Current Science

Open Access Open Access  Restricted Access Subscription Access

The Inter-Linking of Rivers and Biodiversity Conservation: A Study of Panna Tiger Reserve, Madhya Pradesh, India


Affiliations
1 Department of Wildlife Sciences, Aligarh Muslim University, Aligarh 202 133, India
 

The Panna tiger reserve is one of the best examples of the most successful tiger re-introduction programme from zero tiger in 2009 to 54 in 2019. The Government of India has approved the proposal of interlinking of the two rivers, viz. Ken in Madhya Pradesh and Betwa in Uttar Pradesh, to provide surplus water to the local population of drought prone areas of Bundelkhand, UP. This river interlinking will be submerging around 58.03 sq. km of the Critical Tiger Habitat. Our study on vegetation and major prey species of tiger shows higher densities in submerged areas. The NITI Ayog report of 2019 provided one of the best example of the locals of Jakhni village of Banda district of Bundelkhand which managed the severe water crisis. The sensitivity of tiger reserve that project involves need a close attention, which this essay attempts at arguing.

Keywords

River Linking, Submerged Area, Tiger Reserve, Ungulates Density, Water Crises.
User
Notifications
Font Size

  • Ramesh, K., Samuel, A. C., Mriganka, S. S., Manjari, M., Moorthy Jeyaraj, A. J. and Subharanjan, S., Multi-scale prediction of landscape resistance for tiger dispersal in central India. Lands. Ecol., 2016, 31, 1355–1368; doi:10.1007/s10980-016-0363-0.

  • Bhardwaj, T., Panna National Park: a gem among Madhya Pradesh’s Tiger Reserves. Financial Express, 8 March 2021; https://www.financialexpress.com/lifestyle/travel-tourism/panna-nationalpark-a-gem-among-madhya-pradeshs-tiger-reserves/2208426/

  • Anon., Comprehensive environmental impact assessment of Ken– Betwa link project, phase-I, National Water Development Agency (a Government of India Society under the Ministry of Water Resources), 2012, XXII, 2012.

  • Anon., Ken–Betwa river linking project: recalling an old idea whose time may have come. The Indian Express, 16 May 2016; https://indianexpress.com/article/explained/ken-betwa-river-linkingprojectwildlife-clearance-panna-tiger-reserve-forest-land-2797614/

  • Mayank, A., Ken–Betwa river linking project may be economically unviable, says Supreme Court’s committee. Environment and Election Mongabay, News and inspiration from nature’s frontline in India, Mongabay, 2019.

  • Nandi, J., Ken–Betwa project could hit wildlife. Hindustan Times, 8 September 2019; https://www.hindustantimes.com/bhopal/wildlifeactivist-to-challenge-ken-betwa-river-project-in-ngt/story-bVPRidu8xqv1z0aXMO0mgI.html

  • Magurran, A. E., Ecological Diversity and its Measurement, Princeton University Press, Princeton, NJ, USA, 1998, p. 192.

  • Saxena, D., River linking project a conspiracy to deny Bundelkhand of Ken river water. The Times of India, 29 March 2019; https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/bhopal/river-linking-projectaconspiracy-to-deny-bundelkhand-of-ken-river-water/articleshow/68629990.cms

  • Burnham, K. P., Anderson, D. R. and Laake, J. L., Estimation of density from line transect sampling of biological population. Wildl. Monogr., 1980, 72, 1–202.

  • Buckland, S. T., Aanderson, D. R., Burnham, K. P. and Laake, J. L., Distance Sampling: Estimating Abundance of Biological Population, Chapman and Hall, New York, USA, 1993.

  • Biswas, S. and Sankar, K., Prey abundance and food habit of tigers (Panthera tigris tigris) in Pench National Park, Madhya Pradesh, India. J. Zool., 2002, 256, 411–420.

  • Bagchi, S., Goyal, S. P. and Sankar, K., Prey abundance and prey selection by tigers (Panthera tigris) in a semi-arid, dry-deciduous forest in western India. J. Zool., 2003, 260, 285–290.

  • Harihar A., Population, food habits and prey densities of tiger in Chilla Range, Rajaji National Park, Uttaranchal, India. Masters’ dissertation, Saurashtra University, Rajkot, 2005.

  • Ramesh, T., Prey selection and food habits of large carnivores (tiger, leopard and dhole) in Mudumalai Tiger Reserve, Western Ghat, India. Ph D thesis, Saurashtra University, 2010, p. 178.

  • Ilyas, O., Status and conservation of ungulates in the Kumaon Himalaya with Special Reference to barking deer (Muntiacus muntjac) and goral (Nemorhaedus goral). Ph D thesis, Aligarh Muslim University, Aligarh, 2001.

  • Ilyas, O., Khan, J. A. and Khan, A., Status, distribution and conservation of deer populations of oak forests in Kumaon Himalayas, India. In Advances in Deer Biology (ed. Zobborszky, Z.),

  • Tipo-Express Ltd, Kaposvar, Hungary, 1998, pp. 18–24.

  • Cairns, A. L. and Telfer, E., Habitat use by 4 four sympatric ungulates in boreal mixed-wood forest. J. Wildl. Manage., 1980, 44, 849–857.

  • Forbes, G. J. and Theberge, J. B., Multiple landscape scales and winter distribution of moose, Alces alces, in a forest ecotone. Can. Field-Nat., 1993, 107, 201–207.

  • Mitchell, B., Rowe, J. J., Ratcliffe, P. R. and Hinage, M., Defecation frequency in roe deer (Capreolus capreolus) in relation to the accumulation rates of fecal deposits. J. Zool., 1985, 207, 1–7.

