Bhopal (Madhya Pradesh): The forest department is in a fix as the clamour to increase the compensation given for loss of human life in tiger attack gets louder.
To note, chief minister Mohan Yadav announced long ago to increase the compensation to Rs 25 lakh in case of human death due to wild animal attack.
Additional Principal Chief Conservator of Forests (Wild Life), L Krishnamurthy told the Free Press that currently, compensation amount was Rs 8 lakh. However, a proposal had been sent to the government to increase it to Rs 25 lakh.
Meanwhile, it is learnt that in Maharashtra, there is a provision to give compensation of Rs 25 lakh in such cases. So now, whenever a tiger kills a villager in Madhya Pradesh, the victim’s family members also demand Rs 25 lakh. Sometimes, forest officials have to face the wrath of angry villagers over the issue.
An officer of Bandhavgarh Tiger Reserve said on condition of anonymity that so far, there was no order from the finance department to give compensation of Rs 25 lakh in case of human death in wild animal attack. The old compensation of Rs 8 lakh was still being given.
Sources said that if the government conceded to the demand of increased compensation, there would be extra financial burden on its coffers.
Wildlife activist Ajay Dubey said that CM Mohan Yadav had announced an increase in compensation to Rs 25 lakh without any assessment. So far, the finance department had not issued the notification in this regard.
This had left the forest officials deployed in the field at the receiving end because whenever a tiger killed a human, the locals started clamouring for the increased amount. All this would indirectly increase the danger to the tiger, he said.
