Nagpur: In a move that will help the long-term conservation of tigers and address man-animal conflict in Chandrapur district, the state govt finally issued a notification to expand the 625 sq km Tadoba-Andhari Tiger Reserve (TATR) by an additional 78.79 sqkm, termed ‘Extended Andhari Wildlife Sanctuary‘.
With this, TATR’s core area will now measure 704 sqkm.
Maharashtra’s Chief Wildlife Warden Vivek Khandekar said, “It is a welcome addition and the extended area will serve as a good tiger habitat. It will help accommodate an increasing number of Tadoba tigers as the area has adequate ecological, floral, and faunal significance.”
The extended sanctuary was in the buffer with only one village, Karwa, inside it. The villagers, surrounded by dense forest from all sides and constant fear of tigers, have long demanded relocation. However, as the forested village was not part of the tiger reserve or sanctuary, technically, its relocation was not possible.
As per the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) norms, the govt offers a relocation package of Rs 15 lakh per family (an 18-year-old person and above is considered as one family). Besides, the state offers four times the ready reckoner rate for agricultural land. “Now we have a choice to move out voluntarily. Due to the delay in sanctuary notification, we had no choice but to stay put,” said Gurudas Raut, sarpanch of Karwa.
The extended sanctuary includes a 2.23 sq km area of Karwa, and a 76.56 sq km area of Palasgaon and Shivni ranges. The entire forest is a mixed forest with bamboo clusters, which act as a good habitat for gaurs, tigers, and herbivores. Already, a jungle safari is being operated from Palasgaon forest, which has been included in the new sanctuary.
If the relocation of Karwa village is taken up on priority, TATR will be completely inviolate with zero villages in the core. Presently, only 30 families are living in Rantalodi village on the edge of Tadoba. Over 200 families have already left, accepting the relocation package.
According to the 2023 Phase IV survey, TATR recorded the presence of 93 tigers. The tiger population is almost stable as the park’s carrying capacity has reached a saturation point.
“Relocation of Karwa holds the key as there will be no human population till 10km range. However, we don’t know whether people will accept the resettlement package, because as per SC directions, land equivalent to land gained only has to be given to the PAPs. Earlier, more land used to be distributed,” said Jitendra Ramgaonkar, CCF & Field Director of TATR.
EXPANDING BORDERS
* Tadoba was declared a reserve forest in 1879. It was a shooting block, except with ‘special permits’, until 1905, when shooting was stopped
* Restrictions were placed on the shooting of all animals in 1931. A total of 45 sq.km. area surrounding Tadoba lake was proclaimed a sanctuary in 1935
* In 1942, the area was declared a game reserve, with Mohurli, Karwa, Kolsa, and Mul being the designated shooting blocks. Permits were issued to shoot tigers in the Karwa and Kolsa blocks
* Tadoba became one of India’s earliest national parks when it was notified in 1955. Yet its forests, grasslands, and wildlife continued to suffer due to overexploitation, extensive cultivation, hunting, and poaching
* It was only in the 1970s that the four hunting blocks were finally closed for business, though illegal hunting continued. In 1986, 506 sq km of forest land adjoining the national park was notified as the Andhari Wildlife Sanctuary
* The national park and the wildlife sanctuary were finally merged in 1993 with establishment of TATR
