Actor Amitabh Bachchan and cricket legend Sachin Tendulkar have been called upon by the Maharashtra government to help in tiger conservation by assuming the role of Tiger ambassadors for the State.
In two detailed letters, State Forest Minister Sudhir Mungantiwar has urged the celebrities to contribute as “Tiger ambassadors” to the cause of “awareness regarding conservation and protection of the endangered species as well as boost Tiger tourism.” Maharashtra has six Tiger reserves.
“Time has come where tiger conservation should become a peoples’ movement. This is one issue where I seek your personal help and that is a request to you to represent the State as its Tiger Ambassador,” Mr. Mungantiwar wrote to Mr. Bachchan.
The Minister evoked scenes from Mr. Bachchan’s film Mr. Natwarlal where the actor had to ward off a tiger attack. “The fight here is different though. From reel life to real now we now seek your assistance. Considering your stature and following amongst all sections of society, any appeal made by you to get support of the people in the task of saving the tiger will certainly go a long way in helping us in protecting the species,” Mr. Mungantiwar said.
Calling upon Mr. Tendulkar as Maharashtra’s Bhoomi Putra (son of the soil), the Minister compared him to the tiger. The Korku tribals in the State’s Melghat Reserve consider the tiger a god, referring to it as “Kula Mama.” “You are also known as the god of cricket,” Mr. Mungantiwar said.
The Melghat Tiger Reserve in Amravati district was the first Tiger Reserve in the State and is also amongst the first nine Tiger reserves which were brought under the Project Tiger umbrella way back in 1973In the nineties, two more Tiger reserves, the Tadoba-Andhari Tiger reserve in Chandrapur district and Pench Tiger Reserve in Nagpur, were brought under the Project Tiger.
In 2010, the Chandoli National Park and the Koyna Sanctuary were jointly notified as the Sahyadri Tiger Reserve, which became the fourth Tiger Reserve in the State. With the recent addition of the extended Nazgira Navegaon and Bor Sanctuary , the figure has touched six.
The tiger population in the State increased from 103 in 2006 to 169 in 2010, as reported in the Tiger ESstimation exercise conducted every four years. The 2010 and 2014 status report clearly showed that tiger habitats outside the reserves were declining, and corridors were being decimated and fragmented, Mr. Mungantiwar said.
