17 May 2012 The Supreme Court has directed all states to demarcate and notify buffer zones around each of their tiger reserves within three months. While conservationists say the order would curb commercialisation of revenue land around tiger habitats, tribal rights activists think its implementation will result in repression of forest dwellers by forest departments. Click on date for more details

15 May 2012 A forest ranger and a forester were recently beaten up by the illegal mining mafia in the core area of the Rathambhore reserve. For more information click on date

08 May 2012 Aptly titled, 'Corbett, now on sale', a story in a weekly magazine brought an open secret out in print: The land around - and even inside - the Corbett Tiger Reserve is up for grabs, controlled by the country's Who's Who. It highlighted how tourism resorts have destroyed the Kosi river corridor, cutting off access for animals to a crucial water source. This matter had in fact first come to light in a report, 'Impact of tourism on tigers and other wildlife of Corbett', published in January 2010. Click on date for more details

Care should be taken in the moving of wild cats

From http://www.deccanherald.com/content/186319/need-caution.html

There is growing evidence to prove that relocation of big cats, especially when it is done without planning, consultation and transparency is not the best way of conserving their species or preventing man-animal or even animal-animal conflict.Tigers and other big cats that were shifted into forests and sanctuaries that are not their traditional habitat have not all done too well in their new homes. This was the case with the three-year-old tiger that was released just three months ago into the Bhadra Reserve after he strayed several hundreds of kilometres away from Bandipur.

Last week, he got into a fight over territory with another tiger, was severely injured and died. Relocation of the big cats is one of the core components of India's conservation strategy. Thus several tigers have been relocated from Ranthambore sanctuary to Sariska and from Kanha National Park to Panna Tiger Reserve and so on. The logic proffered is that Ranthambore is 'overpopulated' and relocating some of its tigers to Sariska, whose entire tiger population was wiped out by poachers, would serve to repopulate it. India's translocation of tigers has had its successes. Last year, a tiger translocated from Ranthambore to Sariska gave birth to three cubs in her new home in the wild.

But it is not without its problems. Tigers are aggressively territorial animals. The arrival of a 'foreign' tiger is often fiercely resisted by local predators. Wildlife experts have repeatedly warned that translocating tigers, especially adults, could prove disastrous. This is particularly so when done without planning or preparation. It was reported recently, that over the past six months, several leopards from the Bellary region have been translocated to Dandeli in violation of rules. Their new home is reportedly not conducive to leopards. Much opacity and arbitrariness shrouds translocation of the wild cats.

They are often being moved not so much to protect them but to safeguard vested interests. Wanting to repopulate Sariska is understandable. But why bring tigers to this park when the threat posed by poachers here is still unaddressed. Are tigers being brought here to feed the tiger trade? Are Bellary's mining mafias behind the eviction of leopards from the area? Translocation must be transparent. Else, vested interests will drive the cats in directions that could destroy them.