New Delhi, Jul 24 (PTI) A three-member committee constituted to probe the alleged illegal construction by an Indian Revenue Service (IRS) officer and his wife within the Panna Tiger Reserve’s eco-sensitive zone (ESZ) has said that the building concerned was a homestay.
In a report, the committee also observed that the nearly 4.9-acre land on which the construction was carried out was bought between 2018 and 2022 without the consent of or information to Madhya Pradesh’s forest department.
Revenue records showed, the report said, that the land belonged to B Srinivas Kumar, a senior IRS officer, and his wife, Himani Sarad, a central public information officer at the Supreme Court.
“It appears the allocating authority has worked in contrary to provisions of WPA (Wild Life Protection Act), 1972 and IFA (Indian Forest Act) and may explain the reason thereof,” said the committee, formed by the Union Environment Ministry in September 2025 after allegations of illegal construction emerged.
The committee has noted that the land concerned is part of khasra number 1841 (a unique number assigned to a plot or a piece of land in a rural area), which is 42.5 acres in size and comes under Chhatarpur district’s Rajgarh village.
Forest Department records show that 35.8 acres of this khasra is included in three forest blocks — Patan-A, Arjunhai and Toriya-B — as forest land.
The remaining 6.7 acres is revenue land but no clear demarcation exists on the ground as boundary pillars were missing, the committee noted.
In 1982, these forest blocks were included in the Panna National Park and eventually in the Panna Tiger Reserve Core (2007), and the Eco-Sensitive Zone (ESZ) was notified in 2024.
In its site inspection carried out on October 1 and October 2 last year, the committee found that the land concerned is located inside the forest demarcated on the cadastral map, which represents land parcels within a designated area.
The committee also observed that the construction was done adjacent to the Ken river and adjoining forest and agricultural fields, according to the report reviewed by PTI.
There were several structures on the land, including six well-spread cottages, a swimming pool, a kitchen cum dining place, a poolside eatery space and a power room.
There was a gymnasium, a water-purification plant, a parking shed with two safari vehicles, a tractor and a boat, and a two-storied building for staff accommodation as well, according to the report.
The committee noted that a saw machine exceeding permissible specifications under relevant regulations was also found at the spot and had been seized by the Forest Department.
It highlighted that while the land owners took the gram sabha’s permission for construction, they did not get approval from the forest department.
Speaking to PTI, wildlife activist Ajay Dubey said, “Two cases were registered for encroaching upon Panna Tiger Reserve’s core area to construct a building and operate a sawmill, yet these structures were not demolished as required under Section 34(a) of the Wildlife Protection Act.” “This highlights the criminal negligence of the Panna Tiger Reserve management. While displacees of the Ken-Betwa Link Project are being evicted from the reserve, the authorities are turning a blind eye to encroachments by influential people,” he added.
The Madhya Pradesh Forest Department and the Panna Tiger Reserve did not respond to PTI’s emails enquiring about whether the structures had been demolished.
In its report, the committee gave several recommendations. It said, “Prima-facie, this dispute has originated from mutually non-conforming land records of forest and revenue departments of the state of Madhya Pradesh. Therefore, a joint-survey to delineate forest boundaries in all revenue records should be ensured.” The committee pointed out that there was a possibility of other such constructions over similar disputed lands in the vicinity or within the Panna Tiger Reserve.
“The Forest Department should secure its reserve boundary impeccably,” it added. PTI ALC ALC KSS KSS
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