Time again, for the big cats to be counted

TNN | Dec 27, 2011, 02.41AM IST BHOPAL: A big cat census covering all tiger reserves of the country, including the six in Madhya Pradesh (MP), is slated for next year, a top official said. It would now be an annual affair. Additional Principal Chief Conservator of Forests (Wildlife) Dharmendra Shukla said the national tiger conservation authority (NTCA) has decided to do the census annually in the reserves, from next year. Shukla said the census in the state would be done in cooperation with the Wildlife Institute of India ( WII). However, he added, the tiger counting being carried out in the forest areas every four years would also continue in tandem. "In the run up to the census, a two-day regional training workshop for forest department officials of MP, Chhattisgarh and Maharashtra has been organised in state's Panna Tiger Reserve (PTR) from December 28," according to Shukla. Logistics, however, are still not in place. Shukla said the census exercise will take some time since the cameras and others modern equipment for the job have yet to be acquired. "We are going to collect data on the big cat using cameras on the transit routes and then analyse it," he said. "We have been assigned the task of collecting and analysing the data,'' he added. As a prelude to the census operation, a two-day regional training workshop for forest department officials of MP, Chhattisgarh and Maharashtra has been organised in state's Panna Tiger Reserve (PTR) from December 28. ""More than 100 forest department officials drawn from Chhattisgarh, Maharashtra and MP are going to take part in the workshop," Panna park's deputy director V S Parihar said. The big cat census will cover Kanha, Pench, Bandhavgarh, Satpura, Panna and Sanjay Dubri tiger reserves. FEWER ROARS IN MP MP has lost its pre-eminent tag as the country's tiger state to Karnataka, with the population of this magnificient feline in the state declining to 257 by 2011, from 300 tigers in 2008. Panna lost its tigers to poachers by early 2009. Forest officials, however, refuse to accept that the striped cat's numbers had declined in Kanha and claim that something must have gone wrong with the last tiger census. On the other hand, the tiger population had increased to 300 in Karnataka according to the tiger census of 2001, up from from 290 in 2008. Tiger census report of 2008 Tiger census report of 2011 Tiger Reserves Kanha 89 60 Bandhavgarh 47 59 Panna 24 03 Satpura 39 43 Pench (MP-Maharashtra) 33 65 Sanjay Dubri Not known 05 http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/bhopal/Time-again-for-the-big-cats-to-be-counted/articleshow/11260339.cms

No merger of Project Tiger with other schemes

Vijay Pinjarkar, TNN | Dec 27, 2011, 06.30AM IST NAGPUR: The planning commission's proposal to merge three centrally sponsored schemes (CSS) - Project Tiger, Project Elephant and the Integrated Development under Wildlife Habitat ( IDWH) into one, has been dropped. This was revealed by minister for environment and forest Jayanthi Natarajan to the members at the recently-held standing committee meeting of National Board for Wildlife (NBWL). Although Natarajan did not respond to a mail sent to her on the issue, members attending the meeting were informed about the move when the issue figured in the Delhi meeting. "Now the government is not merging all the three schemes," Natarajan is learnt to have told the NBWL. TOI on September 29, had reported that merger of three schemes would hit tigers hard. The move was strongly opposed by all nine members of NBWL. The NBWL is the highest body to decide on all wildlife issues. The NBWL members have thanked Natarajan and plan panel deputy chairman Montek Singh Ahluwalia for showing great concern towards the serious implications of the merger of the three schemes. A subcommittee headed by BK Chaturvedi was set by the planning commission to restructure the CSS. Chaturvedi, who is a member of the planning commission, had discussed the issue with the MoEF on July 29, 2011. The committee's brief was to find ways to enhance flexibility, scale and efficiency of the scheme. Panic buttons were pressed when on August 17, Indrani Chandrasekharan, adviser to planning commission, wrote to MoEF secretary T Chatterjee to take action in the matter. She had stated that the merger was decided to include conservation of lions and rhinos too. However, on September 17, all the 9 NBWL members wrote a strongly-worded letter to Ahluwalia expressing shock. The letter was signed by MK Ranjitsinh, Bittu Sahgal, Kishor Rithe, Prerna Bindra, TR Shankar Raman, Divyabhanusinh Chavda, Biswajit Mohanty, Asad Rahmani and Bibhab Kumar Talukdar. The members felt that schemes like 'Project Tiger' and 'Project Elephant' should have their own identity. Such a merger would be a retrograde step and would adversely impact efforts to conserve wildlife and tiger, which is the national animal. Project Tiger was initiated at the instance of late Prime Minister Indira Gandhi in 1973 and, therefore, has been in existence long before the MoEF itself was established in 1985. "With over 1,700 tigers as estimated in the figures announced earlier this year, India not only has more than half the tigers of the world but also has the largest number of Asiatic elephants. Such a merger would have been suicidal," a section of members told TOI. http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/nagpur/No-merger-of-Project-Tiger-with-other-schemes/articleshow/11262142.cms

Tiger kills woman

PTI | 05:12 PM,Dec 26,2011 Lakhimpur (UP), Dec 26 (PTI) A 65-year-old woman was killed by a tiger in Matera reserve forest area in Dhaurehra range here, an official said today. The mutilated body of Maikin, a resident of Pratappur village, was found early this morning, Dhaurehra Range Officer N N Pandey said. The woman went to the forest reserve area on Kheri-Bahraich border last evening to collect firewoods but did not return, he said. Maikin's body with one leg eaten up by the tiger was found by her family members, Pandey said.

