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Journalism of Courage
After being the only state with lions,Gujarat may also get tigers. Minister of Environment and Forests Jairam Ramesh has written to Gujarat proposing that tigers be translocated to the state. The Wildlife Institute of India (WII) has been asked to conduct a technical study on this.
While many see this as a strategy to get lions from Gujarat for translocation to another site outside the state,Ramesh maintains this will complete the tiger landscape across central and upper India.
There were tigers in Gujarat till 10 years ago. I was looking at the map of India and realised that all the states in northern India like UP,Rajasthan,MP have tiger reserves,except for Gujarat. Having a project tiger reserve here will be good for the state, Ramesh said.
Addressing Gujarat at a National Conference of state Forest Ministers,Ramesh told Gujarati officials: We know lions are Gujarati pride. But we want them to be Indian pride. As per information,if tigers are translocated to Gujarat,these are likely to be brought from Madhya Pradesh. The idea is that lions be given to the same state,MP,by Gujarat in return.
However,Gujarat Forest Minister Mangubhai Patel said at the conference,Gujarat is the right home for lions. The sites being looked into for tiger re-introduction are Surpaneshwar near Narmada Dam and Dang. Both sites are extensions of the Western Ghats. The tiger can certainly be brought in here, said a WII scientist.
