Debrigarh lies on the left bank of the infamous Hirakud dam and thus is part of the huge dam's catchment area. The submergence caused by the dam fragmented what was once a much more extensive forest. Wild buffalo once roamed here, along the banks of the mighty Mahanadi. The submergence caused by the reservoir doomed the buffalo, which is in all probability locally extinct today. Local wildlifers have focussed their efforts on this sanctuary, which together with the Satkosia and Sunabeda sanctuaries are some of the best tiger habitats in the state.
Under the charge of the Divisional Forest Officer, Badarama Division, the forest department has been carrying out habitat improvement works such as pasture development and construction of water harvesting structures, fire control, etc. However, these positive initiatives will come to nought unless some of the main threats to the sanctuary are tackled.
Orissa's infamous timber and wildlife mafia is looking to ravage this forest. The pressure is particularly high on the Lakhanpur, Ambahana and Dechua sides. Uncontrolled tourism is also causing problems. Recently, tourists ended up burning a large patch of forest and grassland near the Chaurasimal resthouse. As is the case with most of India's lesser-known Protected Areas (PAs), there is a severe shortage of staff in the wildlife division with one range officer managing both the Lakhanpur and Kamgaon ranges.
The waters of the Hirakud reservoir have also attracted a fishing community, which has established itself on the reservoir's margins, just outside the sanctuary. This is not only an encroachment on revenue land, it also serves to keep the wildlife away from the water during the pinch summer months. This encroachment is five kilometres from the Dudrukusum gate on the Chaurasimal route.
For too long, the focus of India's wildlife lobby, both official and non-governmental, has been on the larger, better-known PAs. Smaller parks such as Debrigarh play no less vital a role, as they very often serve as connecting corridors between larger PAs and forest blocks. Unless these smaller parks are protected from harmful commercial and political interests, it will be hard to secure the future of large species such as the tiger, leopard and elephant.
Readers are encouraged to write a letter asking that encroachments inside the sanctuary and on the margins of the Hirakud reservoir be cleared.