Tiger force to take on poachers

December 26, 2011 DC Bengaluru For the first time, the Karnataka forest department will be deploying the Special Tiger Protection Force (STPF) which will guard the forests of Bandipur, Badra and Nagarhole against poachers from the first week of January. The deputation of the STPF forces had been in pipeline since 2008 when the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) had made recommendations that STPFs should be raised in 13 sensitive tiger reserves — Dudhwa-Katerniaghat, Corbett, Ranthambhore, Pench, Kanha, Bandhavgarh, Pakke, Bandipur, Tadoba Andhari, Mudumalai, Kaziranga and Simlipal. As per the initial plans the STPF was to be deployed only at Bandipur in Karnataka, however, the forest department is now planning to deploy units at Badra and Nagerhole as well. On January 3, 2012, the first unit comprising 14 foresters and 40 forest guards will complete their training, said sources. The forest guards have undergone three weeks of intensive training in policing, patrolling, combat and even intelligence at the Armed Police Training Centre in Yelahanka. “The guards have been given intensive commando training, specialising in the use of SLRs, small arms, besides hand-to-hand combat. Since it is a forest unit, they also have been taught how to interact with communities and about the Forests Acts and rules,” said B.K. Singh, Principal Chief Conservator of Forests (Wildlife). The annual expenditure for maintaining the STPF unit will be around `97.76 lakh. The forest department has also requested the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) for `620 lakh for construction of quarters and buildings for the tiger conservation unit. “This will be first STPF unit that will be commissioned in the country. We will be increase the unit strength later,” added Mr Singh. The STPF unit will be divided into three groups and will be solely responsible for taking anti-poaching measures and will have the power to “shoot to kill”, he informed. http://www.deccanchronicle.com/channels/cities/bengaluru/tiger-force-take-poachers-481

WWF study confirms at least 25 tigers in Sathyamangalam forests

K A Shaji, TNN | Dec 26, 2011, 04.42AM IST COIMBATORE: A recent study by World Wildlife Fund ( WWF) using camera trap method at the Sathyamangalam wildlife sanctuary has confirmed that the 1.41 lakh hectare-stretch of forest at the confluence of Western and Eastern Ghats is home to at least 25 tigers. A DNA finger print-based project initiated by the state forest department had collected 150 samples of pugmarks from Sathyamangalam forests recently and 69 among them were found positive at the tests conducted at Centre for Molecular Biology in Hyderabad. The lab findings indicate that the region is home to tigers, ranging from 18 to 30. Armed with the two study reports, the forest department has prepared a detailed project report for submission before the state government and it would come up for consideration before the cabinet in a couple of weeks. The Union ministry of environment and forests has already advised the state government to make it a tiger reserve under Wildlife (Protection) Act of 1972. Kalakkad-Mundanthurai, Indira Gandhi National Park in Anamalai and Mudumalai National Park are the existing tiger reserves in the state. "Sathyamangalam forests deserve the tiger reserve status. If declared, that would help total habitat improvement. There would be projects that would help not only the tigers but also the entire flora and fauna of the region,'' said divisional forest officer (DFO) N Sathish. Apart from tigers, the forests are known for a large number of vultures and elephants. "It is home to one fourth of the elephants in the state with an estimated population of 1,250. Sathyamangalam is also a migratory path for over 6,000 Asiatic elephants which move from the Nilgiris to Bandipur in Karnataka,'' Sathish said. It also has a large number of black bucks and hyenas. Its links with Mudumalai, Bandipur and BR Hills sanctuaries would turn advantageous in protection of big cats as they can roam around freely in a large contiguous stretch of forests without any disturbance. It was only in August this year that Sathyamangalam got wildlife sanctuary status. Recently, the sanctuary was expanded with the inclusion of forest reserves like Guthiyalathur, Akurjakkarai, Thalamalai, Berabetta, Ullepalayam and the eastern slopes of the Nilgiris, under it. These forests, which were considered Veerappan territory, are under threat from the laterite-mining and timber mafias. If the forest is declared a tiger sanctuary, more personnel would be sanctioned for its protection. That, forest officials said, would be a major help in keep the mafiosi at bay. http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/11249004.cms

