Bhubaneswar: To make Similipal Tiger Reserve (STR) a poaching free zone, the State government has set up a dedicated company of Armed Police Reserve (APR) force in Similipal Tiger Reserve.
Additional Chief Secretary (ACS), Home, Forest, Environment & Climate Change, Satyabrata Sahu wrote a letter to the Accountant General regarding this recently.
In the letter, ACS Shri Sahu said the company will be headquartered in Mayurbhanj and include one commandant, one inspector, three sub-inspectors, three assistant sub-inspectors, 30 havildars, three driver havildars, 87 constables, and three drivers, with the administrative responsibility of this unit lying with the Mayurbhanj SP.
All expenses for this dedicated force will be borne by the Forest and Environment Department, he said.
The APR force with 131 personnel of different categories will form a joint task force.
Administrative control of the force will be under Mayurbhanj SP, while operational control will be managed in consultation with the field director of Similipal Tiger Reserve and the joint task force.
The purpose of this force is to bolster anti-poaching efforts, protect wildlife and forest resources, and maintain law and order within the reserve, the ACS said.
While there is a Special Rhino Protection Force (SRPF) for protection of one-horned rhinoceroses in Kaziranga National Park in Assam, this unit in Odisha is considered the first of its kind where an armed police company is specifically created for the protection of a wildlife sanctuary.
The decision to create a dedicated armed force was taken after a series of meetings held recently.