In the lap of Alwar’s Aravalli Hills lies the stunning splendour of the Sariska Tiger Reserve (STR). This national park contains mountains, grasslands, dry deciduous forests and cliffs which span over 800 square kilometres. It is home to numerous animals like tigers, jungle cats, rhesus macaques, sambhar, chital, wild boar, sand grouse, harbor quails, crested serpent eagles and many more species.

　　To protect the habitats of nonhuman animals from the adverse impacts of vehicular traffic, the Central Empowered Committee (CEC) of the Supreme Court of India had recommended a ban on the entry of private vehicles by March 2025, and the creation of a special tiger protection force, in a 262-page report that was submitted this month.

　　On August 7, 2024, a Supreme Court bench acted upon the report by directing the Rajasthan government to introduce electric shuttle buses for pilgrims who visit the Pandupole Hanuman Temple which is located 22km inside the core area. The bench also confirmed the deadline of March 2025 for the replacement of private vehicles with electric buses to ferry pilgrims.

　　The Background

　　The STR sees heavy traffic of unregulated vehicles as a large number of devotees visit the numerous temples inside the reserve. In its report, the CEC found that 75,353 private vehicles with pilgrims plied inside the STR in 2023-24, of which 35,483 were cars; 34,406 were two-wheelers; and 464 were buses. In order to reduce the number of vehicles, the report mentioned that other options of transportation such as tramways, elevated roads and motorable twin tunnels or ropeways could be considered based on feasibility studies.

　　The CEC report also detailed the impact on aspects of tiger conservation like their breeding and habitat. The increase in human visitor numbers had resulted in habitat degradation, pollution, encroachment and fragmentation, further exacerbating the challenges faced by the wildlife populations, the report said. Thus, the CEC recommended the creation of a Special Tiger Protection Force in the STR.

　　“Given the increasing number of tigers in STR and villages present in and around the tiger reserve, the chances of man-animal conflict and poaching remains high. Hence, it is very important to raise and deploy the Special Tiger Protection Force in Sariska Tiger Reserve,” the report said.

　　The CEC is a court-appointed monitoring body that reviews development activity within forest areas. Their report also talked about the stringent management of hotels and resorts that function in the buffer zones, an increase in the number of field staff, and the need for better infrastructure within the reserve.

　　The State Government's Response

　　Shiv Mangal Sharma from the Rajasthan Government Counsel informed the Supreme Court bench that the state had in principle accepted the CEC’s recommendation on utilising the services of electric shuttle buses to make arrangements for pilgrims visiting Pandupole Hanuman Temple or any other shrine inside the forest. He added that the state is already working on a proposal to deploy 21 electric buses that will be funded by the ICICI Foundation. These buses, as per the suggestion of the CEC, will ply the route from the Sariska to Tehla gates.

　　With regard to other alternative measures suggested by the CEC, Sharma asked for some time to hold deliberations. There were concerns about the feasibility of an elevated road or skyway as well as the timeline laid down by the CEC to start the operation, he told the bench.

　　Sharma also addressed the CEC’s concern about the lack of field officers and staff, promising to work with the state’s chief secretary to resolve these issues and ensure proper management of the tiger habitat.

　　On the CEC’s observations that all hotels and resorts in the buffer area must have permission from the National Board for Wildlife (NBWL) and the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA), as required by the law, Sharma said the state would set up a committee to look into this aspect. In case any commercial activity was found to be in violation of the law, demolition action would be initiated against them, he told the bench.

　　(With inputs from multiple news sources)