Drop in MP's tiger population cause of concern

SATURDAY, 24 DECEMBER 2011 With the tiger population in the State declining from 300 in 2006 to 257 in the 2011 census wildlife experts have called for more efforts by the Forest Department to solve pending cases of poaching, writes Ritesh Mishra There was a 12 per cent rise in the population of big cats in the country in 2011, but Madhya Pradesh lost its 'Tiger State' status to Karnataka in this passing year. According to the tiger census of 2011, the tiger population in Madhya Pradesh dropped to 257 from 300 tigers in 2006. According to wildlife experts the causes of the decline in the tiger population in Madhya Pradesh are many but one of the most important was that most of the poaching cases were not solved till now, which has given an edge to the poachers and they continued hunting the felines. However, it is not new, but the pending cases of the forest offences are really concerning for the wildlife experts and even for the forest officials and they believe that the Forest Department should take the matter seriously as soon as possible. Reflecting sheer ineffectiveness, apathy and dilly-dallying in solving the forest offences, the figures of the Forest Department revealed that the pending cases till December 2011 in Madhya Pradesh was seven times more than the cases registered in the current year till now. Meanwhile, commenting over the issue, a retired senior official of the Forest Department, requesting anonymity, said that there can be various reasons behind the pending case as it could be lack of staff or negligence. "If more than 60,000 cases are pending in the Forest Department then it is concerning and senior officials should take responsibility," the officer added. Total number of forest offences registered in records of the Forest Department is 7,592 and the total number of pending cases is 60,280. More specifically, total 47,715 are pending for the last 12 months, which reflects the working of the department. The highest number of pending cases is in Bhopal, which is more than 10,800. More surprisingly, in the total 9,542 cases, investigation is pending for the last one year in the State capital only. Moreover, the highest number of forest offence cases has been registered in Bhopal, which sums up to 1,663 followed by Jabalpur (1,173) and Panna (104). RTI activist Ajay Dubey, while talking to The Pioneer said the main reason behind the pending of these cases was that the prosecution of the cases was not done properly. It was due to the apathy of some senior officials of the Forest Department. He further said that in various reports of the Forest Department it was made clear the most concerning issue for the department were the pending cases and the delay in the process but nothing appropriate has been done till now. "I don't know why the Forest Department is ineffective regarding the forest offences," he added. Bandhavgarh and Satpura National Park registered 40 cases each in 2011. Specifically, according to the records of forest offences maintained in the website of the department the cases registered from January 1 to December 7, highest number of the cases was of illegal felling (6097), in which total 1,248 cases are of Bhopal. Further in Jabalpur (1,063) and Seoni (1,129) cases have been registered. In Balaghat, where total 98 cases of forest offences have been registered, 90 are of illegal felling. The most important fact according to details of cases registered is about Panna. The highest number of poaching cases registered was in Panna (28) followed by Bhopal. The highest number of cases of illegal grazing is 30, out of 70 cases registered all over the State. The senior officials of Panna Tiger Reserve have already mentioned in a confidential report to HS Pabla that there are instances of involvement of Panna forest officials with the poachers of nearby districts. Further according to records maintained on investigation status of the forest offences cases, Bhopal ranks the top, with total 10,814 cases, followed by Jabalpur (3,937), Seoni (4,248) and Sagar (7,185), till December 7, 2011. As per details maintained about the pending cases of National Parks of Madhya Pradesh, total 417 are pending in Panna, 1,068 in Kanha and 381 in Bandhavgarh. According to wildlife experts there is a lack of coordination among the forest officials in solving the cases owing to which thousands of cases are pending in nearly all the major districts. The experts suggested that the Forest Department should start a drive in solving the pending cases as soon as possible. http://www.dailypioneer.com/state-editions/bhopal/30162-drop-in-mps-tiger-population-cause-of-concern.html

39 tiger reserves mired in problems

Dec 24, 2011 - Rashme Sehgal | Age Correspondent | New Delhi A Management Effectiveness Evaluation (MEE) of the functioning of India’s 39 tiger reserves has come down heavily on India’s premier Corbett Tiger Reserve (TR), which due to its high-profile nature should have set a benchmark for tiger conservation. Instead, the MEE points out that the human-wildlife conflict in the buffer zone of this reserve has intensified while the critical corridors in which animals move have become increasingly fragmented. The MEE stresses that “too much time and manpower is involved in managing tourism and tourist facilities which takes away the focus from the primary task of the Corbett reserve”. But this seems to be a problem across all reserves. The Bandavgarh TR is having to cope with one lakh tourists per annum from 2008. A large number of resorts have come up around the reserve resulting in increasing human-wildlife conflict and preventing tiger dispersal opportunities. The Ranthambore TR, comprising largely of a habitat island, faces a similar problem both in tourism excess and man-wildlife conflict. Other reserves such as the Dudha Tiger Reserve located next to the porous international border with Nepal faces the problem of poaching and wildlife trade. The Panna TR had been left with a defunct tiger population populated as it is with Pardhis, a tribe carrying powerful firearms and known for their poaching activities. Problems of mining are putting habitats under pressure especially in the Sahayadri TR and the Tadoba-Andhari TR. Other problems include a failure to protect rare animals. The Satkosia reserve has failed to save the gharial in its only non-Himalayan river system. It has just three gharials left even though this is the place where the Indian crocodile project was initiated. The Udanti-Sitanadi reserve has failed to protect the Asiatic wild buffalo whose population is down to eight from which four have been kept in connectivity. http://www.asianage.com/india/39-tiger-reserves-mired-problems-366

