Patna, December 2
In what is believed to be a move to preempt a possible Sariska massacre of Gujarat in Bihar, the Nitish government reportedly has decided to recruit retired army personnel in its bid to save the declining population of tigers in the state’s only tiger reserve in Valmikinagar near Nepal border in West Champaran district.
This was the second major move by the Bihar government to use retired army personnel after it had formed Special Auxilliary Force (SAP) last year to combat the Naxalites. Sources said this proposed dedicated tiger protection force was expected to help stop alleged poaching at Valmiki National Park.
In the first phase, the tiger protection force would comprise 50 retired army personnel, which would be expanded later.
Even though Valmiki National Park is regarded as one of the best-maintained tiger reserves in the country, recently it reportedly became a haven for poachers.
It was alleged by different NGOs that in past three years, at least 23 big cats disappeared from this forest. The number of tigers subsequently declined to 33 in 2005 from 56 in 2002.
What further worried the Nitish government was the fact that adjacent Nepal located on the border of West Champaran district housing Valmikinagar forest was known for running the biggest ever international market for smuggled tiger skin and associated products.
Sources further pointed out that in its report in 2006, the comptroller and auditor general (CAG) too indicted the governments in the past over the alleged mess in Valmikinagar forest by only prompting the present ruling NDA to take up the issue seriously.
The CAG reportedly expressed concern over the fact that neither the officials of Valmiki National Park nor the state government had any
Ex-Armymen to save tigers
information about the missing tigers as the estimation of big cats in the park was irregular because the census was conducted only thrice between 2000 and 2005.
Sources claimed that while in 2002 there were 35 male, 17 female tigers besides four cubs, by 2005, the number of males declined to 10, females 22 and there was only one cub. Incidentally, more than a decade back in 1990, there were 80 tigers and 31 leopards in the same park, which perhaps only indicated the enormity of the problem. There are in all 27 tiger reserves in India covering an area of 37,761 sq km.
