A FIGHT IN THE FOREST

CM Mohan Yadav's pro-conservation policies run smack into a pro-people protest from his predecessor, Shivraj

- By Rahul Noronha

IT'S DIFFICULT AS IT IS TO ADJUDICATE between a 'pure' conservation approach and one sympathetic to human habitation in forest areas. In Madhya Pradesh, it was not made easier last week when politics entered the fray—with a relocated tiger, as it were, returning to stalk his old prey base. The first kill didn't take long, as Union agriculture minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan led a delegation of tribals from Vidisha, his Lok Sabha constituency, protesting removal of encroachments on forest land and plans to create a new wildlife sanctuary. Chief minister Mohan Yadav had to bite the bullet and transfer a forest officer.

THE WILD LIFE OF POLITICS