Nauradehi Wildlife Sanctuary

• 13 Mar 2025

Why in News? 

 In Madhya Pradesh, Indian wolves will be fitted with radio collars, which will help in researching their habitat, diet and behaviour. 

Key Points  

• About 
  • Three wolves from different packs in the Nauradehi Wildlife Sanctuary will be fitted with radio collars once permission is received from the National Tiger Conservation Authority. 
  • For this, a two-year study was started by the State Forest Research Institute, Jabalpur in February 2024 . 
• Objective: 
  • The aim of this research is to know about the life of wolves, their food, habitat, daily routine and co-existence with animals like tigers and leopards. 
• Status of wolves in Madhya Pradesh: 
  • In 2022, wolves were counted across the country, in which Madhya Pradesh ranked first with the highest number of wolves.  
  • According to the census, there were a total of 3170 wolves in India, out of which 20% i.e. 772 wolves were found in Madhya Pradesh alone.  
•   Nauradehi Wildlife Sanctuary:  
  • Nauradehi Wildlife Sanctuary is  the largest wildlife sanctuary in Madhya Pradesh . 
  • This sanctuary is spread over an area of about 1197 square km in three districts of Madhya Pradesh, Sagar, Damoh and Narsinghpur. 
  • This protected area is located on the banks of two major river basins of India, the Narmada and the Ganges . 
  • It is the natural habitat of the Indian wolf (Canis lupus pallipes), a subspecies of the grey wolf.  
    • In the year 1975, it was given the status of the state's largest sanctuary for the conservation of wolves. 
  • Nauradehi Wildlife Sanctuary is also considered a suitable area for cheetahs , hence it was given the status of Tiger Reserve a year ago.  

National Tiger Conservation Authority 

• The National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) is a statutory body under the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change . 
• It was established in the year 2006 by amending the provisions of the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972. The first meeting of the Authority was held in November 2006. 
• It is the result of the efforts of the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) that there has been a significant increase in the number of endangered tigers in the country.