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first came to what is now the state “If you acknowledge that there is a tiger, then you are responsible for its of Jharkhand, then south Bihar, protection also. If you don’t acknowledge, the tiger doesn’t exist on Iin the summer of 1997, record and if it is missing or something unpleasant happens to it, you are to investigate a report by the environmental and cultural activist not held accountable. That’s why it was neglected,” S.E.H. Kazi, Divisional CONSERVATION Jharkhand’s VANISHING WILDLIFE CORRIDORS by Philip Carter Bulu Imam that wildlife corridors Forest Officer (2005) important for tigers and elephants were under threat by numerous opencast coal mines. As I travelled from Hazaribagh dismissed as degraded forest without any District had reported a large, male tiger through the upper Damodar river valley large fauna. However, just a few days on (possibly the same seen by villagers in and on to the Palamau Tiger Reserve with the road interviewing villagers had Jawardih) in the Hazaribagh Wildlife Imam, I was pleasantly surprised by the revealed a different picture. Even the Sanctuary. According to him, this was sheer vastness of the forests that still tiger, the very symbol of India’s wild the first time that a tiger had been existed, and also by the rich, agricultural heritage, was probably present and identified here in more than a decade. It lands worked on by the adivasis, the surviving by preying on cattle. Santhal had not been easy to get official tribal people indigenous to the region, adivasi villagers in the village of Jawardih confirmation of the tiger’s presence and with black plough buffaloes as it had about 30 km. to the east of Hazaribagh they had initially dismissed it as either a been for thousands of years. As I realised had even seen a tiger cub in 1997. mistaken identification or a false story how much of the upper Damodar valley Fast-forward nine years to September planted by villagers to get cattle had been slated for mining, the scale of 2006. I returned to what was now the compensation. Kazmi himself had been the possible impact hit home. Adivasi newly-formed “Forest State” of skeptical and had assumed it was a villages would be cleared, and both Jharkhand. My first stop was Jawardih leopard. The photograph of the 14 cm. agricultural land and wildlife corridors again, where I interviewed 70-year-old pugmark, however, convinced him and destroyed, setting the scene for a Lumbu, a former professional tracker. He he approached superiors to get an official humanitarian and ecological crisis of informed me that villagers had seen tracks acknowledgement. staggering proportions. of a large male tiger over the last few weeks. “The point is, because of the tiger After publishing an article A plough bullock had recently been crisis or because of the issues involved, on Hazaribagh in Sanctuary in October killed in the forests of the nearby the authorities knew it was a transitory 1997, I continued to work with Imam Hazaribagh escarpment, which still tiger, and that maybe after some time it and with Sanctuary on the international connects the Hazaribagh Wildlife would go back somewhere,” said Kazmi. campaign that subsequently developed. Sanctuary to the west. He added that if officials were to In 2000, I made the first of two return In 2005, S.E.H. Kazmi, the then acknowledge the presence of the visits to the region, finding to my dismay Divisional Forest Officer of Hazaribagh tiger in their records, then after the that it was no longer wise to travel into the coal mining areas. I heard disturbing stories of journalists who had been beaten up and their equipment taken, apparently by security goons hired by coal companies. Deciding that discretion was the better part of valour, I did not attempt to travel again through the area. A TRANSITORY TIGER? In 1997, the concept of wildlife corridors was still an alien notion to those who carried out MAP NOT TO SCALE, MAP COURTESY CISHME Environmental Impact Assessments sponsored by the World Bank. Large areas of pristine agricultural land and jungles of sal indigenous to the region were Elephants are known for their extraordinary migrations in search of food. Destruction of ancient migratory corridors (see map) by illegal coal mining financed by the World Bank has left the pachyderms stranded and resulted in increased human-animal conflict. A.CHRISTY WILLIAMS Jharkhand’s Vanishing Wildlife Corridors 43 Pg 42-47 JHARKHAND – PHIL CARTER.p65 42-43 1/23/2007, 9:51 PM CYAN MAGENTA YELLOW BLACK #150 CYAN MAGENTA YELLOW BLACK #150 analysis. Kazmi also confirmed the through the Social Forestry Division in “While elephants generally migrate in order to find food, tigers generally continuing presence of the tiger when I the state’s kitty bag.” migrate for mating, indicating that there can be differences between the interviewed him in October 2006. UNRAVELLING