State’s tiger belt put on red alert

The Wildlife Crime Control Bureau WCCB has issued a red alert for tiger reserves thanks to active hunting gangs in tigerbearing areas like Satpura Tadoba Pench Corbett Amangarh Pilibhit Valmiki Rajaji Balaghat Gadchiroli and Chandrapur The WCCB responsible for handling and investigating wildliferelated crimes has issued the red alert circular to all principal chief conservators of forests PCCF wildlife and field directors of tiger reserves and national parksAccording to the official database of the National Tiger Conservation Authority NTCA a total of 93 tiger deaths have occurred in India in 2023 Among these 46 were adult tigers four were subadult tigers 11 were cubs and the ages of 34 remain unknownMadhya Pradesh recorded the highest number of tiger deaths 25 followed by Maharashtra 18 Uttrakhand 12 Karnataka nine Kerala eight Uttar Pradesh five Assam six Rajasthan four Tamil Nadu two Bihar two and Odisha twoTigers at the TadobaAndhari Tiger Reserve Extensive patrolling has been started at the park officials have saidThe circular titled lsquoRed alert about the threat of tiger poachingrsquo signed by H V Girisha IFS additional director of WCCB in New Delhi states ldquoThis is to alert the field directors of all tiger reserves and officials regarding the outer areas of tiger reserves including tigerbearing areas based on credible inputs received by the bureau and revelations of recent seizures that organised hunting gangs are active around various tiger reservesrdquoThe letter also instructs field directors and officials to immediately intensify patrolling visit identified sensitive areas search for suspected nomadic people in tents temples railway stations bus stations abandoned buildings and public shelter places inform officials of all concerned police stations and sanitise the aforementioned areas as a preventive measurePCCF Maharashtra saysMahip Gupta principal chief conservator of forests wildlife said ldquoAfter a gap of around 10 months we have received a red alert from WCCB informing us that organised hunting gangs are seen active around various tiger reserves We have taken note of this and all the field directors of tiger reserves and national parks in Maharashtra have been alerted Instructions have been given to intensify patrolling not just within the forest but also outside itrdquoTATR field director saysDr Jitendra Ramgaokar field director of TadobaAndhari Tiger Reserve TATR said ldquoOn a regular basis our team has been conducting extensive patrols both inside and outside the reserve We will take appropriate action if we discover any individuals groups or activities that raise questions within our jurisdictionrdquoWildlife conservationist Kedar Gore of the Corbett Foundation emphasises the importance of sharing this red alert by WCCB He hopes that concerned officials will act urgently to prevent any tiger poaching attemptsGore stated ldquoIncreased patrolling and surveillance will not only prevent tiger poaching but also benefit other species such as sloth bears pangolins mongooses and leopards severely affected by illegal wildlife trade outside the protected area network and identified wildlife corridors connecting these protected areasrdquoHe added that the forest department should involve local communities in wildlife conservation programmes providing legitimate monetary benefits and promoting humanwildlife coexistenceldquoDisgruntled community members who have suffered losses of human life crops and property due to wild animals often support such organised poaching gangs Therefore a communitybased inclusive conservation approach is key to preventing negative interactions between humans and wildlife It is also essential to provide education healthcare and other basic facilities to these communities which are frequently accused of involvement in wildlife poaching Unless nationallevel efforts are taken to revamp upgrade and efficiently run government schools and health centres in and around forest areas the plight of these marginalised communities will persist making them vulnerable targets for organised poaching gangsrdquo Gore added93No of tiger deaths in 2023