Corbett National Park (Uttarakhand) Security in the Corbett Tiger Reserve (CTR) was recently breached by gangs of poachers belonging to five different communities.
“This is unprecedented,” said S.K. Datta, chief conservator of forest, wildlife and intelligence in Uttarakhand. “The local Sapera, Kanjar and Bawariya communities joined hands with members of the Bagdi community which hails from Rajasthan, Haryana and Punjab, with the members of the Bagariya tribe which hails from districts in Rajasthan and Ratlam in Madhya Pradesh, to enter the CTR with the intention of poaching.”
According to Mr Datta, a total of eight members of these communities stayed at Ramnagar for more than a month and then, once they had completed heir reconnaissance, they made forays into the reserve from key strategic entry points.
Five suspected poachers were arrested in early June with snares, steel chains and other material used to kill wild animals. The poachers were identified as Ramesh Bagdi, Tarachand Bagdi and Giria Bagdi all of whom are residents of Pinjore and Panchkula in Haryana.
Forest officials believe this is the first time that members of the Bagdi community have entered into the CTR. Tarachand Bagdi was also wanted in a tiger poaching case in the Valmiki Tiger Reserve in Bihar.
CRT director Rajan Mishra pointed out that with 30 snares found in tiger areas in Uttarakhand, it is obvious that poachers are back to using snares and traps rather than fire arms and poison. The reason for this is being attributed to the international demand for clean tiger skins and body parts. A firearm used to kill a tiger will cause a black spot in the skin while poison leads to change in the colour of the skin and body parts. This does not happen in snares.
Field directors of 41 tiger reserves have been instructed to deploy special anti-poaching squads and patrols which will be on the lookout for snares and traps. Already, 29 tiger reserves are known to be facing serious threat from poachers.