Move to shift Project Tiger office draws flak

‘Keeping officer away not a wise move’

Swift interactions and remedial actions require that offices are situated closer to the field.

The move to shift the office of the Additional Principal Chief Conservator of Forests - Project Tiger from Coimbatore to Chennai has drawn flak from nature enthusiasts and NGOs working in wildlife conservation.

About four years ago, an office for Project Tiger was established in Coimbatore in a bid to have the official closer to the field. The objective of locating the office at Coimbatore was to ensure instant, swift communication and co-ordination among the field directors of Project Tiger. At present, Shekhar Kumar Niraj, an IFS officer in the rank of Additional Principal Chief Conservator of Forests (APCCF), is posted for the Project Tiger.

Coimbatore region in its close proximity has tiger reserves such as Anamalai Tiger Reserve (ATR), Mudhumalai Tiger Reserve (MTR) and later came the Sathyamangalam Tiger Reserve (STR). The only tiger reserve of Tamil Nadu which is located away is the Kalakkad Mundanthurai Tiger Reserve (KMTR) in Tirunelveli district.

In addition, accessibility to the nearest tiger reserve of neighbouring States is also easy from Coimbatore for example the Bandipur Tiger Reserve in Karnataka is just abutting the MTR. On the other side, the Parambikulam Tiger Reserve of Kerala is just abutting the ATR. Even access to Periyar Tiger Reserve of Kerala is easy from Coimbatore.

Several inadequacies

The office for tiger reserve is already plagued with so many infrastructural inadequacies and in the name of overcoming the same, shifting of the office to Chennai for the sake of infrastructure is not a solution. It is only shifting the problem, sources said.

Keeping the office of a supervisory officer away from the field is not a prudent move, says Mohammed Saleem of Environment Conservation Group (ECG).

Endorsing the opinion, K. Kalidasan of Osai says that effective, instant and swift interactions and remedial actions require that offices are situated closer to the field.

The head of the project being closer to the field is far more important in the event of an incident or an offence. The person can reach the spot within two to three hours by road. Coimbatore is also well connected by air and rail, says N.I. Jalaludeen of Nature Conservation of Society. When the superior sits far away, the chances of slackness or complacency setting in among the field level staff is high, he expressed concern. Forest officials refused to comment on the move.