BHOPAL - A panel set up by the Madhya Pradesh government to probe how tigers have disappeared from the Panna Tiger Reserve will begin its work Thursday, officials said.

The central government had earlier criticised the state government for failing to pay heed to the warnings about the tigers’ disappearance from Panna.

In April, a team constituted by the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) found that there were no tigers in the Panna reserve.

The four-member Central Inquiry Committee, comprising India’s top wildlife experts, said Panna had no tigers since January.

Committee chairman and former NTCA director P.K. Sen, expressed surprise that the government had shifted two tigresses from Kanha and Bandhavgarh tiger reserves to Panna in March, claiming that tigers were present.

“It is regrettable that not even one tiger is left in Panna,” he said.

The committee said that carelessness on the part of the forest department officials could not be ruled out.

However, the forest department contested the enquiry committee’s claim and said it was too early to estimate tiger numbers in Panna as the big cats move from one place to another.

However, on the directives of Minister of State for Forests Rajendra Shukla, the government formed a panel to look into the disappearance of big cats in Panna.

“We want to know the reasons that led to the disappearance of tigers in Panna and ensure that the big cat population is protected in Madhya Pradesh,” Shukla said.

He said a tiger count in 2006 showed that there were about 15 to 30 tigers in Panna.

The six-member committee formed by the state government includes NTCA member secretary Rajesh Gopal, former director of Wildlife Institute of India H.S. Pawar, principal chief conservator of forests (Wildlife) H.S. Pabla and former PCCF J.J. Dutta, among others.

“The panel after reaching Panna Thursday will hold public hearings, interrogate officials and also seek relevant documents required for the probe,” Pabla told IANS.

The panel in its first meeting held last Friday discussed the points to be included in the probe and the possible corrective measures for the park.

The meeting had discussed what points should be included in the probe, what are the documentary evidences required in the probe, and how should various responsibilities be distributed to conduct the probe.

Officials said Union Environment Minister Jairam Ramesh in a letter to state Chief Minister Shivraj Chouhan has asked him to personally intervene and ensure protection of wild animals in Panna.

Chouhan in reply has reportedly assured Ramesh that all requisite steps would be taken for protection of the big cats in the state, which is home to some of the major tiger reserves in the country.