Buxa roars back, count finds 20 tigers in park

Krishnendu Mukherjee, TNN | Dec 23, 2011, 06.47AM IST KOLKATA: Buxa Tiger Reserve, a favourite holiday destination for wildlife lovers where tales abound of phantom tiger sightings, may have finally regained its stripes. A report by the Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology (CCMB) has concluded that the North Bengal reserve - which has never had a steady tiger population and hasn't reported a sighting for over a decade - is home to 20 tigers, four of which are female. "The report was sent to us last week," said SB Mondal, principal chief conservator of forests (wildlife). "The scientists have done a DNA analysis of the scat samples sent to them in March. We always knew there were tigers in the park, but the sightings were low. Now, with the CCMB's report of 20 tigers, we have enough reason to back our claims." According to him, almost 247 samples, collected between January and March, were sent to the research institute. S Shivaji of CCMB confirmed the outcome, but refused to divulge details, saying only the Bengal government was authorized to comment. Though Buxa hasn't been able to hold on to its tigers, its location - in the heart of a forest corridor extending to Assam in the east and Bhutan in the north - makes it an ideal home for the big cats. A wildlife expert, who didn't want to be quoted, said such DNA studies did not necessarily give the correct information "There are chances of over estimation and decaying in samples collected," he said. Experts are fearing presence of only 'dispersing' tigers - those from other forests -in the park due to a noticeable variation in the sex ratio. "The ratio of 16 male and four female tigers is quite unusual. Going by this finding, it seems none of the male tigers are resident big cats of the park. They are the dispersing ones," said conservation biologist Raghu Chundawat. Echoing his view, expert Biswajit Roychowdhury of Nature Environment and Wildlife Society said: "Buxa has good connectivity with the larger tiger landscape at Manas Reserve and Bhutan's Royal Manas National Park. So, chances of transient tigers moving in and around the park can't be refuted." Based on scat and pugmark analyses, forest officials believe tigers do frequent the park, but never settle down due to pressure from more than 30 villages inside the park. A recent report by the Wildlife Institute of India (WII) said inadequacy in habitat management, socio-political issues, lack of training in wildlife management are posing challenge to a proper management of the reserve. http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/kolkata-/Buxa-roars-back-count-finds-20-tigers-in-park/articleshow/11215188.cms

Bahelia poachers enter Vidarbha in a big way

Vijay Pinjarkar, TNN | Dec 23, 2011, 12.57AM IST NAGPUR: At a time when coal mining is being perceived as the biggest threat to tigers, poachers from Bahelia community of Katni in Madhya Pradesh have entered forested parts of Vidarbha and are planning to strike it rich. Bahelias are infamous for tiger and wildlife poaching in India. Experts say this poaching community members simultaneously operate at multiple locations at a given time within any region of the country. They literally kill wild animals like a portable slaughterhouse. The Nature Conservation Society Amravati (NCSA), a NGO working for tiger conservation in Amravati district, received information on Monday that a jackal was trapped in a steel trap and the animal was moving with it in the open scrub forest near Loni village on Amravati-Akola highway. The location is close to Karanja Sohol sanctuary. NCSA volunteer Amit Wadatkar rescued the jackal from the trap and informed the forest officers. Mohan Jha, chief conservator of forest (CCF) for Amravati Circle, sounded a red alert in Amravati and Akola forest divisions. A RFO along with wildlife activist Vishal Bansod were sent for investigation. As the jackal was injured, it could not hunt and died due to hunger. The poachers, after seeing the jackal with steel trap, might have escaped from the spot. A local dhaba owner confirmed presence of four vehicles of Bahelias who had set up the trap in the scrub forest. In March 2010, a leopard was caught in a similar trap in the same area but the animal was rescued and released. During the same period, a hare had died in a trap near Ranmangali forest near Nagpur. Tigers in Ranmangli are on the edge. Recently, a full-grown male tiger from Tipeshwar had died after getting entangled in a steel wire trap. These cases expose weak protection and staff is not moving in their respective beats to know what is happening. Poaching activity is at its peak during the past three years. Since 2008, at least half a dozen tigresses have gone missing from the Tadoba landscape, turning cubs orphaned that are living a caged life. Some cubs died due to hunger as they were unable to hunt. Satpuda Foundation had in 2008 urged Maharashtra government to track movements of Bahelias around tiger habitats in Vidarbha, but no action has been taken by both police and forest departments. http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/nagpur/Bahelia-poachers-enter-Vidarbha-in-a-big-way/articleshow/11211898.cms

Tigers suffering from stress?

