October, 2003

NEWS FROM THE TIGER HAVEN SOCIETY

The Tiger Haven Society was officially formed about a year ago and we are writing to all our supporters to let them know what has been achieved since that time. As you are probably aware, the wheels of Government move very slowly in India but we have made excellent progress on the legal front with registration of the Society. However, we are still awaiting Income Tax Exemption clearance.

The people of Tiger Haven continue as ever but with one sad difference. Hanif, the cook, who worked with the family for many decades, died recently and peacefully in his sleep. He will be much missed.

The main project this year, supported financially by THS – in particular through a generous grant from ITNC - and administered by the Forest Service, has been the dredging of a stretch of the Neora River below Tiger Haven, where siltation under the railway bridge was considered one of the contributory factors in the severe flooding at Tiger Haven and the surrounding forest. The monsoon was very heavy this year and Tiger Haven was again partly flooded, but the water came mainly from the jheels to the south and not from the river. Work on flood control will continue and we hope to enlist the help of the Indira Gandhi Conservation Monitoring Centre who will be able to supply up-to-date maps to clarify the problem better.

We have recently had discussions with WWF India, who see an important potential role for the Tiger Haven Society in the Terai Arc Project, which seeks to link the parks and forests along the foothills of the Himalayas on both sides of the border with Nepal. We have also been given some advice on specific projects to undertake, such as research into farming practices that are compatible with wildlife conservation, an area in which Billy has been engaged for many years, and environmental awareness education in local schools. Both these initiatives will be started this year.

Our other main project in the near future will be grassland reclamation. As you probably know, Billy was instrumental in the creation of a Wildlife Sanctuary (later to become a National Park) at Dudhwa in order to protect the large herds of swamp deer that then lived in the area. In recent years the number of swamp deer have been reduced alarmingly and the main cause is considered to be the coarsening of the grasses in the parkland, reducing the acreage under palatable grasses. Obviously the drastic reduction in deer numbers has an adverse effect on the predators, which are likely to seek their prey among domestic animals, putting them in conflict with the local population. The importance of this project is therefore obvious.

The Society has now appointed Gyan Mishra, who recently retired from the Forest Service and is well acquainted with Dudhwa – including two spells as Director of the National Park - to prepare a proposal for a Grassland Reclamation Project. Gyan will be working with the THS on a part time basis from September, 2003 onwards.

We would like to thank you for your support and to assure you that the resources raised by THS are being put to very good use. We expect to send out periodic letters with news to all our supporters and look forward to remaining in touch.