Gandhi Sagar will be the new home of leopards, will be built at a cost of crores of rupees
Shadab Chowdhury/Mandsaur. A new home for leopards is being built at the Gandhi Sagar reservoir in Mandsaur district of Madhya Pradesh and a high security system is also being put in place for it. The sanctuary will be a safe place for special players and staff for leopards, using solar powered electronic wire fencing. Along with this, food and security arrangements are also being made for the leopards. The project is estimated to cost around Rs 30 crore, and the Gandhi Sagar Sanctuary is expected to see leopards on the move by January.
A fence is being constructed in an area of 64 sq km.
Asia’s largest man-made lake is located in Gandhi Sagar in Mandsaur district. A 64 square kilometer enclosure is being constructed for leopards in the sanctuary near Gandhi Sagar Lake. Also, 12,500 pits have been dug here and pillars have been installed at a distance of every 3 meters. A 28 km long and 10 feet high wall is being constructed with wire fencing on these pillars. Solar cables are being placed 3 feet above the wall. The cables will be powered by a solar system. Cheetahs will receive severe electric shocks if they attempt to cross any distance under any circumstances. The fencing work is at the final stage and about 17 crore 70 lakh rupees have been spent to prepare the fence covering an area of 64 square kilometers. About 30 crore rupees will be spent to monitor the leopards, CCTV cameras, drones and other needs of the leopards.
Do you know why Gandhi Sagar was chosen for the leopard?
A safe and comfortable habitat for cheetahs, grass to rest and favorite food and billions of rupees are being invested in Gandhi Sagar Sanctuary to provide these three facilities. If all goes well, by January 2024, leopards will be seen running here.
NTCA team visited for 2 days
The team from Delhi (National Tiger Conservation Authority) worked closely with Forest Department officials for 2 days at Gandhi Sagar to inspect the preparation of the new tiger habitat.
The information was given by the DFO of the Forest Department
Sanjay Raikhere, DFO, Forest Department, said that the first 64 square kilometers of the Cheetah project are being wired with wire fencing, of which about 90 per cent work has been completed. The work will be completed by November even if the work is interrupted due to rain. 17.7 million rupees have been spent so far. Senior officials will decide whether the leopard population will be monitored. 40% of Mandsaur district’s forest area is in the Gandhi Sagar, and nearby villagers are also cooperating in the project. Drones will also be used along with CCTV cameras to monitor the leopards. 266 leopards have been brought from Narsinghgarh to feed the leopards.
