SHIFTING STRIPES

Tiger numbers in Maharashtra represent a roaring success of conservation efforts. The estimated number of big cats in the state in 2022 is 444-up from 312 in 2018 and 190 in 2014. The state has the fourth largest population of tigers after Madhya Pradesh (785), Karnataka (563) and Uttarakhand (560).

- Dhaval Kulkarni

The rise is due to better habitat management and enhanced protection measures. However, the spread of tigers in Maharashtra is lopsided-they are concentrated in the Vidarbha region, especially eastern Vidarbha, which is part of the central Indian landscape. The Brahmapuri and Chandrapur forest divisions in Chandrapur district are estimated to have around 120 tigers, outnumbering several tiger projects. Growth in the tiger population here has led to a rise in man-animal conflict. Since 2017, around 250 people have been killed by tigers in the state, with 76 deaths, the highest in recent years, occurring in 2022.

While Vidarbha bristles with tigers, western Maharashtra offers a stark contrast. The Sahyadri Tiger Reserve in the Western Ghats, which spans an area of 1,165 sq. km, has no breeding/ resident tigers. The reserve covers 600 sq. km of core forest land and 565 sq. km of buffer area in the Satara, Sangli, Kolhapur and Ratnagiri districts.

This has led to the Maharashtra forest department considering a proposal to translocate tigers from areas experiencing increasing human-tiger conflict, particularly the Brahmapuri forest division in Chandrapur district in Vidarbha, to the Sahyadri Reserve at the other end of Maharashtra. The 'scientific population management', it is believed, will reduce man-animal conflict in areas where tiger numbers are deemed to have reached saturation levels and help recover the population in parts where it has been flagging.