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Sigur Plateau

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Sigur Plateau

Sigur Plateau (Segur Plateau) is a plateau in the north and east of Nilgiri District in the Nilgiri Hills of Tamil Nadu, South India. It covers the 778.8 square kilometres (300.7 sq mi) portion of the Moyar River drainage basin on the northern slopes of the Nilgiri Hills, south of the Moyar River.

The Sigur Plateau is notable as an important wildlife corridor in the Western ghats to sustain elephant and tiger numbers and their genetic diversity.

It is an important link between several contiguous protected areas forming the Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve, the largest protected forest area in India. This area supports over 6,300 elephants, that represents the largest single population of elephants and tigers in India.

The Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve, which includes Sigur Plateau and the Nilgiri Hills, is part of the UNESCO World Network of Biosphere Reserves. The Western Ghats, the Nilgiri Sub-Cluster (more than 6,000 square kilometres (2,316.6 sq mi)), including all of Mudumalai National Park and the reserve forests of the Sigur Plateau, is under consideration by the UNESCO World Heritage Committee for selection as a World Heritage Site.

A proposal has been initiated to notify Sigur and adjoining forest areas as a wildlife sanctuary for Vultures.

In the late 1700s, Tipu Sultan maintained a fort and trading route between the Kingdom of Mysore and Travancore, along the Moyar River here.

In May 1859, a small monthly sanction was granted by the Government for the conservation and working of Sigur Forest. With only a small a sum to commence with, it was some time before any wood could be collected. However, the means for working the forest on a larger scale were obtained by an early sale of sandal wood, However, by this time the Conservator of Forests of Madras Presidency, Dr. Hugh Cleghorn stated that "This forest has been much exhausted by a succession of unscrupulous contractors, and there is very little teak or Bombay Blackwood (Rosewood) at present fit for felling. It is important that the forest should be allowed to recover, as it is the main source of supply to Utakamund for house-building purposes."

In 1954, a young man-eating male Bengal tiger named the "Tiger of Segur" killed 5 people between Sigur and Anaikatty villages in the Sigur Plateau. In 1954, the tiger was still classified as vermin in the Nilgiri Hills. As agriculture expanded and tiger habitat shrank, Tamil Nadu stopped all tiger hunting in the Sigur reserve in 1965.

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