ELEPHANT PHILIP CARTER terrain of tiger and elephant corridors.” – Bulu Imam The corridor being utilised by the MIGRATION ROUTES tiger had been studied by the Wildlife I travelled to the state capital of Trust of India (WTI) in 2003, in Ranchi to raise these issues with the which is spread over the corridor from cooperation with the Hazaribagh Jharkhand Forest Department. Ranchi Dalma to Bandwan in West Bengal,” chapter of the Indian Trust for Art and seemed bigger and busier than I said Kumar. In addition to enriching Cultural Heritage (INTACH), of which PHILIP CARTER remembered in 1997, with an the corridor to encourage elephants not Bulu Imam is Regional Convener. His atmosphere reminiscent of a “boom to stray towards villages, protective son, Justin Imam who carried out the town” in America’s old “Wild West” when measures have also been taken. “We study, had travelled through the lush gold had been found. Indeed, this part have also erected 42 km. of solar- countryside on a motorbike to locations of the subcontinent has been called powered fencing in addition to the where human-elephant conflicts had India’s “Wild East” with mining 25 km. installed last year, and by that occurred. Through this method, it was companies clamouring to get their hands Lumbu, a 70-yeard-old Santhal adivasi and we have protected six or seven villages possible to build up a picture on a map on the natural riches beneath the state’s professional tracker from Jawardih confirmed that from the elephants,” he added. The of the route used by the elephants. This villagers had seen tracks of a large, male tiger in soil. Lakshmi Mittal, whose steel empire fencing is right around the villages, was not an easy job and he was even the forests of the Hazaribagh escarpment. Getting is the world’s biggest, completed a nine- official confirmation of this transitory tiger, with gates where people and livestock questioned at times by suspicious billion-dollar deal last year that will give however, proved to be extremely difficult. can pass. These steps have reduced members of Jharkhand’s grinding him access to the high-quality ore mines human-elephant conflict considerably Naxalite insurgency, which has been sanctuary all year round. The migrating in Jharkhand. Smart new hotels are along this corridor and villagers have fuelled in recent times by a large number elephants have wreaked havoc over the springing up to serve business travellers. expressed appreciation as well. of villagers, usually adivasis, displaced years, straying into rice paddy fields in Solar-powered fencing also won the PHILIP CARTER On the main highway leading into by coal mining. search of fodder, and occasionally Ranchi from the north, I saw another stamp of approval from Dr. P.S. Easa The corridor Justin had studied damaging houses and injuring or killing side of this economic bonanza. Every day, of the Wildlife Trust of India (WTI), crosses a wide swathe of northern people. “In the migration route, there are hundreds of men, mostly adivasis which recently published Right of Jharkhand, from the Palamau Tiger some areas of degraded forest, which we displaced by mining, push bicycles laden Passage, a book detailing elephant Reserve in the west through the districts have tried to rejuvenate with plantations corridors across India. Dr. Easa says, with bags of coal into town for sale. These of Latehar and Chatra, before of fodder species, mostly bamboo and “It is definitely a good move. Solar- “coal-pushers” sell coal obtained by what connecting with the forests of by completely avoiding exotic species,” powered fencing is considered to be the government terms “illegal mining”. Hazaribagh and Koderma. Other says Kumar. one of the best options for conflict Entire families of dispossessed adivasis corridors to the south of this which This is, however, just one of the mitigation provided it is maintained go underground in disused coal mines, connected to Palamau through the five migration routes used by the periodically by cutting the vegetation upper Damodar watershed have risking frequent roof collapses, fires and Dalma elephants. The forest touching the wires and repairing any become highly stressed, and perhaps police harassment to get this coal. department says they are tackling one damage, and ensuring that there is broken, due to coal mining-related I visited the Jharkhand Forest at a time and will initiate action enough power.” Though he felt that activity. Justin considered the aggressive Department in the ornate colonial period depending on the response here. “This planting fodder species may not be the behaviour of the elephants as evidence building that it uses as its headquarters, year, we have planted 296 ha. of land, best option as it encourages elephants of the deteriorating condition of and found that it has been taking some positive action on wildlife corridors.

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