Rajasthan to develop corridor connecting 3 tiger reserves

What is the News?

The Rajasthan government will develop a tiger corridor connecting the newly proposed ‘Ramgarh Tiger Reserve’, Ranthambore Tiger Reserve, and Mukundra Hills Tiger Reserve.

About the Proposed Tiger Corridor

• The Proposed Tiger Corridor will be developed by relocating eight villages.
• The corridor is being developed to deal with the issue of overpopulation of tigers, which Ranthambore tiger reserve is facing currently.
• Ranthambore Tiger Reserve has a population of around 65 tigers currently. On the other hand, Mukundra reserve is left with just one Tiger.
• Thus, this tiger corridor is proposed to balance the population distribution.

What is the Tiger Corridor?

• A tiger corridor is a stretch of land which links 2 or more tiger habitats, allowing the movement of tigers, prey, and other wildlife.
• Without corridors, tiger habitat can become fragmented, and tiger populations isolated.

Note: Ramgarh Vishdhari wildlife sanctuary has recently received a nod from the National Tiger Conservation Authority’s (NTCA) technical committee to become the 4th Tiger reserve of Rajasthan.

About Mukundra Hills Tiger Reserve(TR):

• Mukundra Tiger Reserve(TR) is located near Kota, Rajasthan. The Mukundra Hills was declared a Wildlife Sanctuary in 1955 and a National Park (Mukundra Hills (Darrah) National Park) in 2004.
• River: The reserve is located on the eastern bank of the Chambal River and is drained by its tributaries.
• Mountains: The park is situated in a valley formed by two parallel mountains viz. Mukundra and Gargola.
• The Tiger Reserve constitutes 3 Wildlife Sanctuaries viz; Darrah, Jawahar Sagar, and Chambal.

About Ranthambore Tiger Reserve:

• Ranthambore National Park and Tiger Reserve is located in Rajasthan. It is located at the junction of the Aravali and Vindhya hill ranges.
• River: The park is bounded to the north by the Banas River and to the south by the Chambal River.
• Named after: The park is named after the historic Ranthambore Fort, which lies within the park.
• Comprises: Two protected areas namely Kailadevi Wildlife Sanctuary and Sawai Mansingh Wildlife Sanctuary are linked by narrow corridors to the core of Ranthambore NP and all these together comprise the Tiger Reserve.