Maharashtra to review inclusion of 555 villages in Sahyadri tiger reserve

The Maharashtra Government will review the proposed inclusion of 555 villages in the expansion of the Sahyadri Tiger Reserve and make every effort to exclude those places that do not fall in the corridor after consulting local public representatives, a State minister told the Legislative Assembly in Mumbai.

Replying to a debate on the calling attention notice, Forest Minister Ganesh Naik said the proposed project covers villages in Kolhapur, Sangli, Satara and Ratnagiri districts.  He said senior forest officials have been directed to hold a camp in Kolhapur and interact with MPs, MLAs, Zilla Parishad members, Panchayat Samiti members, sarpanchs and other public representatives before finalising the proposal to be sent to the Centre.

The minister said officials have been asked to visit affected villages, understand people’s concerns and recommend changes wherever necessary to minimise hardship. “We will certainly try to remove as many villages as possible from the proposed corridor if they are not part of the tiger movement area,” he said.

Seeking to dispel fears over the proposed eco-sensitive zone, Naik said it would not affect normal activities, such as farming, construction of houses, schools, hospitals or other routine development works. Restrictions would mainly apply to activities, such as mining, chemical industries and other environmentally hazardous projects, he said.

Naik acknowledged rising incidents of tigers and leopards straying into human habitations and attacking livestock, saying the Government was aware of the growing human-wildlife conflict in the Sahyadri region. He said the forest department was working on measures to strengthen wildlife habitats and improve prey availability inside forests to reduce the movement of wild animals into villages.

He also assured the House that compensation to people affected by wildlife attacks would be expedited and that adequate safeguards for residents would be incorporated while implementing the proposed wildlife corridor.