Rajasthan: Census of tigers, carnivores to be held in sanctuaries

Kota (Raj): In a maiden initiative, a census of tigers and other carnivores will be carried out in Mukundra Tiger Reserve (MTR) in Kota and Ramgarh Vishdhari Sanctuary in Bundi, within next five months, a senior Forest department official said on Friday.  The wildlife census in MTR is likely to be carried out in the last week of February and would continue till July this year, Chief Conservator of Forests (CCF) Anurag Bhardwaj said. Although MTR does not have any tigers, but the census of other wild animals like Panthers, Bear, and Ungulates would be done here, he said. The Ramgarh Vishdhari Sanctuary of Bundi presently has a tiger which strayed away from Ranthambhore National park of Swai Madhopur and so the census would also be done there, said Bhardwaj. “Wildlife census is done once in four years at all tiger reserves of the country and is more accurate and scientific than the usual ‘one-day long’ census done in wildlife sanctuary in Kota,” he said. Vegetation survey would be done during the wildlife survey at MTR, he said, adding that such kind of census aims at an estimation of flora and fauna at the tiger reserves. Wildlife Institute of India (WII) coordinates such wildlife census at tiger reserves. The wildlife census at Ramgarh Vishdhari Sanctuary would be conducted by World Wildlife Federation (WWF) in coordination with WII, whereas the decision for census in Mukundra Tiger Reserve is yet to be taken, Bhardwaj said. The forest official also said that he has written a letter to the chief wildlife warden, asking him to make arrangement of a wildlife organisation which will help them the census at MTR. The actual number of wildlife in Ramgarh Sanctuary would come out following a pre–base survey with the support of WWF and the habitat environment in the sanctuary would be assessed, Vijaypal Singh, Assistant Conservator of Forest (ACF), Ramgarh Sanctuary said. PTI