Making way for tigers

The Satpura Tiger Reserve is an important habitat of the Central Indian Highlands ecosystem. It is a unique area of rich biodiversity.

On the Pachmarhi Plateau, Sal forests exist on Gondwana sandstones, whereas on lower plains, teak forests grow on basaltic traps. Species common to the Western Ghats and the Himalayas, along with endemic or endangered flora are found.

The Reserve comprises Bori sanctuary, Denwa sanctuary and Satpura National Park, making the total protected area about 1,510 sq km.

The entire landscape is vital for the survival of tigers, as it forms the largest tiger habitat in the world, covering an area of 10,000 sq km, spread over Chhindwara, Hoshangabad, Betul, Harda, Khandwa and Melghat. The area is important from an archaeological and evolutionary point of view.

There are 50 rock shelters with beautiful paintings, which are 1,500 to 10,000 years old.

The Reserve has corridor linkages with the Pench Tiger Reserve and with the Melghat Tiger Reserve of Maharashtra.

It is therefore an important source of tiger population in the Central Indian Highland ecosystem. In the northwestern corner of the reserve, more than 200 sq km of the area is submerged by the large man-made Tawa reservoir.

The reserve has a large number of human settlements in the core critical tiger habitat and sees considerable religious tourism.

Feline concerns

The buffer areas are forest areas, taken over from the divisions of Hoshangabad, Rampur Bhatodi, Betul and West Chhindwara. The biggest threat to this reserve is posed by human and cattle in 43 revenue and forest villages in the core tiger habitat.

Ten of these were relocated in 2013 and one village each was relocated in four different financial years 2004-05, 2009-10, 2010-11 and 2011-12.

The older relocations were done with the funds made available by the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA), while relocation of all ten villages between March and June 2013, was carried out with funds of Rs 68 crore, provided by the state of Madhya Pradesh.

A sum of Rs 91 lakh was spent relocating every family, with the exception of 91 families in Dhain forest village. These families were entitled to a compensation of one lakh.

Families relocated in 2004-05 and were only entitled for a compensation of Rs one lakh per family. Also, relocation under Option 1 of the NTCA was carried out by paying the full amount in cash to the family. While under Option 2, a land measuring two hectares from the forest of the territorial division of Hoshangabad was given to every family along with some cash.

Field Director R P Singh, Deputy Director Ashok Kumar Sharma and others have taken personal interests to see that villagers are given counselling and stay motivated.

District Collector of Hoshangabad and Chief Secretary of the Madhya Pradesh government wanted to ensure that the tiger reserve be free from all kinds of human and cattle disturbances. With the exception of 107 families of Churna village, rest of the families in other villages were tribals.

Towards the end of the financial year 2012-13, with the intervention of the Chief Secretary, many departments of the state government dealing with the tribal development fund, were asked to surrender available unspent balance which came up to Rs 68 crore and was allotted to the Satpura Tiger Reserve in March 2013.

There was a limitation of availability of forest land already cleared under Forest (Conservation) Act, 1980.

Although, many families wanted to choose Option 2, they were not left with a choice. They wanted to move out of the remote corners of forests and hence chose Option 1. In villages like Rorighat, Badkochar, Kankaria and Churna, Option 2 was allowed to only one family, while the remaining had to choose Option 1.

Among the families of Ghoranar village, where option 2 was accepted by only one family, all 53 families are building their houses on the two hectares of land provided to one of them. These new locations of the villages are 2-4 km from Bagda railway station.

Earlier these families had to travel 20-40 km to reach a place from where bus services were availed. Those who exercised Option 1 have also moved to different villages outside reserve, purchased lands and are building the houses.

They are living in temporary thatched-roof settlements till the construction of their houses are completed. Some of them have even purchased tractors and agricultural equipment and have grown wheat crop on the land provided to them.

In the progressive Churna village, 142 Yadava families have constructed a school as well. It was observed on all sites that while clearing the jungle for building the houses, fruit bearing trees of Mahua and Chiraunji were retained, that provided additional income to the families.

A helping hand

The district administration is proactive in helping these families and are providing all building materials, duly waiving the royalty on red earth and sand. Families are further permitted to use the timber available after clearing the tree growth for construction.

These families are also provided the benefit of Jan Bhagidari Scheme, where 75 percent of the house contribution cost is paid to the tribe families and 50 percent to OBCs by the state government, wherever these families build houses.

An assistance of Rs 1.2 lakh is provided under the Chief Minister Awaz Yojana to eligible families, where the head of the family is between 40 and 50 years of age.

The assistance amount of Rs 20,000 will have to be repaid. Landless families are provided Rs 1.2 lakh for their house construction under Indira Awaz Yojana, where nothing is to be repaid.

This has sent a right signal all around and the families residing in the remaining 29 villages in core critical tiger habitat are eager to be relocated, despite adverse counselling by pro-human NGOs.

The Supreme Court of India has directed that the town of Pachmarhi, along with some 20 villages inside the core tiger habitat, located on the fringes of Satpura National Park, be demarcated.

There is a proposal for forest land diversion in Hoshangabad territorial division for the purpose of land required for relocation of 29 villages, moved by the state of Madhya Pradesh during January, 2014.

The success of further relocation would depend up on the said clearance. With the removal of these 29 villages, as planned, this would be one of the best tiger reserves in the country.