Archives: Arunachal Pradesh

Pakke has recorded a density of only 1.9 tigers per 100 square km compared to Kaziranga’s tiger density of 32 per 100 square km, the highest in the world, says a report in the Telegraph. Three months ago in April, Kaziranga had recorded the estimated highest density, overtaking the previous highest recorded density of 19.6 tigers per 100 square km found at Corbett Tiger Reserve. However, the good news at Pakke is that the density of tigers is up slightly from the 1.15 per 100 square km recorded in 2006. Besides, a clouded leopard (Neofelis nebulosa) has been captured on camera for the first time in the reserve.

There was no basis for the report of a tiger being killed by villagers in Arunachal Pradesh's West Siang district last month as claimed by a national tv channel and a local daily on January 25, police sources have said. The Assistant Superintendent of Police of West Siang H Lalin went to the village in Namuk area, 30 km from the headquarters town to investigate on Friday, they said. The investigation was carried out at the request of the forest department. "If anything of this sort happened it could not be possible without our knowledge and we would have taken action against the wrongdoers, whether they belonged to the community or outside," the village head told the police investigators.

The police and forest department of Arunachal Pradesh (AP) have sealed Namuk village. Tribals of Namuk allegedly killed the tiger and brought it to the village, says a Mid Day report. [Link] "We have deployed a team of cops at Namuk village that is investigating the case and recording every movement of people coming to the village. Strict information has been given to the cops to not allow any unknown people in the village for the time being," said Tusar Taba, superintendent of police, Along district, AP.

An adult Royal Bengal Tiger was hunted down in a remote tribal village in West Siang district of Arunachal Pradesh and his killers skinned it to devour his meat, says a Pioneer report. The death of the majestic Bengal tiger weighing about 100 kg came to light following a report in a local daily of the State on Monday. “Frankly speaking, we also came to know about this tragic incident only through a local media report,” said a State wildlife official, who didn’t wish to be named. He said the district administration, police and forest department (wildlife) officials are trying to investigate the incident. The details: [Link]

Takin, the animal that is said to have fuelled the mythological Argonauts’ quest for the Golden Fleece, has been officially sighted for the first time in India. The ‘success’ has come almost two decades after the Dehradun-based Wildlife Institute of India had undertaken an exercise. The fur of the Mishmi Takin isn’t golden like its Chinese cousin — Shanxi or Golden Takin. But the first officially recorded sightings of the former in Upper Siang district of Arunachal Pradesh have assured wildlife enthusiasts thatthe animal, a goat antelope, still exists. “We have had a number of direct sightings of takins following a survey conducted in Upper Siang district,” said Soumya Dasgupta of the Wildlife Trust of India.

The Himalayas, loved by tourists and trekkers alike for its hiking trails and pristine beauty, is now under the watch of conservationists who have begun a campaign to protect its high-altitude wetlands, says a report in the Deccan Chronicle. “The Himalayas are very fragile, its wetlands host endemic species and the rivers in the area play an important role in sustaining the local communities. Rising tourist activity and the humongous solid waste management problem is posing a serious threat to all this,” says Archana Chatterjee who heads a conservation programme in the region. Details: [Link]

The elephant population in the Northeast has recorded an alarming decrease since the past one-and-a-half decade, according to the Assam tribune. Excerpts: [Link]

The Namdapha tiger reserve authorities need to relocate the Lisu tribals living in the core area of the park for wildlife conservation, but find themselves impeded by the twin problems of where and how to move them out, according to a report in the Telegraph. The Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972 as well as the Scheduled Tribes and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights) Act, 2006, require that people staying in core areas be resettled for providing inviolate spaces to tigers/wild animals. Details from the report: [Link]