Bhopal, Dec 5 (IANS): Gandhi Sagar Wildlife Sanctuary, which is all set to become the second destination for cheetahs in Madhya Pradesh, witnessed a massive fire on Thursday.
The fire broke out in Ravli Kudi Circle of the forest area around 5:30 pm. A team of forest officers spotted the fire, which gradually covered a wide area covered with dry grass and shrubs.
In a video of the fire incident, a couple of forest staff were seen running to escape from the blaze, which covered a large portion of the sanctuary very fast due to wind.
Several fire brigade vehicles rushed to the spot to douse the blaze and the efforts were underway. An official said that the reason for the fire is being ascertained.
The damage to flora-fauna and casualty to wild animals from the mishap would also be known after the fire comes under control, officials said.
Sources claimed the fire occurred in the prey base area inside the enclosure built for the cheetah project, which raised apprehension. However, Sandhi Sagar Wildlife Sanctuary has yet to make any statement on it.
The sanctuary spread over 368 sq km and situated on the northern boundary of Mandsaur and Neemuch districts has been found as the best location for the cheetah project after Kuno National Park (KNP) in Sheopur district.
Madhya Pradesh Wildlife Board (MPWB) has earlier stated that the solar-powered fencing in the sanctuary has been completed to make it predator-proof. Besides, eight quarantine bomas (enclosures) have been built to put the cheetahs when they will be relocated here.
The soft release enclosures have also been built in the wildlife sanctuary for the release of the cheetahs after the end of their quarantine period.
It has also stated that the sanctuary has a good prey base area for cheetahs and the process of shifting 1,250 spotted deer to Gandhi Sagar from other wildlife sanctuaries in the state is in progress.
The process of making the sanctuary leopard-free has also begun and more than one dozen leopards have so far been captured and released in other sanctuaries.