Even after three years since the Nandhaur valley in the Haldwani forest division was declared a wildlife sanctuary, there are still no funds to work in that direction.
Meanwhile, a proposal mooted to bring the same sanctuary under the category of a tiger reserve, about a year ago, also hangs in balance.Since special funds are granted for tiger reserve parks, and more importantly, because Nandhaur sanctuary is also known for its huge natural resources and rich presence of tigers, the officials concerned of the Haldwani forest division have proposed to get tiger reserve stats for this sanctuary.
“Since we have not received any fund for the development of the Nandhaur wildlife sanctuary so far, we are working to get the Nandhaur wildlife sanctuary declared as tiger reserve because special funds are allocated for tiger reserves.”“Therefore, we are hopeful that once a tiger reserve status is granted to the Nandhaur wildlife sanctuary, it will open more channels of funds to carry out conservation works,” added the officials concerned.
A team of officials concerned from the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) had also visited the Nandhaur Wildlife Sanctuary to see how the process could be facilitated for granting the tiger reserve status to the said sanctuary.
However, neither any fund has so far been allocated to carry out conservation works, even after about three years since declaration of the Nandhaur valley as a wildlife sanctuary nor the status of a tiger reserve has been accorded to it, they added.
The Nandhaur wildlife sanctuary is rich in bio-diversity and flora and fauna. But paucity of funds is hitting even the routine wildlife conservation activities hard in this sanctuary, said the officials concerned. Earlier the Nandhaur valley was just a reserve area.Since it has now been declared a sanctuary, therefore, its guidelines are different as far as wildlife conservation is concerned. To meet these certain wildlife sanctuary guidelines and challenges, to have adequate fund is a must, the officials concerned maintained.
Presently, among other factors, poaching is a major threat to this wildlife sanctuary. Therefore, to have adequate resources , are need of the hour to meet these challenges.With presence of a variety of forests comprising Sal, Shisham, Bamboo, Teak, Chir Pine and riverine forests the Nandhaur wildlife sanctuary also provides a favourable environment for tiger, leopard, elephant, Sloth Bear, Mahaseer and Great Pied Hornbill to name a few.