Dec 23, 2011 - Rashme Sehgal | Age Correspondent | New Delhi Are tigers in the Sariska tiger reserve suffering from high stress levels? The failure of the three females to reproduce despite having been translcoated to this reserve over the last three-and-a-half years has raised the hackles of the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA). Scats tests of all five tigers have been sent to a Hyderabad laboratory to try and understand why no breeding has taken place so far. Dr Rajesh Gopal, member secretary of NTCA admits, “the lack of reproduction has become a major source of concern for us.” Rajasthan’s chief wildlife warden R.N. Mehrotra believes one of the reasons for their stress can be attributed to the heavy road traffic that plies the Jaipur-Alwar highway which cuts through the Sariska tiger reserve. The presence of a large numbers of villages inside the reserve is also being perceived as a source of irritability for the animals. “The tigers don’t feel safe in the reserve. Breeding is successful only when a female tigress feels comfortable in its environment. The heavy vehicular traffic and the large numbers of devotees that visit the Hanuman temple (located inside the reserve) every Tuesday from the whole state of Rajasthan unnerves these animals,” Mr Mehrotra believes. http://www.asianage.com/india/tigers-suffering-stress-189

MP tiger reserves to get rescue units

TNN | Dec 22, 2011, 05.26AM IST BHOPAL: A year after Bollywood icon Amitabh Bachchan participated in a campaign to raise funds to save tiger by camping in Pench Tiger Reserve in Madhya Pradesh, his efforts have started paying off with rapid rescue units (RRUs) on wheels come to help the striped-animals in distress in the world famous Kanha Tiger Reserve. "The RRUs are being provided to state's tiger reserves from the funds raised by Bachchan in a save tiger campaign, and with the help of Wildlife Trust of India ( WCTI)," officials said. "We have got two well-equipped RRUs on Sports Utility Vehicle (SUV) recently," Kanha Tiger Reserve deputy director H S Mohanta told TOI. He said that the RRU was equipped with clothing for all seasons, torches, generators among others gadgets for staffers to rush to the ailing tiger in deep jungle. "The SUV is having ample equipment to rescue striped animal," he said. "We have also got two RRUs and they have been returned for upgradation," Panna Tiger Reserve director RS Murthy said. Satpura Tiger Reserve too has got one RRU. "Right now it has been sent for some up-gradation," reserve director R P Singh said. One RRU each will be pressed into service in Pench and Bandhavgarh Tiger Reserves shortly, officials said. "I don't have any detailed information about RRUs. I have to check it out with the tiger reserves. Five reserves are going to have these RRUs," additional principal chief conservator of forests (wildlife) T R Sharma said. Bachchan had auctioned his sunglasses for a whopping Rs 40 lakh to his son Abhishek in a telephonic bid under the save tiger campaign in Pench in December, 2010. http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/bhopal/MP-tiger-reserves-to-get-rescue-units/articleshow/11200809.cms

Leopard released into Satpura tiger reserve

TNN | Dec 22, 2011, 05.11AM IST BHOPAL: The wild leopard that strayed into Van Vihar Zoo here two-day back, was on Wednesday transported and released in the wild of Satpura Tiger Reserve in adjoining Hoshangabad district, officials said. The leopard was captured on Tuesday morning in a housing in the Zoo after it forayed into the park and stayed for 15-hour on a tree inside a lion enclosure. "Without tranquilizing the animal, we managed to guide it to a cage after a hard labour of four hours. We placed the cage on wheels just right in-front of the door of the housing where it had been captured, "Zoo assistant director A K Khare said. He said that the animal in the cage, was taken by road and on a boat, and after covering a distance of 4 km on the waters of Tawa river, it was taken to the jungles of Satpura. The leopard had strayed into Van Vihar. It frequently entered into the human habitat areas around the Zoo, officials said. Two days back, it forayed into the zoo and stayed on the tree before it was captured in the housing bait was put on Tuesday morning, officials said. http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/bhopal/Leopard-released-into-Satpura-tiger-reserve/articleshow/11200690.cms

Tiger parks itself near Patna, won’t budge

Dec 21, 2011 - Rashme Sehgal | Age Correspondent | New Delhi The last 15 days have seen the Nitish Kumar government deeply concerned about the presence of a tiger which has parked himself in a small riverine island created by the Gandak river just 20 km from the state capital of Patna. The tiger has traversed 300 km from the Valmiki Tiger Reserve (VTR) to reach this island covered by tall grasses and with plenty of neelgai and wild pigs for prey. The matter of concern for the state government, as it is for the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA), is that this majestic animal should not stray into a heavily populated village where there is a strong likelihood of the animal coming to harm. The VTR is located in the west Champaran district of Bihar and is contiguous to the Royal Chitwan park in Nepal. The Gandak river flows through the Valmiki park and tiger experts, following this tiger’s pug marks, vouch that this animal has a preference for walking along this river and has undertaken this self-driven expedition earlier also. Dr Rajesh Gopal, member secretary of the NTCA, said, “He has done this long march earlier and is presently ensconced close to Patna. Our main concern is he should not cause to any harm and should make his way back to the Valmiki Tiger Reserve.” A local DFO, a trained veterinarian who was tracking him, last week chanced to come close to the animal and got mauled. “He was trying to tranquillise him but happened to get very close to the animal who was hidden behind tall grasses,” said a forest officer who is also monitoring his movements. The NTCA has shot off a letter to the Bihar chief secretary asking him to ensure that villagers do not stray too close to where he is at present. So far, fortunately, the tiger has steered clear of nearby villages. A tiger expert from the Wildlife Trust of India and a special team of trekkers are keeping a close track of the animal. Tigers can easily walk a length of up to 40 km a day. Since the Royal Chitwan National Park in Nepal is contiguous to the VTR, tigers are known to have walked from the north right down to Barabanki. http://www.asianage.com/india/tiger-parks-itself-near-patna-won-t-budge-715

