Assam’s Manas Tiger Reserve 63% short of sanctioned staff, Environment Minister told

Source: The post is based on the article “Assam’s Manas Tiger Reserve 63% short of sanctioned staff, Environment Minister told”  published in The Hindu on 5th August 2023.

What is the News?

The All India Tiger Estimation 2022 has indicated that Assam’s Manas National Park and Tiger Reserve is moving from a low to high-tiger-density area.

This is bad news for the Manas National Park as it is almost 63% short of staff.

What is Manas National Park?

Manas National Park is located in Assam. It is a UNESCO Natural World Heritage site, a tiger reserve and a biosphere reserve. 

Manas is located at the foothills of the Eastern Himalayas.

Origin of name: The name of the park originated from the Manas River. The Manas river is a major tributary of Brahmaputra River, which passes through the heart of the national park.

It shares a common border with the Royal Manas National Park of Bhutan. 

Vegetation: The monsoon forests of Manas lie in the Brahmaputra Valley semi-evergreen forests ecoregion. 

– The combination of Sub-Himalayan Bhabar Terai region with riverine succession leading up to the Himalayan subtropical broadleaf forests makes it one of the richest biodiversity areas in the world.

Fauna: The Park is home to many endangered species like Assam roofed turtle, golden Langur, hispid hare, and pygmy hog. It is also famous for its wild water buffaloes. 

Village: There is only one forest village, Pagrang, in the core of the national park. Apart from this village 56 more villages surround the park.

Threats: Manas National Park faces threats such as encroachment (for farm activity), impact from upstream hydroelectric projects in Bhutan, improper protection and management of grasslands, invasive plants as well as some amount of poaching.