Man-animal conflict dominated the year Vulture conservation a positive sign in State

 

 

After dominating Chandrapur and Brahmapuri forest divisions, the issue of man-animal conflict entered in Nagpur forest division, which is posing challenge to the State Forest Department as the issue is spreading like a virus with passing of every year. Earlier the issue of man-animal conflict was mainly restricted in rural areas of Vidarbha, but in 2025, this menace is now haunting the citizens of Nagpur city as well. Nagpur city, which is surrounded with tiger reserves and wildlife sanctuaries, is now facing the problem of man-animal conflict since last one year as many human-leopard encounters took place. Bhandewadi dumping yard area is a hot bed of such encounters as many leopards have started entering Nagpur city from Umred Forest Division for easy pray in form of stray dogs and dumped carcass of domestic animals in dumping yard. Recently, a couple of leopard-human encounters in Bhandewadi and Pardi areas, raised tremendous panic among residents. Even, in one incident, the leopard also injured seven persons of Pardi area. The issue turned so grim that the leopard-human encounter in Pardi area was raised in the Winter Session of State Legislature.

 

 

As the year 2025 comes to an end, the year witnessed second highest tiger deaths in country as 36 big cats died due to various reasons. Madhya Pradesh once again topped the list with 48 deaths. Electrocution, road accidents, poisoning and territorial fights are the major reasons of these deaths in the State. In State, Chandrapur reported the highest number of tiger deaths followed by Nagpur district.

 

 

On wildlife conservation front, the Forest Department with the help of Bombay Natural History Society (BNHS) released more than 40 captive vultures into wild and got success in that initiative as two vultures out of many got survived into the wind along with their wild counterparts. Forest Department conducted this project in Tadoba-Andhari Tiger Reserve (TATR), Pench Tiger Reserve (PTR), and Melghat Tiger Reserve (MTR) to increase the population of critically endangered vulture species in Central India.

 

 

To mitigate increasing tiger population in territorial forest areas in the State, the Forest Department is now working on the development of wildlife corridors as majority of sub-adult tigers are now entering in such forest areas in search of their new territories. As the tiger population increased in tiger reserves and protected areas (PAs). the sub-adult tigers are preferring to move into territorial forest areas for its territory, where they get easy pray in form of cattle. Such dispersal causes man-animal conflict. F2 tigress and her five cubs of Gothangaon forest area in Umred Paoni Karhandla Wildlife Sanctuary (UPKWS), who are very popular among tourists, have now started dispersing to forest fringes in search of new territory. Keeping this in mind, the Forest Department is constantly monitoring their movement and planning to establish a new Transit Treatment Centre in Paoni to conduct quick rescue of big cats in case of man-animal conflict. 

 

 

The harsh decision of mobile ban during jungle safari in State was also criticised by tourists and wildlife lovers this year. Forest Department took the decision of mobile ban after a group of safari vehicles with tourists surrounded F2 tigress with her five cubs during safari which was raised concern in the wildlife and legal fraternity. To curb such incidents in future, the Forest Department banned mobile phones inside protected forest areas.