No tiger in Sanjay Tiger Reserve also, says official

BHOPAL: After Panna, Sanjay Tiger Reserve in Madhya Pradesh may have faced a similar fate with a top official saying that no tiger was sighted in the sanctuary between October 2008 and May 2009.

"No tiger was officially sighted between October 2008 and May 2009 in Sanjay Tiger Reserve," C K Patil, who was posted as director of Sanjay Tiger Reserve during the period, said over phone.

Patil is currently posted as director of Bandhavgarh Tiger Reserve while the new director of Sanjay Tiger Reserve has not taken charge as yet.

According to an official census of Madhya Pradesh carried out in 2004, Sanjay Tiger Reserve, spread over in more than 800 sq km in Sidhi district, had six big cats.

The state government, last week, presented a written reply to a question relating to the dwindling number of tigers in the Assembly, has not mentioned the name of Sanjay Tiger Reserve or its census report, along with the census details of other Reserves, carried out in 2006.

Sanjay Reserve, in undivided Madhya Pradesh had the highest tiger population in 1992 of 36, according to state forest department census.

After Madhya Pradesh was divided in 2000, a large part of the then Sanjay National Park went to Chhattisgarh, forest officials said.

Chhattisgarh government renamed this forest area falling under its jurisdiction as Guru Ghasidas National Park in an area of 1,500 sq km, they said.