M F AHMAD
Daltonganj, March 23: The regional Inspector General (IG) of forest of the NTCA (National Tiger Conservation Authority), W Longvah, inspected the Palamu tiger reserve on Wednesday. He was accompanied by the field director Kumar Ashutosh and deputy director South division Kumar Ashish.
Lagatar24,com spoke to him on Thursday as to how he finds this tiger reserve which gets in news only when a tiger is sighted once in a blue moon.
W Longvah was very frank and open with regard to this tiger reserve here. He began with how he got excited to eye sight three leopards preying a cheetal in the Betla National Park on Wednesday night.
Kumar Ashish, deputy director South division, said the IG Forest was also pleased to see the gender ratio of the male and female deer as he saw too many fawns playing around which made Longvah to appreciate that population of deer in Betla is not lop-sided. It has a proportionate ratio of the male and female deer which is a very positive sign here in this tiger reserve.
Longvah noticed that the tiger reserve has an acute shortage of the range officers and it would have been in the fitness of things if there would have been a ranger each in 8 ranges of this tiger reserve.
There are rangers here in this tiger reserve who are holding 2 ranges just for want of non-posting of the rangers.
Grass lands and habitats here need to be further strengthened up, Longvah said. The herbivores must have their fodder in abundance, he pointed out.
The IG said that lantana and parthenium weeds are to be cleared as these two grasses are stretching hard. Both the types of the grasses are a big invasive grass here in the habitat for the wild life of this tiger reserve he added.
On water issues of this tiger reserve, Longvah said: “As on Wednesday I inspected this tiger reserve I didn’t see any crisis of water but surface water has to be scientifically managed here for the wild life. Bunding of rain water is one means. Big check dams are good for the retention of water.”
However, the IG batted for forest guards here to be armed.
“Forest guards are unarmed. It is difficult to take on the intruders or poachers of the tiger reserve. The PTR management should brainstorm as to how to make its fleet of forest guards armed,” said Longvah.
On being reminded that equipping forest guards with weapons would mean irking the naxals who abound in the entire forests of the tiger reserve, the IG said: “We understand this complexity. We just want our ground staff to be so equipped with to ward off humans who pose dangers to the wild life and its habitat.”
Longvah said he would send his inspection report to the NTCA Delhi and also to the MoEFCC and chief wild life warden of the Jharkhand state.
I
