Nagpur: Around 190km from Nagpur in the southeastern part of Vidarbha lies the last remaining dense reserve forest patch of little known Kanhargaon, which got its name from this obscure village. Endowed with rich flora and fauna, the 269sqkm area is now the 50th wildlife sanctuary in the state.
After several flip-flops, finally on December 4, 2020 chief minister Uddhav Thackeray, who heads the state board (SWBL), formally declared the 269sqkm area as a sanctuary though its final notification is yet to be issued. With this, Maharashtra has the highest number of 55 protected areas (PAs) in the country.
Kanhargaon is 35km away from Chandrapur on way to Allapalli (Gadchiroli). The Chandrapur district is already known for its water resources and mineral wealth and has been famous from ancient times as the capital of the Gond dynasty. The district is already known the world over for tigers, the late philanthropist Baba Amte’s ashram at Anandavan, India’s largest thermal power plant, coal mines, cement and paper factories, huge limestone, bauxite, iron and chromite deposits.
The only last remaining dense forest patch, Kanhargaon maintains the sanctity of the north-south tiger corridor between Tadoba-Andhari Tiger Reserve (TATR) in the north and Kawal Tiger Reserve in Telangana to the south.
As per the latest estimation, Maharashtra has 312 tigers that are crying for space causing conflict with humans. The core-buffer zone of TATR is situated almost in the centre of Chandrapur so the source population of tiger breeding has spread over the whole forest in the district and is also spreading in the neighbouring districts. Hence, Kanhargaon holds the key to long-term conservation of tigers.
Kanhargaon, a shooting block during the Raj era even after independence up to 1972, when the Wildlife Protection Act (WPA) was enacted, is still enchanting, despite heavy logging operations in the last 60 years by the state-owned Forest Development Corporation of Maharashtra (FDCM), which generates around Rs30 crore annual revenue by selling timber.
The pristine forest is not just a collection of trees but some of the dense plots speak volumes about the rich biodiversity and wildlife it houses and it future potential. The forest acclaims a strong ecosystem with a mix of bamboo clusters, teak plantations and other indigenous trees like ain, bija, shisam, moha, tendu, charoli, bibla, kadhai, dhawda, beheda, hirda etc. Despite suffering the onslaught for years together, Kanhargaon still looks generous to accommodate wildlife.
“There are resident tigers and cattle kills in and around Kanhargaon is a regular feature, especially in the 10 territorial forest compartments which have now been included in the sanctuary area. In 2020, 11 cattle kills were recorded in these compartments. Less number of cattle kills also shows there is prey base in the area,” says Arvind Munde, deputy conservator (DyCF), Central Chanda.
Even if what Munde says is true, many cattle kills occurring in forest areas may be going unreported.
“As per the survey conducted in 2015 by NGO Wildlife Conservation Trust (WCT), there were 10 tigers and 23 leopards in Kanhargaon. Since then there has been no survey to estimate big carnivores. The phase IV estimation could not be conducted here due to Covid-19,” said Central Chanda divisional manager Aryasree T.
A section of locals recalls several stories told by their forefathers about how the British officers used to trap wild animals and kill them for trophy hunting in this shooting block. “They used to tie the bait to a tree and hide behind a stonewall and shoot the animal when it approached the bait. Some Britishers also used to hunt with the help of elephants,” recalls Kishore Velade from Wamanpalli, a village on the edge.
Velade says, “They kept hunted animal trophies and distributed the meat among the locals. These stonewalls can still be seen in Devai and other forest areas.”
Conservationist Prafulla Bhamburkar adds, “Late actor Shammi Kapoor too was fascinated by the Kanhargaon forests and had visited the shooting block in the seventies.”
The area was first handed over to the Forest Development Board (FDB) in 1969 to convert non-teak forests into teak forests. There were only four divisions then – Nagpur, Bhandara, West Chanda, and Central Chanda. In 1974, FDB was replaced with FDCM, and seven more divisions were added to it.
