MUMBAI: In country's one of the biggest and most dense Tadoba Andhari tiger reserve, 51 people have died in the year 2022 after they were attacked by tigers and leopards as against 21 tigers and leopards who died mostly due to natural death followed by mishaps and internal fights, forest minister Sudhir Mungantiwar told the Maharashtra legislative assembly.
Meanwhile, the state has arranged for "secret service funds" to give away prizes to informers alerting the forest administration over attacks or any harm to wildlife, he said.
Of the 51 deaths of people recorded in this tiger reserve of the central India region, 44 were due to the attacks by tigers while seven were due to attacks by leopards. The statistics, presented by Mungantiwar in his written reply to the assembly during question hour, suggested that nine tigers, three leopards, six cheetals, one nilgai and bear each, and five peacocks died a natural death while one tiger got electrocuted. For those who succumb to injuries in the man-animal conflicts, the compensation to the family of the victim has been fixed at Rs 20 lakh, he said.
Internal fighting took a toll on lives of two tigers while two more tigers, four leopards, five cheetals, two nilgais and two bears died in different accidents in and around the vicinity of the jungle between January and December 2022. The hunting, Mungantiwar said, has led to deaths of five cheetals, three wildbores, and two porcupines. He said artificial ponds have been created besides placing fodders for the animals to lessen the conflicts and thus the deaths.
Mungantiwar said the first aid centres and other camps to save the animals have been set up besides a manual controlling of electric wires to avoid any electrocution or short circuits. Special security and monitoring towers have been set up to keep vigil across all the pockets, he added. To keep a minute account of crimes against wild animals, a special wildlife crime cell has been created besides setting up check posts in various sensitive locations, he pointed out.
