2 reserves notify buffer zones
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The Pioneer
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New Delhi
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25 Jul 2012
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There is good news on tiger protection and management from Dudhwa Tiger Reserve in Uttar Pradesh. The Government has notified 1107.48 sq km buffer area for Dudhwa Tiger Reserve. To add to it 80.5 sq kms of Amangarh in the State adjoining Corbett Tiger Reserve in Uttarakhand has also been notified, which is expected to save the tigers from being poached.
Welcoming the step, SP Yadav, DIG, Nattional Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA), said “it is a historic move which will go in a long way to protect the tigers in the Terai Arc Landscape besides mitigating man animal conflicts in the region.
The buffer area of Dudhwa includes 190.0371 sq kms from Dudhwa Tiger Reserve, 150.0275 sq kms forest area from Katerniaghat wildlife division, 493.9032 sq kms from North Kheri forest division,247.7950 sq kms from South Kheri Forest Division and 26.2270 sq kms area of Social Forestry Division of Shahajhanpur. The initiatives of the Uttar Pradesh CM Akhilesh Yadav have also been appreciated by the wild life enthusiasts in this regard,
“These are very positive and significant steps by the UP Forest Department”, pointed Prerna Singh Bindra, member of standing committee, National Board For Wildlife (NBWL). Amangarh, which is perceived to be a weak link in the boundary of Corbett Tiger Reserve, is now a buffer to Corbett and this will boost protection efforts for CTR, besides providing additional protected habitat for tigers and other wildlife. It is hoped that the UP and Uttarakhand forest departments will now coordinate jointly and effectively monitor and protect Corbett, she said.
Now one hopes and expects that the State shall notify the other two proposed tiger reserves — Pilibhit and Suhelwa soon, she added.
Earlier the Supreme Court had directed all States to demarcate and notify buffer zones around each of their tiger reserves in its April 3 order. Further as per the Wildlife (Protection) Amendment Act of 2006, a tiger reserve must have a core or critical habitat and a buffer zone peripheral to it. While the critical habitat is supposed to be kept inviolate for conservation, a buffer zone is needed to ensure the integrity of the habitat with adequate space for dispersal of tigers. It is also aimed at promoting co-existence between wildlife and human activity.
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