  • Rowland, M. M., White, G. C. and Karlen, E. M., Use of pelletgroups plots to measure trends in deer and elk populations. Wildl. Soc. Bull., 1984, 12, 147–155.

  • Neff, D. J., The pellet group count technique for big game trend, census and distribution: a review. J. Wildl. Manage., 1068, 32, 597–561.

  • Stormer, F. A., Hoekstra, T. W., White, C. IVI and Kirkpatrick, C. M., Frequency distribution of deer pellet groups in southern Indian. J. Wildl. Manage., 1977, 41, 779–782.

  • Putman, R. J., Competition and Resource Partitioning in Temperate Ungulate Assemblies, Chapman and Hall, London, UK, 1996, p. 131.

  • Dinerstein, E. and Dublin, H. T., Daily defecation rate of captive axis deer. J. Wildl. Manage., 1982, 46, 833–835.

  • Anon., Phase 1 of Ken-Betwa river link project gets all clearances.

  • The Hindu, 2 July 2017; https://www.thehindubusinessline.com/ news/national/phase-1-of-kenbetwa-river-link-project-gets-all-clearances/article9781741.ece (updated 11 January 2018).

  • Karanth, K. U. and Sunquist, M. E., Population structure, density and biomass of large herbivores in the tropical forests of Nagarahole, India. J. Trop. Ecol., 1992, 8, 21–35.

  • Rahmani, A. R., India. In Antelopes. Part 4: North Africa, the Middle East, and Asia (eds Mallon, D. P. and Kingswood, S. C.), Global Survey and Regional Action Plans, IUCN, Gland, Switzerland, 2001, pp. 178–187.

  • Fuchs, E. R., Behaviour. In The Axis Deer in Texas (ed. Ables, E. B.), Ceasar Kleberg, Texas, USA, 1977, pp. 24–52.

  • Sharma, K., Distribution, status, ecology and behaviour of the four-horned antelope Tetracerus quadricornis, Ph D thesis, University of Mumbai, Mumbai, 2006.

  • Sharma, K., Chundawat, R. S. and Rahmani, A. R., Resource selection by four-horned antelope Tetracerus quadricornis in a tropical dry deciduous forest. Hystrix Ital. J. Mammal., 2007, p. 568.

  • Leslie, D. M. and Sharma, K., Tetracerus quadricornis (Artiodactyla: Bovidae). Mammal. Species, 2009, 843, 1–11.

  • Wattenberg, I. and Breckle, S., Tree species diversity of a premontane rain forest sin the Cordillera de Tilaren, Costa Rica. Biotropica, 1995, 1, 21–30.

  • Lieberman, D. and Lieberman, M., Forest tree growth and dynamics at La Selva, Costa Rica (1969–1982). J. Trop. Ecol., 1987, 3, 347– 358.

  • Swine, M. D., Lieberman, D. and Putz, F. E., The dynamics of tree populations in a tropical forest: a review. J. Trop. Ecol., 1987, 3, 359.

  • Campbell, D. G., Daly, D. C., Prance, G. T. and Maciel, U. N., Quantitative ecological inventory of Terra Firme and Várzea Tropical Forest on the Rio Xingu, Brazilian Amazon. Brittonia, 1986, 38, 369–393.

  • Chandrashekara, U. M. and Ramakrishnan, P. S., Vegetation and gap dynamics of a tropical wet evergreen forest in the Western Ghats of Kerala, India. J. Trop. Ecol., 1994, 10, 337–354.

  • Brown, R. J. and Curtis, J. J., The upland conifer–hardwood communities of southern Wisconsin. Ecol. Monogr., 1952, 22, 217–234.

  • Colopy, C., Ken to Betwa, the link that destroys. 15 October 2018; https://indiaclimatedialogue.net/2018/10/15/ken-to-betwa-the-linkthatdestroys

  • Singh, R., Kumar, A. and Singh, P. S., Spatial analysis of tiger habitat suitability in Panna Tiger Reserve of Madhya Pradesh, India. Life Sci. Bull., 2013, 10, 95–98.

  • Anon., Composite water management index. NITI Aayog Report No. 218, 2019; https://niti.gov.in/sites/default/files/2019-08/CWMI2.0-latest.pdf


Abstract Views: 325

PDF Views: 126




  • The Inter-Linking of Rivers and Biodiversity Conservation: A Study of Panna Tiger Reserve, Madhya Pradesh, India

Abstract Views: 325  |  PDF Views: 126

Authors

Talat Parveen
Department of Wildlife Sciences, Aligarh Muslim University, Aligarh 202 133, India
Orus Ilyas
Department of Wildlife Sciences, Aligarh Muslim University, Aligarh 202 133, India

Abstract


The Panna tiger reserve is one of the best examples of the most successful tiger re-introduction programme from zero tiger in 2009 to 54 in 2019. The Government of India has approved the proposal of interlinking of the two rivers, viz. Ken in Madhya Pradesh and Betwa in Uttar Pradesh, to provide surplus water to the local population of drought prone areas of Bundelkhand, UP. This river interlinking will be submerging around 58.03 sq. km of the Critical Tiger Habitat. Our study on vegetation and major prey species of tiger shows higher densities in submerged areas. The NITI Ayog report of 2019 provided one of the best example of the locals of Jakhni village of Banda district of Bundelkhand which managed the severe water crisis. The sensitivity of tiger reserve that project involves need a close attention, which this essay attempts at arguing.

Keywords


River Linking, Submerged Area, Tiger Reserve, Ungulates Density, Water Crises.

References





DOI: https://doi.org/10.18520/cs%2Fv121%2Fi12%2F1572-1583