29 Katarang Villagers Allege Duping By Angul Wildlife Officials Over Relocation Package

By SANTOSH MOHANTY

Twenty nine families belonging to Katarang village under Tikarapara gram panchayat in Satkosia Wildlife Sanctuary region in Angul district have alleged that forest officials have duped them over full package of compensation of relocation package.

They have submitted a memorandum to the President Draupadi Murmu through the District Collector recently in this regard urging her to give them justice. They alleged that the wildlife officials have been harassing them and have bulldozed their houses without their concurrence.

Aggrieved villagers of Katarang on dharna

Reports said of the 120 families, 72 families were given evacuation notice to leave the village in the first place and the rest were asked to leave their homestead land at the earliest to the enable the forest officials to complete the relocation process.

Worthwhile to mention here that this relocation is being done for converting the sanctuary to a full-fledged tiger reserve in Satkosia. Villagers said they were promised Rs 20 lakh per family as compensation to leave their village for good.

The 29 aggrieved families of Katarang alleged that the forest officials threatened them with dire consequences if they dare to oppose the demolition. Some even alleged that their names were not enlisted for the purpose and the officials did not cared for their complaint.

The 29 aggrieved villagers in their memorandum to President Murmu alleged that "Katarang is not located in the Critical Tiger Habitat(CTH) nor the village comes under Critical Wildlife Habitat(CWH) of Satkosia Tiger Reserve and therefore they do not pose any threat to tigers". They further alleged that the relocation was unjust as they pose no threat to the tiger habitat in the sanctuary.

The villagers in their resolution alleged that the gram sabha(village meeting) was never convened by Tikarapara panchayat  for discussion of relocation issue. P K Behera, an wildlife activist said the "relocation has not been done properly as it violates wildlife Act of 1972 of 38(V), section 4 and 6 of forest protection Act 2006 and rehabilitation and resettlement Act of 2013".

Houses in Katarang reduced to rubble by wildlife officials

Behera alleged that the motive behind the relocation is under suspense as the wildlife officials have hurriedly convened the village meeting without the concurrence of gram panchayat to discuss the issue. The forest department has no authority to convene gram sabha and it is the sole prerogative of the panchayat, he added.

The social activist further alleged that the wildlife officials of Angul Division have virtually forced the villagers to toe their line in the name of a fake resolution passed in the gram sabha.

A compensation amount of Rs 20 lakh per family does not constitute the full package, Behera said and added that the wildlife officials have ignored other compensation that constitute the full package.

A few years ago, Raiguda village under Bantala forest range in Angul district was relocated to ensure a lively tiger reserve in Satkosia, but the villagers relocated at 'New Raiguda' near Nuakheta cry for lack of basic amenities such as road connectivity and drinking water. Now Raiguda villagers repent that their relocation was unjust and unnecessary. The wildlife officials have failed to protect leopards, let alone breeding Royal Bengal Tigers(RBTs) in Satkosia Wildlife Sanctuary, the villagers said and added that their sacrifice of livelihood and homestead land for the sake of RBTs has become meaningless.

The male RBT 'Mahaveer' has died a few years ago and the tigress 'Sundari' was relocated to Madhya Pradesh forest after she turned man-eater. The so-called tiger reserve in Satkosia is now without big cats.   

Katrang Villagers Adamant On Relocation

By SANTOSH MOHANTY

The ongoing tussle between the villagers of Katrang under Purunakote police station in Angul district and the forest officials seems to have reached a flashpoint as both are stuck to their viewpoint over relocation of the village to make way for Satkosia Tiger Reserve.

While the villagers are adamant that the administration must provide them suitable land for shifting to a new place, the forest officials have offered them nearly Rs 20 lakh for each family as a package for relocation. Katrang is an interior hamlet situated in the core area of Satkosia Wildlife Sanctuary. This village is sparsely populated with nearly one hundred tribal families.

Some villagers said they knew how people of Raiguda went to through the travails of relocation. They have to struggle for several months to get basic amenities.

Sources at district administration indicated that the process of relocation of Katrang is being done and the villagers are being persuaded to shift to other places. Asanabahali village, also situated in the core area, is being shifted due to the tiger reserve, the sources said and added that earlier Raiguda village was relocated for such purpose.

Worthwhile to mention that the forest staff of Angul, Dhenkanal, Athamallik and Athagarh divisions have mounted search operation in Satkosia Wildlife Sanctuary to trace the tigress which has gone missing since November last year. The female RBT's images could not be captured by powerful cameras fitted at different locations in the jungle fuelling speculation that the big cat has either been killed or died following protracted illness due to injuries. Officials of Angul Wildlife Division, however, are optimistic that the tigress would be found soon.

Local NGOs working for conservation of wildlife opined that missing of only RBT for months has blurred the image of Tiger Reserve and Satkosia's status as such could not be tenable now. It is high time that the wildlife wing must take the initiative for translocation of RBTs from other states for keeping the status of a Tiger Reserve alive, they added.      

Satkosia: Scrapping Of Tiger Reserve Status Gains Momentum As Lone RBT Not Spotted Yet

By SANTOSH MOHANTY

Environmentalists have demanded that the status of Tiger Reserve given to Satkosia Wildlife Sanctuary be scrapped immediately as the lone tigress has either been killed or died due to illness.

The tigress was not found in the surveillance cameras fitted in dense forest locality in the sanctuary  since November 23 last year. While officials of Angul Wildlife Division maintained that the female RBT is alive and moving all around the jungle, they however have failed to answer why the powerful camera lenses could not capture its image nearly two months after it has gone missing.

The wildlife officials including Divisional Forest Officer(DFO) have been stressing that there is every possibility that the maimed tigress might have taken shelter under bushes in the interior jungle pockets in the sanctuary for which it has remained out of camera range. They said efforts are on to find out the tigress as forest staff has fanned out to possible hideouts where the big cat might be resting due to illness.

Environmentalists alleged that officials of wildlife forest division in Angul were never concerned about the wellbeing of the lone tigress moving in and around the sanctuary for quite some years. They further alleged that the Government of India has been pouring huge sum amounting to crores of rupees for ensuring safe habitat for RBTs in Satkosia after it was declared a Tiger Reserve 14 years ago, but precious little has been done in this regard. The environmentalists leveled severe allegation that the earmarked sum for conservation of tigers was squandered away and misappropriated.

Satkosia Wildlife Sanctuary in Angul district is spread over 795 sq km and was bustling with 18 RBTs in 2004. But, the tiger census conducted in 2018 confirmed that only one tigress was surviving. Nature lovers at Tainsi, Purunakote and other areas in Satkosia Wildlife Sanctuary have been alleging that the forest officials never initiated efforts to identify the reason behind the animal's illness and did not try to attend to the ailing animal by qualified Vets.

The National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) had twice tried to relocate two RBTs, Mahavir and Sundari, in Satkosia Wildlife Sanctuary in 2018 for conservation of big cats, but it was not successful due to several factors. While Mahavir, which was brought from Kanha national park died, Sundari was relocated back to its parent location at Bandhavgarh as it turned man eater. A team from Madhya Pradesh tranquilized Sundari at Purunakote forest after a number of attempts to tame it.