Periyar Tiger Reserve becomes BCRLIP

Express News Service , The New Indian Express THEKKADY: As a major recognition of its conservation programme and ecological development, the Periyar Tiger Reserve (PTR) has become a centre for the new world project Biodiversity Conservation and Rural Livelihood Improvements Project (BCRLIP) aided by International Development Association (IDA) and� Global� EnvironmentFacility (GEF). The project is worth `3 crore with a time period of five years under which three centres, Agasthyarmala in Tamil Nadu and Geer forest in Gujarat, along with Periyar Tiger Reserve, have been selected. Under the project, the PTR will be a learning centre for the BCRLIP project. The PTR has already been declared a centre of excellence.� The BCRLIP has� been initiated with an objective to impart training and developing skills for participatory conservation movement.� Under the project, training will be given to people� across the country, conservation skill development class� will be provided, cross country visits to other national parks will be undertaken and local visits for� the protection staff and NGOs will be given.� Besides, landscape approach to conservation, moving beyond wildlife sector to involve other agencies and building partnerships with private and public entities will be given emphasis,” PTR officials said. Under the project, more contract staff will be recruited to conduct research and to give training to visiting delegates. � “For the project, ecologist, sociologist, regional planner, training officer, training assistant, field assistant and accountant will be �recruited on a contract basis. � “These people along with other researchers in the Periyar Foundation will impart training to the visiting delegates from across the country,” official said. According to PTR Deputy Director Sanjayan Kumar, the DCRLIP is a recognition for the ongoing conservation programme undergoing in the PTR. “It is a major achievement for the PTR that it selected along with three other centres for the BCRLIP programme,” Kumar said. “This will impart training for the people in the conservation of the wildlife and ecology. The training to the people will be about conservation which will help the prevention of forest and wildlife,” Sanjayan Kumar added.

Forest department claims tiger count on rise

Express News Service , The New Indian Express KARWAR: According to the officials of Wild Life Division of the Forest Department, the tiger population in Dandeli-Anshi Tiger Reserve (DATR), in Uttara Kannada district is increasing. In 1997 (according to tiger census), there were 13 tigers- 11 in Dandeli Wild Life Sanctuary and 2 in Anshi National Park. In 2010 census, 33 tigers were recorded in Khanapur-Sharavathi belt of Western Ghat Ranges. This year, the tiger population has increased to 39 in this belt. However, wildlife activists contradicted the statement. The census is carried out on the basis of pugmarks, tiger calls, scat and litters left by the tigers. The actual sighting of the tiger is rarely done. Under these circumstances, error in estimating the tiger population is bound to occur, they opined. They pointed out that large area of DATR consists of evergreen and semi evergreen forests, which tigers dislike. According to a wildlife activist, the number of tigers may not exceed 15 in the belt. Officials asserted that steps are being taken to improve grassland and provide other facilities like water sources in DATR. DATR covers nearly 600 Sq Km of Dandeli Wild Life Reserve and 399.89 Sq Km of Anshi National Park. However, there are as many as 52 villages consisting of 4,725 families in core/critical area of DATR. The problem of rehabilitation of these families is a menace to the department. As pointed out by DCF of Dandeli Wild Life Division, Sunil Panwar, no one can evict these families. The forest department is taking steps to vacate these families by offering Rs 10 lakh per family, and through educating them.

