Agitating villagers promised a survey of land holdings

After a week-long closure, forced by an agitation by villagers living on the periphery, the Sariska Tiger Reserve in Rajasthan's Alwar district has now re-opened for visitors. The stir, led by Bharatiya Kisan Union, proved yet another blow to the reserve, struggling to regain its past glory in the wake of re-introduction of tigers.

Hundreds of the farmers who were protesting against the relocation of their villages started a sit-in in front of the entrance of the gate. On Wednesday, hundreds of villagers had gathered for a mahapanchayat against the government order of not letting the farmers sell off their lands because of the ban on selling and purchasing of property nearby the reserve.

JAIPUR: Hundreds of the villagers living in the periphery of Sarika tiger reserve on Tuesday blocked the gates to the forest and gheraoed the employees in protest against relocation of the villages nearby the reserve.

"If the state government will not solve our problems varying from the land related disputes and our relocation, we will intensify the agitation," said Bhupat Balayan, a local farmer leader.

Wilting under pressure from the Centre and after constant raps by the Supreme Court, the state government has now put a step forward in stopping illegal mining. A special 1000-member team, to be christened Mining Protection Force, will be set up to curb illegal mining in the state.

The state has long been battling illegal mining right from Alwar to Jaisalmer but in vain. While the police had recently detained over 100 people in Bharatpur engaged in illegal extraction of stones, in Jaisalmer mining near the airport has become a threat to its existence.

After Panna's successful rewilding, Sariska is sanguine

First there was the Sariska debacle in which all the tigers were found missing in the reserve in Rajasthan's Alwar district sometime in 2004-05. Then there was similar misfortune in Madhya Pradesh's Panna Tiger Reserve in February 2009 — the wild cats became extinct there.

ALWAR: The state forest department along with Wildlife Institute of India (WII) would soon be relocating a tigress to Sariska that had strayed into the Sultanpur area of Kota from the Ranthambore tiger reserve.

A team of experts from the WII and the state forest department are camping in Kota to trace the tigress.

JAIPUR: Tracking of tigers through radio collars at Sariska Tiger Reserve will soon become passe as the wildlife department plans to monitor the activities of tigers and other animals through globa

Umri is the second village to be relocated allowing more space for wild animals

Almost five years after the first re-location of a village, inhabitants of another settlement inside the Sariska Tiger Reserve in Rajasthan's Alwar district have moved out lock, stock and barrel, allowing more space for the wild animals and the existing population of tigers. The residents of Umri, village of Gujjar settlers, left last week for Rundh Mozpur, some 40 km away.

Alwar: A 50-member team that went to Kahrani village in Alwar district to stop illegal mining on Sunday was attacked by the illegal miners.