The ill-fated sanctuary.
Sariska, Alwar, Rajasthan, India.
Spread across 866 km of a dry and dusty stretch of hilly Aravali terrain, the Sariska Tiger Reserve is a portrait of an untamed Indian jungle with its collage of deciduous forests, seasonal freshwater lakes, dense shrubs, thick undergrowth and wildlife. Historically, the reserve was the hunting grounds of the Ranas (Kings of Rajasthan) and the nobility, before being reorganized as a wildlife reserve in 1955 and becoming a part of Project Tiger in 1979.
In 2005 the tiger reserve was the first to enter history as the only one to lose its entire tiger population to poachers and the first to successfully reintroduce the felines back into the region (see Farbound.Net snippet: Roaring once more) – under the Sariska relocation project, that transferred a total of seven tigers into the reserve from the Ranthambhor National Park, located some 173 kilometres away in southeastern Rajasthan.
The tiger decimation in Sariska is widely known to be the work of criminal mastermind Sansar Chand, a local of Alwar, Rajsthan. According to the investigating authorities, Chand was a notorious smuggler and the main accused behind the systematic slaughter of wildlife at Sariska – for the illegal sale of animal parts and skins to buyers in Nepal and Tibet, and was evident from a raid on a storage depot he used in Delhi, testimony of the men he hired for the task, and his personal diaries containing details of the illegal activities.
An NDTV news bulletin published in 2010 stated Chand, in a career spanning some thirty odd years, had been arrested a dozen times for animal slaughter but never convicted as the prosecution had been unable to build a solid case. Succumbing to advanced-stage tumour in 2014, aged 55, he is considered to be India’s biggest wildlife criminal – with 50 cases of killing and animal cruelty. After the Sariska incident, Chand remained in custody for nine years.
Present.
Yet, and inspite, a healthy re-bounce, wildlife officials, continue to express concern over the fate of the tigers, especially in the wake of mining activities and the presence of old villages within the area, particularly after an incident that took place barely five years after the reintroduction of the felines in which two men were arrested for poisoning one of the relocated tigers. The official tally is currently estimated to be around thirteen felines – nine adults and four clubs. The tiger reserve is cared for and guarded by the Rajasthan Forest Department. Reallocation of villages within the area, is an ongoing process.
Presently, the sanctuary is popular as a weekend getaway for residents of nearby cities including Delhi. In ancient times the region was also home to the Vedic Matysa clan, references of which can be gleaned from the epic Mahabharata – a people who likely created one of the earliest idols of Hanuman, now within a modern-day temple complex at Pandupol. The tiger reserve also encompasses the ancient fort of Kankawadi built by the Rajput King Jai Singh II and the ruins of Neelkanth temple dedicated to Lord Shiva.