Green stoves burn bright in Bihar's tiger land

IANS | Dec 19, 2011, 06.04PM IST VALMIKI NAGAR (Bihar): More than a hundred households living within Bihar's Valmiki Tiger Reserve have switched from the traditional mud stoves to the more efficient eco-friendly 'chulhas' to reduce their dependency on forest for fuel wood - a move that would boost conservation of the big cat. It is hoped the green stoves or 'chulhas' would help cut fuel wood use by 40 percent, which would also allow the forest to rejuvenate and increase security for the tigers. The green stoves use maximum energy produced from burning of fuel wood. An iron grate positioned just above the stove's base provides room for air circulation that helps the fuel to burn efficiently. The households are part of the 25 revenue villages in Done Valley, that is spread over a 45 sq km area in the heart of the sprawling Valmiki reserve, the only tiger sanctuary in the state. "Seven villages are currently part of the initiative, the remaining ones will be taken up in phases," said Samir Sinha, who is implementing the project and manager of NGO Wildlife Trust of India (WTI). Some 18,000 villagers in the valley depend on agriculture for livelihood. However, during the off-season many migrate to places as far as Delhi, Punjab and Gujarat to work as labourers, said Sinha. The Valmiki reserve, an 880 sq km sal forest on the Terai foothills, is home to 11 tigers, according to the reserve's Field Director Santosh Tiwari. The reserve extends up to Chitwan National Park in Nepal in the north, providing hundreds of miles of contiguous forest cover to many other threatened animals like sambar, nilgai, gaur, rhino and various species of primates. "Of the seven villages, Matiarwa has achieved 100 percent participation. The rest are progressing in varying degrees," Sinha told IANS. Other villages are Majuraha, Gardi, Naurangia, Piprahwa, Khairahni and Senrahni. Stakeholders' participation, acceptable design, monitoring and problem solving were crucial for the success of the present initiative, said Sinha. The US Fish and Wildlife Service and Germany's Nature and Biodiversity Conservation Union are the other supporters of the project. Pune-based research organisation Appropriate Rural Technology Institute was contacted to train the local women, since they were the main users, said Sinha. Of the three designs, they picked the one that resembled the traditional chulha, he said. Initially, only the trained women were asked to install the stove in their homes, which served as demonstration sites. They were paid by WTI, thus generating employment for them. The mud chimneys for the stoves also brought brisk business for the village potter. Those who wanted to install the chulha contacted these women who charged them an installation fee. The stoves were monitored for their efficiency by the WTI team. Data over the past few months shows an average reduction of about 40 percent in fuel wood consumption compared to the traditional stoves. Apart from the human disturbances, poaching continues to be the biggest threat to the animals in the park. A male rhino that had crossed into Valmiki Tiger Reserve from Nepal in March this year was found dead with its horn chopped off in the Valmiki Nagar forest range in May. Last year, a tigress was also found dead in Madanpur range. A small number of rhinos still live in the reserve's Valmiki forest range, where the grasslands provide them a perfect home. India made saving the tiger one of its top priorities. The government's latest tiger census report released in March this year put the tiger population at about 1,700, a slight improvement from the previous report in 2008, which estimated it to be around 1,400.

Tadoba Tiger Reserve evacuees allege lack of amenities

PTI | 08:12 PM,Dec 19,2011 Chandrapur (Maha), Dec 19 (PTI) Majority of the villagers evacuated from Tadoba-Andhari Tiger Reserve in the district are unhappy over new settlements allotted to them over alleged lack of amenities. Maharashtra government decided to relocate six villages, namely Kolsa, Botezari, Rantalodhi, Palasgaon, Jamni and Ramdegi, situated inside the tiger reserve, for which 550 hectares of forest land was allotted by the Forest Development Corporation of Maharashtra (FDCM). However, only villagers from Botezari village agreed to the proposal and moved to the new settlement named as Bhagwanpur while a few from Kolsa also shifted to the new place. The villagers from Palasgaon refused to shift on the grounds that the new place offered to them was not suitable following which they were offered an alternate place at Salori in Warora tehsil of the district and the modalities for relocating them are being worked out, said Arun Tikhe, RFO, Waora Forest Range. However, only four our of 97 families at Kolsa have accepted the proposal to shift to Bhagwanpur. The state government is now paying Rs 10 lakh and an additional amount of Rs 50,000 as mobilisation charges to them. Meanwhile, the villagers at Bhagwanpur under the banner of 'Punarvasan Va Kalyankari Sanstha' have demanded setting up of a Primary Health Centre (PHC) with a permanent Medical Officer at the village, among other demands. The villagers also alleged that they were not given residence proofs by Gram Panchayat of Tolewahi under whose jurisdiction Bhagawanpur falls. The villagers even submitted a memorandum in this regard to Minister for Environment and Cultural Affairs Sanjay Deotale. They argued that life in the new settlement has become difficult for there is no scope for work or earning and the farm land allotted by the government has negligible yield in absence of irrigation facilities.

