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On July 24, the Goa bench of Bombay High Court took the help of an ancient Indian epic Mahabharata to explain the state government the importance of the tiger . “If there is no forest, then the tiger gets killed; if there is no tiger, then the forest gets destroyed. Hence, the tiger protects the forest, and the forest guards the tiger!” The court cited the epic while directing the government to notify the 208 sq. km Mhadei wildlife sanctuary and its surrounding areas as a tiger reserve, and issue a notification within three months. But the state government of this popular tourist destination has decided to challenge it in the Supreme Court. Over 1200 kms away from Goa, Ratapani sanctuary in Madhya Pradesh has been awaiting tiger reserve status for the last one and half decade. In 2022, six tigers were recorded in Goa, an important tiger corridor in the Western Ghats where the big cat numbers are on decline. Against the six tigers in Goa, there are more than 45 in Ratapani, a source population for over 10 urban tigers of Bhopal, still the BJP government has refused to recognize the issue . Do we also need a High Court prod to shake the government ?
Saving Tigers in Western Ghats means protecting the Mountains
Mhadei along with Bhagwan Mahavir national park, Netravali and Cotigao wildlife sanctuaries lie in the 600 sq km stretch of the Western Ghats on Goa’s eastern coast. A UNESCO World Heritage Site , the Western Ghats is a mountain range that covers an area of 160,000 sq km traversing the states of Gujarat, Maharashtra, Goa, Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu. A public interest litigation was filed by Goa Foundation, a local NGO in the Goa bench of Bombay high court after tiger poisoning- one each a tiger and tigress and two cubs- in January 2020. The tiger claws were also missing indicating poaching. According to the Status of Tigers 2022 report by the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA), the tiger population in the Western Ghats has shrunk to 824, down from 981 in 2018. This decline is in contrast to the national level increase to 3080 tigers from 2461, during the same period.
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After almost two and half years of trial, on July 24, the Goa bench of the Court directed the state to designate the 208 sq km Mhadei and its surrounding areas as a tiger reserve. It also set a deadline of three months to implement the order. In the times when the world is facing the fury of global warming and its consequences of climate change, the court tried to convince the Goa government with a Sanskrit verse from Mahabharata, a famous Indian epic. “If there is no forest, then the tiger gets killed; if there is no tiger, then the forest gets destroyed. Hence, the tiger protects the forest, and the forest guards the tiger!” When the forests are protected, one more line can be added, they give us water and fresh air. But it did not seem to work. And the state doesn’t seem to understand the significance of the forests at a time when India intends to cover 33 % of its geographical area with forest cover.
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In the 94-page order, the High Court passed several directions. The court also directed the state government to take all steps to prepare a tiger conservation plan as contemplated by the Wildlife Protection Act, and to forward it to the NTCA within three months from notifying the Mhadei sanctuary and other areas as a tiger reserve. The bench went on to direct the state government to set up anti-poaching camps at strategic locations, to be staffed by forest guards, watchers, etc., in the wildlife sanctuaries and national parks in the state of Goa, and said this must be completed within six months and also to settle the rights and claims of the Scheduled Tribes and other forest dwellers “preferably within 12 months from the day the HC issued directives. But Goa’s forest minister Vishwajit Rane said the matter would be taken to the Supreme Court.
Why Ratapani in Madhya Pradesh Should be a Tiger Reserve
Tiger population of Ratapani is unique. Tigers dispersing from Ratapani have been knocking the doors of Bhopal city. Their biological details do not match either to the tigers of Kanha national park or those found in the Pench tiger reserve. This has also been proved in the laboratory of the National Centre for Biological Science, forest department sources said. There is also no movement of tigers from Satpura tiger reserve of the state to Ratapani wildlife Sanctuary. As the tigers jostled for space in Ratapani, they dispersed. Ratapani- Bhopal is an old tiger corridor used by the big cats for ages. But as the state capital expands, people started noticing the tigers in the city. Ten of them have become resident tigers of Bhopal’s tiger landscape spread over a vast swathe of about sq 200 km forest. “ Ratapani sanctuary to Kerwa dam in Bhopal is a 200 sq kms of forest area. We need to develop it further and maintain the forest corridor for the dispersing tigers of Ratapani”, an IFS officer explains.
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From Ratapani, the tigers move out towards Kheoni sanctuary in Dewas, a distance of over 200 kms, and while doing so they cross Bhopal”, those monitoring the big cats said. And with the availability of water and stray cattle, 10 tigers have started liking the city environs. Dotted with educational institutions and residential colonies, the tigers are spotted regularly in the region . The state forest department calls them Urban Tigers. But the tiger population is handled by the territorial forest officers and not those in the wildlife wing of the department. “ We need to manage Ratapani sanctuary by making it a tiger reserve to manage Bhopal’s tiger population”, said an officer , “ but the government is not taking the issue seriously as it is linked with notifying Ratapani as a tiger reserve”, officials claimed.
Also read: Urban Tigers On The Prowl in Bhopal
Sitting in the lap of Vindhya hills, Ratapani is a hidden jewel. Besides 40 plus tigers, it has an added attraction of Bhimbetka rock shelters, a world heritage site nestled in the lush green teak forests of the sanctuary. It is mainly due to population pressure in this area and impact on business activities like mining that the chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan has not shown interest in upgrading the status of the sanctuary. After continuing pressure, the chief minister in January 2022 had asked the state forest minister to hold consultations and mobilize the support of the people’s representatives of Sehore and Raisen districts where the 825 sq km Ratapani sanctuary is spread. It is located barely 50 kms away from Bhopal and could be a great tourist attraction. But the government has failed to exploit its potential. “The CM’s statement on consultation of the people’s representatives was an eyewash to postpone the issue ”, said a senior IFS officer in Bhopal, “ as one of the people’s representatives happens to be CM himself.” He represents the Budhni assembly segment of Sehore which is very close to Ratapani.” A senior member of the NTCA said, “ Like in Goa, politicians in MP are interested more in votes and less in conservation . And the tiger doesn’t vote.”
By Deshdeep Saxena
Representative Image by By Sudhir Shivaram from MP Tourism corporation tweet, Tiger in a degraded forest patch of Western ghats by NTCA and Urban tigers of Bhopal
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