MP villagers accuse Madhav reserve officials of stealing livestock to feed tigers

Bhopal: A large number of villagers from Gurjar community protested outside Survaya police station in Madhya Pradesh’s Shivpuri district late Tuesday, accusing Madhav National Park staff of stealing livestock from villages around the reserve to feed tigers.

However, the tiger reserve dismissed the accusations as “baseless” and attributed them to recent enforcement action against some villagers for unauthorised grazing in the protected area.

The protesters alleged that a buffalo calf owned by Sangram Singh Gurjar was loaded into a vehicle by reserve staff. Villagers claimed an elderly resident witnessed the animal being taken away by forest personnel. The protest ended around 1 am only after police registered a theft case against unidentified persons based on their complaint.

The incident triggered anger in villages surrounding the reserve, where locals claim livestock has frequently gone missing in recent months. Villagers said they had earlier assumed wild predators were attacking cattle but now suspect the animals may have been stolen by reserve management to feed tigers.

However, field director Uttam Sharma said villagers were repeatedly entering the reserve with livestock despite restrictions imposed after Madhav National Park was declared India’s 58th tiger reserve in March 2025. Forest teams recently found villagers grazing cattle near the tiger enclosure in Balarpur area, following which four villagers were booked under Wildlife Protection Act.

The reserve, which has since seen tiger translocations and successful breeding, is now home to seven tigers, including cubs born under the reintroduction programme.