Rajaji Park emerges from the shadows of Corbett Tiger Reserve. Finally

Concluding one of the most remarkable and elaborate tiger-relocation exercises in India last week, five tigers have been shifted from the Corbett Tiger Reserve in Uttarakhand to the neighbouring Rajaji Tiger Reserve. Speaking with The Federal, the Field Director of Corbett Park, Dr. Saket Badola said the completion of the mission, which started four years ago and went through several ups and downs, has infused the entire forest department of the state with "a great sense of achievement".

Why relocation was needed

The need for relocation arose because while Corbett Park, the more illustrious brother of the two reserves falling in the same state, has the highest number of tigers in the country, 262-plus by the last count, Rajaji faces a severe shortage of big cats, at least in its western zone.

Also read: SC orders creation of panel to assess ecological damage in Corbett Tiger Reserve

The river Ganges neatly bisects Rajaji Park into two large swathes. While the eastern part, with its Chila range, has a healthier population of 50-odd tigers, the western part is a study in contrast. Till a decade ago, it held just three tigers, two females and a male. After the male tiger died, the two females also passed away, leaving the huge western chunk of forest bereft of any tigers.

The difficult task ahead

Entered National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) into the picture and in 2016, it gave its go-ahead to the Uttarakhand Forest Department for the transfer of five tigers from Corbett to the western part of Rajaji. But it was easier said than done.

The uphill task had just begun.

As Dr. Badola recalled (he was earlier the Field Director of Rajaji Park), "The entry to the western zone near Motichur posed lots of problems. The highway between Haridwar and Rishikesh, running at a kissing distance from the forest, saw movement of thousands of vehicles every day. An ammunition dump of the Indian Army and a railway line crossing in the vicinity didn’t make things easier for us.’’

Also read: How tiger poachers are dabbling in a dangerous game of drugs

It took the forest authorities of Uttarakhand close to three years to overcome some of the obstacles and make the western Rajaji habitat suitable for new tigers. For instance, grassland management. Clearing the grasslands of weeds and populating these with sufficient prey animals for the tigers took considerable time and effort.

First sign of success

The tigers started coming into Rajaji from Corbett at regular intervals. The first one, a female, arrived on December 23, 2020, followed by a male tiger on January 9, 2021, and then two more females in May 2023 and March 2024.

But Mother Nature, at times grateful but often completely cold to humans’ best-laid plans, did not play along on the expected lines. One of the females conceived and gave birth to four cubs. Was this the moment of reckoning everybody was waiting for? It could have been, but tragedy awaited the mother. Two of her cubs were killed by a leopard, and the remaining two were swallowed by unseen forces of the forest.

Fortunately, the pall of gloom that fell on Rajaji after this tragedy was short-lived.

Soon, another female gave birth to a cub, and right now the kiddo is doing well!

Last week, the fifth tiger, a male, was shifted to Rajaji Park. Explaining the significance of this development, Dr. Badola said, "The western zone of the Park can hold 30 tigers. We hope their numbers will increase in due course of time. Besides being a momentous achievement in conservation, the changed scenario will also give a fillip to nature tourism in Rajaji Park.’’

Importance of Rajaji Park

For several decades, Rajaji Park was content to exist in the shadows of Corbett Tiger Reserve, the latter being much more popular and more sought after by tourists and wildlife enthusiasts.

Also read: A tiger too many? The big cat in India walks into uncharted territory

But thanks to some active steps taken by the Forest Department of Uttarakhand, Rajaji Park has finally emerged from the shadows of Corbett Tiger Reserve.

Another important development that made life easier for the wildlife was the construction of an elevated highway between Haridwar and Dehradun.

The highway, which became a reality only a few years ago, enabled the movement of wild animals, including tigers and elephants, from one bank of the Ganges to another.

Interestingly, plans are afoot to put at least five more tigers in Rajaji. These too will be shifted from Corbett Park, but the Uttarakhand authorities have yet to approach the NTCA in the matter.

A tiger-rich Rajaji Park, points out Dr. Badola, will also benefit Uttar Pradesh and Haryana, as from its western-most point, the forests in the Shivalik range extend right up to these two states. A viral social media post, showing how a herd of elephants recently walked all the way from Rajaji to the jungles of Kalesar in Haryana, could be a pointer to nature’s power of assertion even in the face of obvious odds.