Hyderabad: The Telangana government has been sitting on proposals to declare Anantagiri Hills and Bejjur as a conservation reserve. Anantagiri Hills near the city faces a hurdle as it is suspected that many tourism projects are planned there. Bejjur is a vulture conservation zone and although the Wildlife Board has passed a resolution the state has not yet issued orders.
The Vikarabad forest adjoining Anantagiri Hills, about 70 km from Hyderabad, is spread over a few hundred acres adjoining the 1,500-hectare Anantagiri reserve forest. The area has leopards, neelgai, spotted deer, sambar, wild boar and peafowl.
The forest department recently released black bucks into the reserve forest. Under Section 36A of the Wildlife Protection Act, the government after consulting local communities can declare any area owned by the government and areas near national parks and sanctuaries and areas which link one protected area to another as a conservation reserve. Environmentalists wanted the Bejjur area declared a wildlife sanctuary instead of a conservation reserve as it is not situated on private land.
