MP's Raisen To Become Next Urban Tiger Destination As Tigress Rescue Plan Shelved

Raisen in Madhya Pradesh is set to become the next urban tiger destination, following Bhopal. The proposal to rescue a tigress near the historical Raisen fort has been abandoned. Instead, the forest department plans to fence the fort with assistance from the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI). The fort is currently closed to the public due to the presence of the tigress; visitors are only allowed up to the Shiva temple under the supervision of forest department officials, while the rest of the fort remains inaccessible to tourists.

Once the fencing project is completed, Raisen fort will be opened for tourism. Raisen district forest officer Prathibha Shukla explained that the rescue plan was dropped because if the tigress were to be rescued, the other three tigers or tigresses that have been moving in the lower areas of the fort would likely move into the fort area as well.

As with Bhopal's urban tigers, residents of Raisen will eventually have to coexist with the tigers. Forest department sources revealed that the Raisen fort area and surrounding regions are rich in prey base and water sources, and the area features cliffs, making it an ideal habitat for tigers. To prevent any man-animal conflict, the forest department has placed around two dozen personnel on duty in three shifts.

Additionally, the Madhya Pradesh government recently transferred 32 IAS officers as part of a major reshuffle, with Ajay Kumar Devwal becoming the new Additional Commissioner of Bhopal Municipal Corporation.