�Bhopal: Madhya Pradesh on Monday got its ninth tiger reserve with the Centre designating Ratapani wildlife sanctuary located close to Bhopal as a tiger reserve.
The National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) has given its in-principle approval to Ratapani wildlife sanctuary as a tiger reserve, a spokesman of the forest department here said.
With this Bhopal has earned the rare distinction of being the only state capital in India having a tiger reserve in its proximity.
“Bhopal will now gain the identity of tiger capital”, the spokesman said.
The newly designated Ratapani tiger reserve will have a total area of 1271.465 sq kms, comprising a core area of 763.812 sq kms and buffer area of 507.653 sq kms.
Madhya Pradesh got its eighth tiger reserve with the Centre designating Madhav National Park in Shivpuri district in the state as a tiger reserve on Sunday.
The technical committee of the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) approved the proposal to notify Madhav National Park as a tiger reserve on Sunday, additional principal chief conservation of forest (PCCF) (wildlife) L Krishnamoorthi said on Monday.
The proposed Madhav tiger reserve will have a total area of 1751 sq kms, comprising core area of 375 sq kms, and buffer area of 1276 sq kms.
The NTCA has also approved the release of one male tiger and one female tiger in the reserve.
Seven other tiger reserves in Madhya Pradesh are Kanha, Satpura, Bandhavgarh, Pench, Sanjay Dubri, Panna and Veerangana Durgavati.
Kuno National Park, home to African cheetahs, is close to Madhav National Park.
“The conservation initiative by the Madhya Pradesh government will strengthen wildlife management in Madhav National Park and Kuno National Park. It will bring about ecotourism benefits to local communities and development of the region”, the forest officer said.
A tiger introduction project was launched in Madhav National Park in 2015 with the release of a tiger and a tigress in the park.
The park has now two cubs born out of the tiger couple.
Madhya Pradesh has the highest number of 785 tigers in the country as per the latest census of the big cat.