Bharatpur/Dholpur, Sept. 1 -- Residents of several villages have been staging a sit-in at Sarmathura in Dholpur for the past 20 days, demanding that their villages be excluded from the Dholpur-Karauli Tiger Reserve. The protesters accused the government of ignoring their interests and threatened to boycott the upcoming urban local body and panchayat elections if their demand was not addressed. They claimed mining leases were closed after the declaration of the tiger reserve, resulting in unemployment and forcing residents to migrate to cities for work. Ajay Meena, a member of the protest committee, said, "The protest will continue until our demand is met", adding that residents and public representatives from Dholpur and Karauli districts were participating in the agitation. According to the protesters, 108 villages - 68 in Dholpur and 40 in Karauli - fall within the reserve area. Spread across approximately 1,075 square kilometres, the Dholpur-Karauli Tiger Reserve is home to tigers, leopards and around 250 wildlife species. Established in 2023 as Rajasthan's fifth tiger reserve. Tiger Reserve divisional forest officer Ashish Vyas said "No proposal to relocate any village has been made yet. Any decision here rests with the government."...