Mumbai, Mar 22 (PTI) Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis has called for special measures to prevent casualties due to tiger attacks in Gadchiroli district and ordered a study by experts, an official said on Saturday.
As per a statement issued by the Chief Minister’s Office, the report of the study is to be submitted within three months, with measures such as special compensation to families of persons who have died in tiger attacks in the last five years and translocation of big cats.
The chief minister has taken serious note of the loss of lives due to tiger attacks and directed that a plan be formulated under the guidance of Pravin Pardeshi, chief executive officer of the Maharashtra Institution for Transformation (MITRA).
Pardeshi held a meeting with senior forest officers in Nagpur on Saturday to discuss various strategies.
More than 50 people have died in tiger attacks in Gadchiroli district in five years. The attacks have occurred in the Gadchiroli, Chamooshi, Aramori, Wadsa, and Dhanora areas.
Based on the study by experts, some tigers will be translocated within three months.
The chief minister has directed that information on families of persons who died in tiger attacks in the last five years be collected, and they receive special compensation, the statement said.
Various solutions were discussed during the meeting, including thinning teak trees and increasing grassland coverage in the Chaprala and Pranhita sanctuaries in Gadchiroli for prey.
It was also decided to appoint forest patils for every village and supply compressed biogas (CBG), produced using grass from fields, through pipelines to prevent villagers from entering forests in search of firewood.
Expediting compensation for crops damaged by wild animals, assessing the social and economic status of locals in six villages in Chaprala sanctuary for relocation, and finding new areas for resettlement were other decisions made during the meeting.
Experts from organisations, such as the Wildlife Institute, will also be appointed for further action.
It was noted that tigers involved in human-animal conflicts tend to be older, and there is a need for a policy decision regarding the relocation of such big cats. PTI MR ARU
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