In a major setback to the state government, the High Court of Bombay at Goa passed a historic judgement directing it to issue a notification to declare the Mhadei Wildlife Sanctuary as a tiger reserve within 3 months and also to prepare a tiger conservation plan. This has put paid to the machinations of Vishwajit Rane who is busy converting almost all green areas in Goa to settlement zones. Rane immediately reacted stating the government would approach the Apex Court to have it vacated soonest. It is pertinent to note that Goa in defiance of the directions of the Supreme Court dated August 22, 1997 had failed to solve the issue of rehabilitation of forest dwellers. The National Tiger Conservation Authority had recognized the entire strip of Western Ghats running from Sattari to Netravali as part of a vibrant tiger habitat vide the 2018 national tiger census. Primarily there are vested interests of private individuals and real estate sharks behind the sarkar's defiance. The recent forest fires were no mere coincidence, it could have been part of a grand 'master' plan to 'clear' the area for 'development'.
