Madhya Pradesh’s Pench sanctuary and Kerala’s Periyar sanctuary emerged as the best managed tiger reserves in the country, according to an evaluation of India’s 50 tiger sanctuaries released along with the 4th National Tiger Estimation (Tiger census).
Pench made the cut for its season-wise biodiversity plan as well as flying squads and tactical patrolling for managing security. There were regular meetings with local communities and funds collected from tourism were largely making it to the authorities for conservation purposes, the report added.
The sanctuaries, which spanned 80 States, were divided into five geographic clusters. On the whole, the Western Ghats cluster comprising reserves in Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Karnataka scored an average of 81%. These included the tiger reserves at Bandipur, Nagarhole, Bhadra, Billigiri-Ranganatha Swamy Temple, Kali, Periyar, Perambikulam, Sathyamangalam, Mudumalai, Anamalai, and Kalakad-Mundantharai.