Indian state to raise special force to protect tigers

M G Srinath

New Delhi – The north Indian state of Uttar Pradesh plans to enact a law to constitute a special tiger protection force with powers to its officials to prosecute and seize contraband body parts and act against those smuggling animal parts.

The force will be set up at the Dudwa National Park in Lakhimour Kheri district. It will follow the guidelines issued by the federal environment and forest ministry.

The federal government plans to create 11 Special Forces to be stationed in states like Rajasthan, Karnataka, Maharashtra, West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Assam and Uttarakhand.

The move by the Uttar Pradesh government has come as a big boon to the local forest officials as the state shares a 960-km long border with Nepal.

According to the 2007 census, the state's tiger population was 109. The state witnessed death of four tigers in 2007, five in 2008 and three in 2009. In 2010, one tiger died in Kishanpur sanctuary.

Meanwhile, Indian Forests and Environment Minister Jairam Ramesh told Parliament this week that government has advised various states to regulate tourist visits in tiger reserves since unchecked inflow had become a source of threat to the wildlife.

“Advisories have been issued to tiger range States for regulating tourist visitation in tiger reserves.” Guidelines have also been issued to phase out tourism activities from the core or critical tiger habitats, while creating buffer in its peripheral areas.

In an innovative move to save tigers and also provide employment to villagers around the Ranthambore National Park in Rajasthan state, the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) has started a scheme giving out cloth bags instead of plastic ones to pilgrims who come to visit the centuries-old Hindu Ganesha temple that is located inside the protected zone.

The WWF is training local women to produce cloth and paper bags, ropes etc which will replace plastic bags used by devotees for carrying offerings to the temple. These women were basically tree cutters working in the reserve area, and thus adding to the menace of dwindling tiger habitat, the Pioneer newspaper reported.

According to the data furnished by the WWF- India, while there were 159,000 visitors to the park in 2007-08. The figure in 2008-09 was 178,000.

“The offerings made in the temple are often carried in plastic bags, which were thrown in the habitat area after use. We began by collecting tons and tons of plastic bags from the area,” the newspaper quoted Rima Rosalind, Senior Consultant, WWF, leading the project in Rajasthan.

The plastic bags, she said, prevented the growth of vegetation beneath them, besides choking the herbivores such as deer, cheetah etc in the area.

As the villagers, particularly women, began to get involved in the process, they became more aware of the need for tiger conservation. “Today, we have nearly 15 self-help groups involving both men and women, who are stitching cloth bags, ropes and sustaining themselves. Even the local banks are willing to finance them today”, Lima has been quoted as saying by the newspaper.

According to the WWF official, each bag costs Indian Rupees 10. Some groups had made as much as Rupees 18,000 (USD $ 450) annually. This income has helped families even purchase ploughs and other household requirements.

Source: Earth Times.
Link: http://www.earthtimes.org/articles/show/320348,indian-state-to-raise-special-force-to-protect-tigers.html.