Shikhar Ranjan

Have we ever thought why Sariska, where tigers were reintroduced in 2008 under almost the same circumstances as Panna, has lagged behind Panna in Management Effectiveness Evaluation (MEE)? Nearly two decades have passed since the reintroduction in Sariska. There are still 29 villages inside the core area, most of them inhabited by the Gujjar community. In the past few years, five villages have been relocated, freeing about 200 hectares of forest land from human interference. However, even after receiving compensation, some families have returned and resettled in Panidhal. The administration is struggling to remove them again. In reality, over these two decades, nothing much has changed in this forest except control over poaching. Neither has the boundary of the reserve been expanded, nor has any significant work been done to increase the carrying capacity for tigers. Even today, several hundred families continue to live inside the forest, along with thousands of domestic buffaloes that claim the first right over the grass growing in the forest and consume it. Since 2008, only about 1,100 families have been relocated. Most of them demand land in Jaipur or Dausa districts, but in these densely populated districts, scarcity of land remains a major problem. If we talk about the terrain and forest density, Sariska Tiger Reserve, located in the Aravalli hills, is far better than Ranthambore, which lies in the Vindhyachal range. However, human interference on even 1,000 hectares of land cannot be ignored. Thousands of domestic cattle continue to have almost free access to the entire forest. There has also been rampant corruption in the matter of vacant land, and complaints regarding this have even reached the Prime Minister’s Office, yet action has hardly ever been taken. People whose sole purpose of entering government service is corruption and seeking a comfortable job have no place here. This isolated tiger reserve is still fighting for its survival. Adding an additional 1,000–1,200 square kilometres of land to the forest and giving it a new lease of life should be one of the top priorities. After all, the tiger population here has already crossed half a century. #sariskatigerreserve #ranthambhoretigerreserve #wildlifeprotection #humanwildlifeconflict #tigerpopulation #wildlifeawareness

We have often read that Pench and Kanha rank at the top in India’s Management Effectiveness Evaluation (MEE) of parks, but we rarely stop to think why this is so. Let’s discuss this today. In the MEE list, Madhya Pradesh’s Kanha, Pench and Satpura Tiger Reserves located in the Satpura landscape consistently lead. The main reason is their long and stable history. India’s first voluntary village relocation began in Kanha. Today, Kanha’s core area is almost entirely free from human and domestic cattle interference. The leadership here has consistently been hardworking and deeply committed to wildlife. Officers have also enjoyed relatively longer tenures, which allowed management plans to continue without frequent disruption. In other words, systematic and planned work could actually be carried out. In the same way, Pench saw strong conservation efforts with a solid framework starting from the 1990s. This created a favourable environment for tigers to thrive. Buffer management in both parks has also been of a very high standard. These two parks are connected by a strong corridor. The corridor is divided into several smaller sanctuaries, each with its own management system. Good connectivity ensures continuous movement of tigers and gene flow, which automatically improves the security of the meta-population without requiring extra effort. In this landscape, corridor pressure is relatively low, and the habitat is also favourable for the prey base. Kanha and Pench forests have good grasslands and reliable availability of clean water. In contrast, the remaining parks face serious challenges. In Bandhavgarh, the corridors have been disturbed due to mining, and tiger deaths due to electrocution are common. As a result, tiger dispersal is neither comfortable nor safe. In Panna, recovery after the reintroduction of tigers has been remarkable and exemplary, but various construction projects in the surrounding areas continue to disturb wildlife. I believe the parameters of the MEE survey should be made stricter, and officers of every park should be held accountable for fulfilling those standards. At the same time, the government should also refrain from disturbing the corridors and buffer areas connected to these forest landscapes. #besttigerreserve #wildlifemanagement #nationalparkmanagement #kanhatigerreserve #penchtigerreserve #bandhavgarhtigerreserve

Chandrapur in Maharashtra is the district with the densest tiger population in the world. Let me share something that may surprise many of you. I won’t go into long-term statistics, but it is extremely important to talk about at least the last three years. In the past three years, approximately 20 tigers have been removed from these forests on charges of human-wildlife conflict. Brahmapuri Forest Division has been the main area involved. Of these, around 15 tigers are still being held at the Transit Treatment Centre in Chandrapur. Some of them have been kept in extremely small cages for more than a year. These tigers have forgotten their natural habits and are now living as captives. What was their fault? They were punished simply for roaming near human settlements and, in different forest beats, for killing humans. According to human language and law, they have been sentenced to life imprisonment for the “murder” of people. Today, around 60,000–65,000 people live in the Tadoba buffer zone, while nearly 70,000 people reside in the approximately 1,200 square kilometre Brahmapuri Forest Division that is home to tigers. Most importantly, about 65% of Maharashtra’s total tiger population lives only in Tadoba and the Brahmapuri Forest Division. Based on current estimates, around 370–400 tigers reside in this landscape. After the deaths of both humans and tigers every year, is the government’s responsibility limited to giving ₹25 lakh compensation to the families of the deceased and sentencing the tiger involved in the incident to life imprisonment? Will this really solve the problem? In my view, a strong decision is needed to end the mutual dependence between forests and people. Otherwise, the possibility of further expansion of tiger territory now appears almost finished, which will be extremely tragic and painful for wildlife. In the present situation, two things are more likely to increase: 1. Human-wildlife conflict will rise further compared to previous years. 2. Tiger dispersal will increase, with these tigers moving towards unsafe areas such as Chhattisgarh, where they will either survive or be killed by poachers. It is now for the government to decide what appropriate steps should be taken in time. #humanwildlifeconflict #bigcatpopulation #tigerhabitat #tadobatigerreserve #vidarbhupdate #tigerinvidarbh

Over the past year or a little more(1-14 months age group), around 45 cubs have been born in Tadoba, about 36 in Kanha, around 34 in Bandhavgarh, about 25 in Panna, roughly 21 in Ratapani, about 18 in Pench, 16 in Ranthambore, and 17 in Sariska. In other words, nearly 200 tiger cubs are currently moving with their mothers across this central Indian landscape. The carrying capacity of these forests remains largely unchanged no meaningful additional forest connectivity has been created, and the reserves themselves have not been expanded. If all these cubs survive to adulthood, they will eventually need secure territories of their own. With high tiger densities and limited safe habitat, many will be forced to disperse into new areas. This is a natural process. However, without proper management and protection of corridors, the survival of these cubs will become an extremely difficult challenge. Even keeping them safe from territorial conflicts in the wild and from poachers is already a major task. This is why the question remains: why is the Central Government still unable to turn strong, functional corridors from paper into reality on the ground corridors that can provide these tigers with safe, undisturbed pathways free from human interference? It is for this reason that I wrote in an article a few days ago that after 2030–2034, the growth in India’s tiger numbers is likely to stabilize. This tiger ecosystem is already very close to its peak, and there is little further room left. In recent times, five tigers have already been killed in railway and road accidents while moving through corridors. This loss is completely unacceptable and deeply concerning. The Central Government must take strong, science-based measures to prevent such accidents. #bigcatpopulation #tigerland #tadobatigerreserve #kanhatigerreserve #penchtigerreserve