Dudhwa Tiger Reserve, May 27, 2014:  Wildlife Trust of India (WTI), in collaboration with the U P Forest Department, supported by Aircel, installed ten solar street lights in the fringe village of Azad Nagar (bordering Sathiyana Range of Dudhwa Tiger Reserve). The village is frequently visited by large carnivores such as tigers and leopards and since they have excellent night vision, this puts villagers and their livestock at the risk of being attacked in the dark. WTI team has taken the initiative to install solar street lights in the region so as to reduce such encounters in the future.

“This initiative is an experiment to observe the impact of lighting and reduction in human-carnivore conflict. As most villages along forest fringes lack adequate lighting, people venturing out in the dark only increases the chances of them encountering big cats, and thus escalates chances of human casualties. This effort is a big step in reducing such casualties. However, increasing the scale of this initiative and providing more conflict prone villages with such technological advancements is important, and would go a long way in mitigating human- carnivore conflicts in the region,” said Dr Mayukh Chatterjee, Officer in Charge of the project, WTI.

The distribution ceremony in progress. Photo: Dr Devdendra Chauhan / WTI

Due to the proximity of the village to Dudhwa Tiger Reserve, the villagers were also informed about importance of wildlife and how they can help conserve Dudhwa Tiger Reserve. Dr Sandeep Kumar Tiwari, Regional Head of the Terai Region of WTI said, “By taking such initiatives we will get support from the community for conservation which is the sustainable way out for tiger and human co-existence in the region.”

WTI’s U P Carnivore Conservation Project, aided by Aircel, endeavours to bring down the chances of human-carnivore conflicts in Dudhwa Landscape, in collaboration with the State Forest Department. The project has carried out many awareness campaigns and workshops to stimulate the community towards importance of forests and big cats with assistance of State Forest Department. The team has done numerous carnivore rescues in the region and has sensitised media especially towards importance of conservation of wildlife in the region.

One of the solar lights post-installation at a beneficiary’s house.
Photo: Dr Devendra Chauhan / WTI

Around 100 villagers attended in the programme. The villagers thanked WTI and Aircel for their help. “The smile on the faces of children and families after using solar light has encouraged us to continue our work and support the families living in the fringes of Dudhwa Tiger Reserve,” said Dr Devdendra Chauhan, Project Lead of UPCCP, WTI.