Telangana: Kawal Tiger Reserve hopes for tigers from Maharashtra

Officials from the Telangana forest department are set to appeal Maharashtra forest department for a tiger and tigress or a few cubs to help boost the tiger population in the Kawal Tiger Reserve

Hyderabad: The Telangana Forest department is planning to approach the Maharashtra forest department with an appeal to offer a tiger and tigress or a few cubs to increase the tiger population in the Kawal Tiger Reserve (KTR).

This is especially after Amrabad Tiger Reserve (ATR) officials said the Reserve was now home to 33 tigers. The tiger population in ATR had increased from 21 to 33 in the 2022 census. While the tiger population is increasing steadily in ATR, the situation in Kawal is turning from bad to worse. There are no resident tigers and only migrating tigers make their way into the reserve. Earlier this year, there were quite a few incidents of tigers being found dead in the reserve limits, especially at Daregaon village under Kagazhnagar forest division. This apart, the prey base in Kawal is not high when compared to ATR.

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However, the Sirpur- Kagazhnagar belt is one of the conduits for the tigers to move into Kawal from Tadoba and other areas from the neighbouring State. Considering these factors, the Telangana Forest department is now planning to approach its counterpart in Maharashtra with an appeal seeking a couple of tigers and cubs.

“There are quite a few tigers and tigresses in Tadoba and Tippeswar. Yes, there is a proposal but it is still in the initial stages. For relocation of tigers and cubs, the National Tiger Conservation Authority has to approve the plan,” a Forest official said.

In addition to preybase, the NTCA considers many other aspects like human interference in the region, safety and grasslands development etc, for permitting the relocation. Apart from relocation of tigers, the State department is also roping in officials from Maharashtra to train personnel in Telangana on a few aspects, particularly poaching and conservation measures.

“The training would be more about knowledge sharing for the personnel. Our staff would brief their counterparts from Maharashtra on the measures being adopted for a few issues and likewise they would help our staff learn new and effective practices in tiger conservation,” the official said.

This was being organized after conducting a training session for Amrabad Tiger Reserve personnel recently. It was a good learning experience for the staff, the official added.