C’garh: Indravati Tiger Reserve In South Bastar To Reopen After 4 Decades On November 1
Vehicles are being procured for safari and routes are being planned in the ITR, the largest tiger reserve in Central India: Chhattisgarh Principal Chief Conservator of Forest (PCCF) Arun Pandey
RAIPUR: The Indravati Tiger Reserve (ITR) in Bijapur district under south Bastar of Chhattisgarh is set to reopen on November one after around four decades.
According to the Chhattisgarh Principal Chief Conservator of Forest (PCCF) Arun Pandey, preparations are in full swing to reopen the reserve for the tourists on November one.
Vehicles are being procured for safari and routes are being planned in the ITR, the largest tiger reserve in Central India, he added.
Around 70 percent area of the reserve had remained inaccessible to the forest officials for the past four decades due to the Leftwing Extremism (LWE), affecting operations and protection activities in the reserve, ITR deputy director Sumedh Survade told the media.
With the LWE wanning, the forest department has initiated steps to reopen the tiger reserve for the tourists after four decades.
The ITR bears significance for wildlife conservation due to the presence of a herd of 14-17 wild buffalos of Central Indian species, which are on the verge of extinction.
Wild buffalo is a state animal of Chhattisgarh.
The reserve is believed to have around half-a-dozen tigers.
In fact, the ITR had to skip tiger census exercises in the past due to the Maoist menace.
The current tiger census is ongoing in the reserve.
The reserve also has a good number of vultures.
The ITR is also home to leopard, sloth bear, gaur, chital, wild boar, and nilgai, besides known for its arachnid diversity, including crab spiders, signature spiders, spiny orb-weaver spiders and the Indian ornamental tarantula.
A recent sighting of smooth-coated otters in the reserve for the first time indicates its rich biodiversity, forest officials said.
