Four lane highway to destroy Indian tiger corridor

Do we want roads for our cars – or a home for our tigers?

December 2011: The face-off between development agencies and environment conservationists is once again at the fore with the issue of expansion of India's National Highway (NH) in the central state of Maharashtra.

HOMELESS: The tiger's habitat in India is becoming increasingly fragmented. Picture: Vivek Menon

The National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) recently rejected the plan of the National Highway Authority of India (NHAI) for mitigation of damage to wildlife due to the expansion of highway NH6.

This is one of the most important landscapes for tigers
While the expansion work - turning the road into a four-lane highway - is already underway, it is an 85km stretch running through a tiger corridor that is the cause for conflict between the two bodies.

The Nagzira-Nawegaon corridor connects nine tiger reserves in central India and is also included in the proposed Nagzira- Nawegaon Tiger Reserve. The corridor connectivity presently remains as two narrow strips of forest running almost parallel to each other, connecting Nagzira Wildlife Sanctuary in the north and Nawegaon National Park in the south. The corridor's contiguity is broken by NH6 crossing East-West.

‘This is one of the more important landscapes for tigers, supporting about one-sixth of the world's tiger population, said Dr MK Ranjitsinh, the chairman of the Wildlife Trust of India (WTI).

Mitigation measures need to be put in place
After a legal fight, the WTI has succeeded in halting the work until mitigation measure are put in place.

The subsequent NHAI report had suggested creation of three-metre-high underpasses in critical sections of the corridor for animals to cross through. It had recommended chain-link fencing in other areas to compel the animals to use these underpasses, and stop them from crossing the highway in other areas to prevent road hits.

‘This recommendation was literally amounting to narrowing down the corridor further and leaving only a few small passes for the animals,' said Prafulla Bhamburkar, of the Wildlife Trust for India (WTI)

Now, with the NHAI-recommended plan rejected, the WTI has been brought in to develop a new one.

Meanwhile, it emerged that even with the expansion work already in progress, NHAI has violated the Forest Conservation Act (FCA).

‘The FCA necessitates clearance by the National Board for Wildlife (NBWL) for any developmental activities within 10km radius of the country's protected areas. This was not adhered to,' said Bhambhurkar.