According to forest officials, the fencing around the kodo millet farm was broken by elephants before they entered it to eat the plants on the intervening night of October 28 and 29, 2024.
| Photo Credit: A.M.FARUQUI

Veterinarian Dr. Nitin Gupta, Wildlife Health Officer at Madhya Pradesh’s Bandhavgarh Tiger Reserve (BTR), has been transferred, three weeks after 10 elephants died after eating fungal-infected kodo millet crops in the forest, as per a Forest Department order issued on November 19.

The 10 elephants had died in BTR between October 29 an 31, prompting investigations by multiple agencies. Earlier, Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Mohan Yadav had suspended the then Field Director of BTR Gaurav Choudhary for not returning from his leave and an assistant conservator of forest for negligence in the incident. 

Dr. Gupta was the lone veterinarian posted at the Tiger Reserve and had returned from Jabalpur to treat the elephants after he got the news on October 29. 

He has now been moved to Maharaja Martand Singh Judeo white tiger safari and zoo in Satna district’’s Mukundapur, while Dr. Rajesh Tomar, posted as the Wildlife Health Officer there, has been moved to Bandhavgarh. 

Speaking to The Hindu earlier, Dr. Gupta had said that he was travelling to Jabalpur for his wife’s medical appointment and immediately returned to deal with the situation. 

Before he arrived at the scene, the BTR management had called in various local vets and vets from nearby national parks. 

Many officials at BTR also said that Dr. Gupta had led the charge and supervised the treatment process for two days. 

BTR’s new Field Director Anupam Sahay also said that it was necessary to provide the Health Officer with a team, including an assistant vet, a cameraperson and a computer operator to maintain records. 

Dr. Gupta had also highlighted that that the Tiger Reserve also lacked a permanent facility to treat the rescued animals and that he mostly operated by travelling to the location where they were found. 

Bhopal:

Eight elephants have died in 48 hours in Madhya Pradesh’s Bandhavgarh Tiger Reserve; seven were found dead on Tuesday and an eighth carcass was found Wednesday. Seven of the dead elephants were females, each around three years old. The eighth was a four-five-year-old male.

The condition of a ninth elephant – of a herd of 13 – is critical, wildlife officials have said.

A tenth that was receiving medical care has recovered and has been released.

The three remaining members of the herd are under close observation.

A three-member team from the NTCA, or National Tiger Conservation Authority, is in Bandhavgarh, while a five-member team from the Principal Chief Conservator of Forests is conducting an independent inquiry, the report of which will be filed in 10 days.

The primary suspected cause of death is poisoning.

Wildlife officials have searched over a dozen farms and houses in the area in which the elephant carcasses were found, and have questioned five people. The investigation area is spread over a five km radius and over 100 forest officials, including a canine squad, have been deployed.

Among other points being investigated are if the animals ate Kodo millet seeds; these can become dangerous if contaminated with a fungus that produces a toxic substance called cyclopiazonic acid. Samples have been collected from faecal matter, soil, and nearby plants.

Samples from nearby fields and crops, and a watering hole, will also be studied.

Possible man-animal conflict with villages in the area is also a concern.

The investigation, however, is being hampered by the presence of a larger and more aggressive herd of elephants – with around 20 individuals – in the area, as well as three tigers.

READ | 7 Elephants Dead In Bandhavgarh Tiger Reserve In Madhya Pradesh

Meanwhile, the bodies of the eight elephants have been buried.

The Bandhavgarh reserve was in the news in August after a spate of tiger deaths prompted a major administrative shake-up. A special report – highlighted by NDTV on August 1 – pointed red flags in the department’s handling of tiger deaths, including procedural lapses and negligence by officials.

NDTV’s reportage helped shed light on the worrying increase in tiger deaths in Bandhavgarh and the Shahdol forest area between 2021 and 2023. As many as 43 tigers died in this period. Some deaths were linked to poaching and others to negligence by wildlife officials.

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Bhopal:

Initiating action after an NDTV report on the alarming rise of tiger deaths in the Bandhavgarh Tiger Reserve, the Madhya Pradesh Forest Headquarters has issued notices to the reserve’s deputy director and officials from the Shahdol Forest Division.

In a report on August 1, NDTV had highlighted the deaths of 34 tigers in the Bandhavgarh Tiger Reserve and nine in the Shahdol Forest Circle over the past three years, prompting wildlife enthusiasts to demand a CBI inquiry into the matter.

Forest Minister Ramniwas Rawat said on Thursday, “This matter has come to our notice and a central investigation team reached Bandhavgarh yesterday. The central team stayed there all day, gathering complete information and preparing a report. I would like to thank the NDTV team for exposing this. NDTV has worked responsibly for the betterment of wildlife and forest areas, and we hope they will continue to do so in the future.”

The NDTV investigation revealed that not only did 34 tigers die in the Bandhavgarh Tiger Reserve but there were also attempts to cover up the deaths by attributing them to fights among the big cats. In March, the Principal Chief Conservator of Forests formed a three-member committee to investigate these deaths.

