Five new sites in India are all set to be converted into a tiger reserve this year, taking the total count of tiger reserves to 56. The Central Government has granted permission to three new sites. The leftover will soon be approved. The three approved sites are MM Hills in Karnataka, Guru Ghasidas National Park in Chhattisgarh and Ramgarh Visdhari in Rajasthan. The other two are Dibang Wildlife Sanctuary in Arunachal Pradesh and Kaimur Wildlife Sanctuary in Bihar.
"Since three sites have already got the Centre's approval, the concerned states will now have to formally notify these areas as TRs. On the other hand, the National Tiger Conservation Authority has communicated in-principle approval for two sites, soliciting detailed proposals from the states under the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972," said an official. NTCA recommends the proposal to the state after due diligence. All 51 TRs together cover over 73,765 sq. km of area. "All five new sites are expected to be formally notified before the Global Tiger Summit which is to be held at Vladivostok, Russia later this year," said the official.
