Rajasthan to soon get its 6th tiger sanctuary

Rajasthan is set to have sixth tiger reserve in the state soon.

The state government has formed an 11-member expert committee to finalise the boundaries of the Kumbhalgarh Wildlife Sanctuary, which include identification of eco-sensitive zone and core zones of the reserve.

The expert committee will submit its report to the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) in October.

Kumbhalgarh was declared as a wildlife sanctuary in 1971. The discussion to declare the sanctuary as a tiger reserve began in 2019. In 2023, the Environment Ministry gave in-principle nod to declare the sanctuary as a tiger reserve.

After the approval from Centre, the NTCA constituted a five-member committee to check the feasibility of upgrading the status of Kumbhalgarh Wildlife Sanctuary to a tiger reserve. The committee recommended that habitat for the tiger reserve should be improved and prey for tigers should be augmented. It also recommended appointment of more forest staff and voluntary relocation of villagers from the forest areas once the sanctuary is declared as a tiger reserve.

Last month, the Rajasthan Government informed the NTCA that it has constituted an 11-member expert committee that will work on creating a safe habitat for tigers. Officials said other wildlife sanctuaries such as Phulwari ki Naal Sanctuary and Todgarh Raoli Sanctuary would also be incorporated in the reserve.

The proposed tiger reserve will be spread over around 2,800 sq km. Spread across parts of the Aravali Range as well, the Kumbhalgarh Wildlife Sanctuary is home to a number of endangered species such as jungle cats, hyenas, jackals, leopards, sloth bears, nilgai, sambhar, chinkara and hares.

There are 24 villages within the boundaries of the Kumbhalgarh Wildlife Sanctuary and 138 on the periphery.

“The augmentation of prey base is a major priority of the department and a request has been sent to the Central Zoo Authority to permit release of zoo animals into prey base augmentation. Then, tigers will be reintroduced in the sanctuary. A detailed report will be sent to the NTCA next month,” an official said.

5 reserves in state

The five tiger reserves in Rajasthan are at Sariska, Ranthambore, Mukundara Hills, Ramgarh Visdhari and Dholpur-Karauli