Road paved for 5 Corbett tigers to enter into Rajaji
National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) on Monday gave its approval for tiger translocation in western part of Rajaji Tiger Reserve.
The technical committee of NTCA cleared a project worth ₹3.40 crore at meeting in New Delhi.
Uttarakhand’s top forest officers, present at the meeting, gave presentation on translocation.
As per the initial plan, five tigers (two male and three female) will be translocated from Corbett’s landscape to the western part which is currently inhabited by only two female tigers. The western part is divided from the eastern part through a buzzing corridor which bars tiger movement.
“The proposal has been approved by the (NTCA) committee. We will wait for the minutes following which we will start ground work,” Rajaji director Sanatan Sonkar told HT.
One key challenge before the Rajaji management is elephants. The proposal highlights fencing of over 1 hectare area for which estimated ₹1 crore would be engaged to keep wild pachyderms away from translocated tigers. Soft release of the specie would be done which means that the individuals would be left in big enclosures with wildlife like environment.
RAJAJI MAN HELD WITH LEOPARD SKIN
Police arrested a forest dweller of Rajaji Tiger Reserve with a leopard skin on Monday afternoon in capital.
The skin is worth ₹5-7 lakh in international market.
On receiving specific inputs, the Clement Town station in-charge formed a team to arrest the accused.
During a routine check on Badkali Road, they found Ibrahim alias Mitti, 42, of Asarodhi with the leopard skin measuring 82 inch long and bearing an injury mark.
The accused kept changing his statement. At first, he confessed to have brought the skin from hills and was going to hand it over to a Nepali smuggler. But, later he denied this claim.
Forest officers and staff suspect the leopard was from Rajaji itself.
SSP Nivedita Kumar said police will continue vigil at wildlife trafficking areas adjoining Dehradun.