The Sunabeda Wildlife Sanctuary is located in the Nuapada district of Odisha, India. Spread over an area of nearly 600 square kilometers, it is home to a diverse flora and fauna, especially tigers. As per recent news, the Odisha government has prepared a proposal to declare Sunabeda Wildlife Sanctuary as a tiger reserve.
Significance of Upgrading Sunabeda to a Tiger Reserve
Upgrading Sunabeda to a tiger reserve will help strengthen tiger conservation efforts in Odisha.
- As per the 2018 tiger census, Odisha has 28 tigers across three reserves – Similipal, Satkosia, and Mahanadi.
- Establishing a new tiger reserve at Sunabeda will help increase this count and the tiger population in the state. It will also help protect the biodiversity and ecosystem of the region.
- The Nuapada district where the sanctuary is located is quite underdeveloped. Converting Sunabeda to a tiger reserve will attract more tourists, generate employment for locals, and boost infrastructure development in the area.
- The tourism potential of this largely unexplored wilderness area can be fully tapped.
Wildlife at Sunabeda
Sunabeda Wildlife Sanctuary has a significant tiger population, along with leopards, striped hyenas, Indian wolves, sloth bears, and dhole or Asiatic wild dogs.
- Herbivores like chital, sambar, nilgai, four-horned antelope, and gaur are found here.
- The avifauna is also impressive with over 200 species of birds identified. Some unique bird species spotted here include the endangered red-headed vulture, Pallas’s fish eagle, white-rumped vulture, Egyptian vulture, and hill myna among others.
- A variety of reptiles like cobra, krait, python, monitor lizard, star tortoise, and numerous lizard species also inhabit the sanctuary. The cool hill streams harbor fish like the endangered mahseer.
- Overall the sanctuary has diverse flora and fauna, appropriate for a tiger reserve aiming to conserve biodiversity.
Threats Facing the Sanctuary
As per reports, the rich wildlife of Sunabeda faces various threats from poaching, mining activities in surrounding areas, habitat loss, and human-animal conflicts.
- Tigers often stray out into nearby villages in search of easy prey like livestock. This leads to retaliation from locals impacting the big cat population.
- Other animals like leopards and elephants also damage crops and property.
- Poaching of animals like deer, tigers, bears, monitor lizards, and tortoises for the illegal wildlife trade occurs despite patrols by forest guards.
- The area also sees encroachment by villagers for fuelwood and grazing livestock inside the protected area destroying the habitat. Addressing these threats is essential for conservation.
Proposed Strategies as a Tiger Reserve
Once approved as a tiger reserve, Sunabeda will receive focused funding and management for tiger conservation.
- As per news reports, the proposal aims to strengthen anti-poaching measures, relocation of vulnerable villages from the core area, enhanced water and fodder provisioning to reduce human-animal conflict, fire protection of the habitat, and more.
- Tourism in buffers will be regulated as per NTCA guidelines for tiger reserves. This will benefit both wildlife and people.
- Overall the aim is to secure this habitat so it can sustain a viable, breeding tiger population besides protecting other biodiversity as well.
Challenges in Conversion to Tiger Reserve
While conservationists have welcomed the Sunabeda tiger reserve proposal, some challenges need addressing. The biggest is managing local community dependence on the sanctuary for livelihoods like fuelwood, fodder collection, grazing, and minor forest produce harvesting. Simply relocating villages or blocking access can backfire and fuel resentment. Sustainable solutions that align conservation aims and development needs are vital.
- Staff shortage and lack of resources to effectively manage a larger protected area could be another hurdle.
- Coordination between the forest department, revenue officials, local leaders, policymakers, and other stakeholders needs streamlining for smooth conversion to a tiger reserve.
- Striking a balance between tourism revenue and habitat protection will also be critical.
The rich biodiversity of Sunabeda Wildlife Sanctuary merits increased protection and conservation focus. Upgrading it to a tiger reserve will boost wildlife populations, habitat security, tourism potential, and livelihood opportunities for locals. However, sustainable strategies are vital considering dependence of bordering villages on the sanctuary for survival.