The report, a copy of which is with NDTV, uncovered the following lapses:

• Videography of postmortems was not conducted in all cases.
• Preliminary Offence Report (POR) for tiger deaths was not recorded in most cases.
• There was an absence of prescribed veterinarians for postmortems, and most parameters were not followed.
• Efforts to protect crime scenes were inadequate, and dog squads or metal detectors were not used.
• Sample collection and sealing were poorly handled, affecting the chain of custody during court cases.
• Case diaries or documentation were often not prepared.
• Final NTCA reports were not submitted in several cases by officials from both the Bandhavgarh Tiger Reserve and Shahdol Forest Range.
• Many cases of tiger deaths were superficially classified as infighting without a thorough investigation.
• Postmortem reports often lacked signatures from the concerned veterinary officers and in some instances, no wildlife medical officer was present.

Madhya Pradesh is known as the ‘tiger state’ and over 1,000 employees and officers are posted in the  Bandhavgarh Tiger Reserve, prompting activists to question why the deaths are still taking place.

Wildlife activist Ajay Dubey also pointed to a “leadership crisis”.

“The important point raised in NDTV’s report about the absence of a permanent director in Bandhavgarh is also true for Bhopal. There has been no full-time Chief Wildlife Warden or PCCF (Principal Chief Conservator of Forests) Warden posted for a long time. There is a leadership crisis, and action should be taken here as well. Criminal cases should be filed against those guilty in Bandhavgarh for colluding with poachers,” Mr Dubey said.

Sources indicated that the report has caused a significant stir within the forest department and some senior officials could also face repercussions soon.

A day after NDTV published an exclusive report on a concerning surge in Madhya Pradesh tiger deaths, a prominent wildlife activist has called for a CBI investigation into the matter and the state government has assured action. The report, which was based on findings from a report ordered by the forest department, uncovered alleged negligence and procedural lapses in handling tiger cases, raising serious concerns about the state of wildlife conservation in the region.

Noted wildlife activist Ajay Dubey said, “A black spot in Madhya Pradesh was the complete elimination of tigers in Panna Tiger Reserve in 2009. At that time, an investigation report indicated that international smugglers were active in the state and that forest officers were involved in tiger poaching. This situation seems to be repeating in Bandhavgarh. Given the involvement of forest officers, we think that the CBI, with its expertise in cases of tiger poaching and wildlife, should investigate this matter.”

Mr Dubey pointed out that the investigation into tiger deaths in the Shahdol division indicates the involvement of a crime syndicate, hunters and local forest officials.

“Whenever hunting takes place inside the forest, the intelligence failure of the forest department helps hunters succeed. No preventive raids have been conducted and the hunters who were caught could not be convicted due to insufficient evidence. The court acquitted the accused due to a lack of scientific evidence. The entire matter demands a thorough inquiry,” he said.

Government’s Response

Madhya Pradesh Minister of Forest and Environment Ramniwas Rawat has assured that action will be taken. “You have given me the information, I will get the report and take appropriate action,” he said.

READ | Alarming Rise In Tiger Deaths in Madhya Pradesh Reserve: Report

On March 6, 2024, Shubh Ranjan Sen, the in-charge Principal Chief Conservator of Forests, submitted a report exposing an alarming number of tiger deaths and hunting incidents within the Bandhavgarh Tiger Reserve and its surrounding forest divisions. According to the reserve, 12 tigers died in 2021, nine in 2022 and 13 in 2023.

According to the report, the major causes of tiger deaths over the past three years include electrocution, conflict, disease/illness, old age, organ capture, poisoning, road accidents and “uncertain causes”. The highest mortality was observed in the Manpur buffer zone, followed by the Tal, Magadhi, and Khitauli core areas. There was an overall increase in mortality in 2023.

Some of the lapses uncovered by the report were:

• Videography of postmortems was not conducted in all cases.
• Police Occurrence Report (POR) for tiger deaths was not recorded in most cases.
• There was an absence of prescribed veterinarians for postmortems, and most parameters were not followed.
• Efforts to protect crime scenes were inadequate, and dog squads or metal detectors were not used.
• Sample collection and sealing were poorly handled, affecting the chain of custody during court cases.
• Case diaries or documentation were often not prepared.
• Final NTCA reports were not submitted in several cases by officials from both the Bandhavgarh Tiger Reserve and Shahdol Forest Range.
• Many cases of tiger deaths were superficially classified as infighting without a thorough investigation.
• Postmortem reports often lacked signatures from the concerned veterinary officers and in some instances, no wildlife medical officer was present.

The tiger population in Bandhavgarh Tiger Reserve increased from 63 in 2014 to 165 in 2022, but this was accompanied by a concerning rise in tiger deaths. The report highlights that the increasing number of tigers and developmental activities have led to an increase in conflicts between them, as well as fatalities.