially against the backdrop of Nagzira Wildlife Sanctuary and Navegaon National Park and its adjoining areas being upgraded as a tiger reserve. While proposal for Navegaon is yet to be prepared, the Nagzira reserve proposal is already with the state government.

On October 13, the standing committee of National Board for Wild Life (NBWL), headed by union environment minister Jairam Ramesh, rejected NHAI's proposal to divert 85 hectare forest land (now curtailed to 38 hectare) for four-laning under the Forest Conservation Act (FCA) 1980. The issue came up before the NBWL as decision on projects falling within 10 km of national parks and sanctuaries is taken by the NBWL. At several places where the four-laning work was done, Navegaon National Park is within 10 km. The fact was hidden by Gondia deputy conservator (DyCF) Mukesh Ganatra in his report.

State forest officials said they would stick to their stand asking the NHAI to construct open span bridges (flyovers) in five vulnerable patches. These patches include Sirpur-Nawatola (6.300 km); Marhamjob-Dongargaon (4.150 km); Bamhani-Duggipar (3.050 km); Sakoli-Mundipar (3.200 km); and Saundad-Sendurwafa (3.500 km).

"These patches constitute most important corridor vital for the movement of wild animals and cannot be overlooked. The NHAI has spent crores to four-lane the highway but it is not ready to spend a few crores more for wildlife and tigers. The mitigation measures (culvert boxes) proposed by the NHAI do not at all satisfy the need," forest officials told TOI.

India, 12 others vow to double tiger numbers by 2022

A United Nations-led alliance to fight wildlife crime and eliminate threats to wild cats around the world has pledged to double tiger numbers by 2022 in India and 12 other tiger range countries. The alliance was formed this week at an international forum in St Petersburg, Russia on restoring the


global tiger population from the brink of extinction, the UN news centre in UN announced. Heads of five major international agencies also discussed collective actions aimed at stopping the poaching, smuggling and illegal trade of tigers.
"Ending wildlife crime against tigers and other endangered species, particularly transnational trafficking, requires a coordinated global response," said the Executive Director of the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), Yury Fedotov, who underlined Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon's "strong support" for the Tiger Forum.

"Thanks to our expertise based on UN standards and norms in crime prevention and criminal justice, combined with many years of experience helping States to fight crime, UNODC is well positioned to support the Tiger Range Countries," he added.

In 2009, tiger skins sold for up to $20,000 and bones retailed for up to $1,200 per kilogramme with UNODC estimating the total market value at about $5 million.

Over the last century, tiger numbers have plummeted from about 100,000 to less than 3,500 in the wild today, with three sub-species disappearing altogether and the remaining six at risk.

In order to boost tiger conservation efforts, UNODC teamed up with the World Customs Organization (WCO), the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES), INTERPOL, and the World Bank to establish the International Consortium on Combating Wildlife Crime (ICCWC).

Aided by the ICCWC, the 13 Tiger Range Countries will implement the Global Tiger Recovery Programme which will target poaching, the illegal trade of tigers and habitat conservation, as well as create incentives for local people to protect the big cats.

"ICCWC sends a very clear message that a new era of wildlife law enforcement is upon us," said CITES Secretary-General John Scanlon. "Poaching and illegal trade have brought tigers close to the point of no return. Only if we work together, can we ensure that tigers will survive."

Besides India, other countries that have committed towards implementing the Global Tiger Recovery Programme are Bangladesh, Bhutan, Cambodia, China, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Nepal, Russia, Thailand and Vietnam.

Panna to get two Kanha tiger princesses in December

BHOPAL: Come December and two tiger princesses will make a 450 km journey from Madhya Pradesh's Kanha National Park to their new home in the picturesque Panna forests as part of a plan to boost the big cat's numbers there, said officials.

The tigresses, one four years old and the other five-and-a-half, will be put in two cages after they are tranquilised on the day of their journey Dec 5 and then transported in trucks to Panna National Park.

"Dec 5 has been fixed to bring two tigresses. According to their health they would be kept in special areas within the Panna reserve," VS Parihar, deputy director of Panna Tiger Reserve, said.

A team of veterinarians and forest officials will accompany the big cats and the translocation will be completed in about 10 hours, said officials.

Spread across more than 500 sq km, the Panna National Park has already made its preparations to welcome the Kanha princesses. Two veterinarians have already been appointed to monitor the big cats' health in Panna.

The Kanha and Panna national parks are two of the six tiger reserves in Madhya Pradesh. The 1,945 sq km Kanha park was set up in 1955. According to a census in 2006, Kanha had about 90-130 tigers.

Panna, created in 1981, currently has three adult tigers and two cubs. A tigress, which had been earlier translocated from Bandhavgarh Tiger Reserve, also in Madhya Pradesh, to Panna, has mated and given birth to four cubs there in March this year. Unfortunately, two cubs went missing and are feared dead.

Now two more are set to join them in Panna.

"A close vigil is being kept on the health of the tigresses and the preparation to shift them is almost complete," said S.K. Mohanty, deputy director of Kanha National Park.

Three other tiger reserves in Madhya Pradesh are Pench, Satpura and Sanjay Dhubri.

The forest department has recently initiated a process in Panna to relocate some 16 villages around the reserve.

Srinivas Murthy, field director of Panna Tiger Reserve, said: "So far 13 (villages) are under process of relocation.

"We will try to relocate the rest of the villages soon. Barring the 2006 incident in which villagers had given poison to the animals, no such conflict has been evident."

In 2008, a tiger census report revealed that India had just about 1,400 tigers. The results of a new census launched countrywide in January are awaited.

Tiger shot dead in Assam

Morigaon: Even as Asian countries meet in Russia to discuss ways to save the tiger, a Royal Bengal Tiger was shot dead by police on Tuesday after it killed a woman and mauled another sub-inspector at Nagabandha in Morigaon district in Assam.

The tiger, which swam across the Bhramhaputra from Orang National Park in Udalguri district to take shelter between Morigaon and Nagaon districts, killed a 38-year-old woman, police said.

When sub-inspector Tilak Chandra Bora and his team went to nab the tiger, it pounced on him in a paddy field, injuring the policeman critically, they added.

The tiger was finally shot dead to save the sub-inspector.


Read more at: http://www.ndtv.com/article/india/tiger-shot-dead-in-assam-68203?cp

Tiger death: Forest guard suspended in Sariska

A forest guard at Alwar's Sariska Tiger Sanctuary has been suspended by the Rajasthan government following the death of a tiger, officials said today.

"The guard Ramgopal was found guilty of dereliction of duty following which he was suspended recently," they said.

The government has so far suspended four personnel in the case of the tiger's death and transferred one official.

The carcass of "ST-1" was found by a forest department team in Sariska sanctuary on November 14.