Deserted Look 'Animal Sanctuaries' in Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh could be sitting on an expansive forest area with four national parks and 23 wildlife sanctuaries but more than half of these jungle belts currently have little or no wild animals to boast of. Apart from a few species of birds and butterflies, a poor population of deer and a stray tiger, these state sanctuaries are no longer home to any other wild beasts, especially large mammals, which were once found in abundance in these forests.

On this list of near-deserted sanctuaries are the Kinnerasani Wildlife Sanctuary (Khammam), Rollapadu Bustard Sanctuary (Kurnool), Sivaram Wildlife Sanctuary (Adilabad), Pakhal Wildlife Sanctuary (Warangal), Kawal Wildlife Sanctuary (Adilabad) and Eturangaram Wildlife Sanctuary (Warangal), among others in and around Tirupati and the Araku Valley. Throbbing with animals right from tigers to cheetahs, wolves, crocodiles, elephants, sambars, gaurs and even deer about a decade ago, these sanctuaries now stand without much wild habitation. If Kinnerasani, which at one point of time was among the most popular tiger-sighting zones of AP, now has just a few drab-looking deer enclosures, the Bustard Sanctuary is today left with only a couple of terrestrial birds. Sivaram synonymous with its crocodile population has close to none now while the entire herd of tigers from Pakhal has been wiped out.

Both are currently surviving on a poor collection of bird species.

“In fact this is true of most sanctuaries and national parks in the state, barring the Nagarjunasagar-Srisailam Tiger Reserve (NSTR), which has seen a stead improvement in its tiger count over the years,” said wildlife expert Farida Tampal. NSTR at present has approximately 60 tigers. “But in the rest of the state, the count of the animal is an appalling 10 or less. This shows that the wildlife wing of the state has been concentrating only on one area, while the rest of the equally potential sanctuaries continue to remain neglected,” Tampal added. That there is sadly no proper count of AP’s wildlife wealth, despite the Wildlife Protection Act making it mandatory for states to maintain such records, only makes matters worse, she said.

Further, adding to the misery of these wildlife zones is the heavy deforestation and poaching activities that have shot through the roof with time, say environmentalists. Be it alienation of forest land under the Forest Rights Act (land given to tribals who could prove ownership) or unbridled growth of timber mafias or even the unchecked access of shooters in these sanctuaries, all have together spelt doom for AP’s wild animal wealth, they say.

“It is time that the government and bureaucracy looked into the issue of wildlife more seriously. If neighbouring states such as Orissa and Maharashtra can maintain their thick forests, despite implementing the Forest Rights Act (AP gave away a whopping 14 lakh hectares under the policy) why can’t the state,” questioned Anil Kumar Epur, advisory board chairman, World-Wide Fund for Nature (WWF-AP Chapter) reminiscing how in the past areas such as Pakhal had anywhere between 30-40 tigers, among other animals, at any time of the year. This, however, is history now.

“But such situations in states like Maharashtra and Karnataka have been dealt with strongly and a proper management programme has ensured that the number of animals like tigers or even elephants is restored. This has also led to a surge in revenue collection from the states’ sanctuaries. There is something AP can learn from them,” stressed wildlife biologist Imran Siddiqui.

But forest officials aren’t convinced. Quoting the clichéd ‘man-animal conflict’ crisis, they say such drop in wildlife wealth is inevitable. “As a policy of the central government we have had to give away huge tracts of forest land to tribals. That has automatically cut down the space for wild animals,” said K S Reddy, additional principal chief conservator of forests (APCCF), AP adding, “But then sanctuaries like NSTR are thriving. It is among the most prominent breeding grounds for tigers in the country.”