MP tribals to protest Satpura Tiger Reserve

TRIBALS OF Hoshangabad have decided to stage a 'satyagraha' to protest against 'despotic diktats' of the authorities of Satpura Tiger Reserve (STR) that threatens their livelihood.

TRIBALS OF Hoshangabad have decided to stage a 'satyagraha' to protest against 'despotic diktats' of the authorities of Satpura Tiger Reserve (STR) that threatens their livelihood.

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"Wrong policies and legal inconsistencies of wildlife protection have led to serious but avoidable conflict between people and wildlife authorities," Sunil, general secretary, Samajwadi Jan Parishad, told a press conference here today.

The three protected areas of Hoshangabad district -- Satpura National Park, Bori Wildlife Sanctuary and Pachmarhi Wildlife Sanctuary -- were combined to form the Satpura Tiger Reserve (STR).

After the area was declared a sanctuary, about 9,000 tribals who reside in 150 villages within and on the periphery, dependent on the forest produce, stand to be affected, Sunil said.

"We will launch a jungle satyagraha to fight for our rights over 'Jal, Jungle, Zameen,' he said. "The World Bank has also launched an attack on the lives of the tribals. The Satpura landscape has been included in the proposed Bio-diversity Conservation and Rural Livelihood Improvement Project which has called for a ban on fishing in Tawa reservoir," he said. "The STR authorities are also trying to pressurise the villagers to relocate," he said.

However, sanctuary director Aseem Shrivastava denied that the tiger had turned man-eater, adding that Ramsahay's body had not been mutilated. Umaria police said that the body had been handed over to the family members after post mortem.