Vijay Pinjarkar, TNN | Dec 20, 2011, 07.35AM IST NAGPUR: Taking a U-turn, the state forest department has decided not to push for dislodging National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) regional office situated on its premises in Ravi Nagar. Two blocks admeasuring 72 sq mt were given to the NTCA on orders from chief minister Prithviraj Chavan, who had also inaugurated the office along with former environment minister Jairam Ramesh on April 27. The NTCA is utilising only one block of 40 sq metres. On November 14, the principal chief conservator of forests for production & management had asked the NTCA to vacate the premises and make some alternative arrangement as the blocks were required by the department. On December 18, TOI had reported the matter. On Monday, Prakash Thosre, PCCF (P&M), said that whosoever has issued the letter to vacate the premises should be ignored. "The NTCA regional office in Nagpur is a matter of pride. I make it loud and clear that the office is here to stay. The forest department will not dislodge it till an alternative place is finalised," Thosre told TOI. Of the three new regional offices in India, Nagpur was first to be opened. It oversees 13 tiger reserves in Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh and provides necessary guidance in the field management. http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/nagpur/Forest-department-now-says-NTCA-office-will-stay/articleshow/11175888.cms

Tiger found dead in open well

TNN | Dec 19, 2011, 01.30AM IST CHANDRAPUR/NAGPUR: In yet another shock for wildlife buffs, a four-year-old tiger was found dead in an open well near Ratnapur village in Sindewahi forest on Sunday. This is the fifth tiger death in Maharashtra since January 2011, and third in Brahmapuri forest division adjoining Tadoba-Andhari Tiger Reserve (TATR). Sanjay Thavre, deputy conservator of forests (DyCF), Brahmapuri division, said it is suspected that the tiger accidentally fell into the well while chasing a prey. The carcass was first seen by farm owner Wasudeo Kohle 5.30pm on Sunday. He reported it to a forest guard, who in turn intimated his seniors. Sources claimed, staff sighted carcass of a wildcat floating along with tiger's carcass. The well doesn't have a parapet wall and is surrounded by thick shrubs. The incident exposes claims of officials of ordering all open wells to be covered. The operation to fish out carcass will be done on Monday. The carcass will be burned on the spot after autopsy, said NJ Waghade, assistant conservator of forests (ACF), Bramhapuri forest division. http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/nagpur/Tiger-found-dead-in-open-well/articleshow/11160799.cms

Panna tiger triumph; relocated cat has cub

MONDAY, 19 DECEMBER 2011 00:16 MOUSHUMI BASU | NEW DELHI HITS: 130 A path-breaking experiment on tiger conservation involving breeding of a translocated tigress in captivity has seen its first success of rehabilitation of orphaned tiger cubs in the Panna Tiger Reserve of Madhya Pradesh. A tigress (T4) was released in Panna in March as a part of the experiment. She had been hand-reared after being rescued at the age of three weeks from Kanha Tiger Reserve, Madhya Pradesh. While adapting herself to the ways of the wild, she has recently given birth to cubs. Panna Reserve field director R Srinivasa Murthy said one cub had been seen so far by the research team, but there would be more, most likely. This development, according to experts, is a yardstick with which to gauge the experiment’s success. The reintroduction was carried out by the Madhya Pradesh forest department, with scientific inputs and intense monitoring by the Wildlife Institute of India (WII). WII scientist Dr K Ramesh, who leads the post-release monitoring programme for tiger reintroduction, said, “It is a landmark development but should not set an automatic precedence for arbitrary release of cubs anywhere.” In a wider context, such a programme involves specific planning and lots of effort and should be followed with utmost precaution and scientific monitoring, he added. Ramesh further pointed out that the unique landscape of Panna - with adequate prey, cover and less human disturbance — certainly proved favourable for this experiment. Murthy, one of the main architects of the success story, said, “T4 has barely secured 50 to 60 per cent marks in her re-wilding examination and the final result depends on how she trains her cubs in hunting skills and survival lessons.” However, he added that she had earlier been found to be steadily acclimatising — mating, making and guarding kills and marking her territory. The tigress T4 was rescued by a research team of WII along with two other cubs way back in June 2005. These new born cubs aged about three weeks were found abandoned in Kanha Tiger Reserve after their mother was killed by a male tiger. They were hand reared in a small quarantine facility near Mukki Gate of Kanha till about 2.5 years old. After relocation of T4 on March 27, this year, the Reserve management constituted four exclusive teams for round-the-clock monitoring of the animal. WII looked into finer details of the animal behaviour and movement pattern. Initially, the tigress was also tracked from elephant back every alternative day for assessing health condition. The monitoring also included deployment of camera traps and collection of scat samples to understand associated factors. The experts are, however, divided on the issue. Pointing to the guidelines of IUCN and NTCA Protocol, they said that any “captive animal considered for reintroduction purposes need to approximate the wild counterparts”. According to a recent report on Rehabilitation of captive tigers, the major concern is that these animals often show a loss of natural behaviors associated with wild fitness, which is reflected in the deficiencies shown in hunting, social interactions, establishment of individual territory, mating behaviour and successfully raising cubs. Studies have also suggested that projects using captive-born animals are less likely to be successful than projects using wild-caught animals. Well-known cat specialist Dr. George Shaller agreed to the above apprehensions of the enormous risks involved in such cases, which may ultimately culminate into growing man-animal conflict. However, tiger experts as Dr. AJT Johnsingh said “in the face of declining tiger ranges and population, such experiments if conducted scientifically may open up new conservation strategies for the future.” http://www.dailypioneer.com/pioneer-news/todays-newspaper/28866-panna-tiger-triumph-relocated-cat-has-cubs.html