Of the 269 sqkm sanctuary area, 251sqkm belongs to FDCM (leased out by the state) while 18 sqkm is from Central Chanda territorial division. To make strong ground for sanctuary and drop the idea of conservation reserve as was being pushed by the authorities, all villages, including Kanhargaon, have been excluded. Now, the entire area of the sanctuary is a reserve forest where no activity is allowed unless permitted.
Presently, the forest is being maintained with an eye on commercial operations and hence, wildlife management is not the top priority. It reflects when one moves on the rocky and bumpy roads which are meant for heavy vehicles to transport felled timber. A huge fire tower gives a glimpse of the entire Kanhargaon forest and ostensibly must have been built to send forest fire alerts.
There was one check-dam in the dense thickets with sufficient water in Pachgaon with old tiger pugmarks indicating tiger movement in the area. There was no water source seen during the next 20km travel till Wamanpalli. Sightings of sambar and chitals in small groups near dilapidated ‘open jail’ were eye-soothing. Droppings of other herbivores were indirect proof of their presence.
“The open jail and a jailer’s bungalow near Camp 3 on Wamanpalli road was built post-independence where prisoners were put and asked to do forestry works as punishment,” recalls Pandurang Kudmete, a tractor mechanic-turned van majoor.
Even as there are still fragile attempts to oppose the sanctuary, Kanhargaon has huge potential to compete with Tadoba. “Three days after Kanhargaon was declared a sanctuary, parties are showing interest in buying land. Some agents approached me offering Rs3.5 lakh per acre for my farmland adjoining the forest,” says Velade.
Kishor Rithe, who was on the panel to decide on Kanhargaon’s proposal, says, “To allay unwarranted fears of locals about displacement, we put all the villages out from the plan giving up 100sqkm crucial forest area. This area can be added to the sanctuary in the future when people realize tigers can bring money.”
Rithe cited the example of villages in the Tadoba buffer who initially opposed the buffer zone but now the same villages want to be part of the buffer considering the huge benefits of ecotourism locals are reaping.
State wildlife board member Bandu Dhotre said, “It will take some time for land prices to shoot up around Kanhargaon. But there is no doubt that it is the only vital patch for the long-term survival of dispersing tigers from TATR. It will be another Tadoba in the making and provide better survival conditions to wild animals.”
“Kanhargaon is a tiger source for Gadchiroli and Telangana. The natural bamboo with mixed forest, Wainganga and Wardha rivers, and natural resources together will support as eco-socio means for locals. Declaring it a tiger reserve should be the next step,” said Bhamburkar.
“WCT has been monitoring tigers in this landscape and Kanhargaon block is one of the few areas which are consistently supporting a resident breeding tiger population. This sanctuary will further enhance the tiger connectivity in the greater Tadoba landscape,” says wildlife biologist Aditya Joshi.
STEPS TOWARDS THE SANCTUARY
* In April 2013, the original proposal consisted of 370 sqkm. It included 58 sqkm area of Kothari range in Central Chanda and 312 sqkm area of FDCM
* Amid opposition from locals and politicians, a curtailed proposal of 265 sqkm sent to government on June 21, 2014
* On December 5, 2018, ex-CM Devendra Fadnavis agrees to declare it a sanctuary but it never materialized due to opposition within
* Uddhav Thackeray clears the 269sqkm proposal
* TATR key link to Kanhargaon, Chaprala in Gadchiroli and Kawal in Telangana
* A compact block, dispersing population from Tadoba not only makes the area rich in tigers but also a natural habitat for many animals
* Apart from tigers, other wildlife includes leopards, jungle cat, jackal, fox, deer, sambar, barking deer, blue bull, wild boar, sloth bear, wild dogs & gaurs.
* With more area, gene-pool proportion to rise and ill effects of inbreeding can be eliminated to ensure healthy population of wild animals