Bharatpur, April 16 -- The Ranthambore National Park administration has proposed setting up a safari park and an enclosure for old and injured tigers in Sawai Madhopur, officials said. The proposal has been sent to the petroleum department through state agriculture minister Kirodi Lal Meena. Officials said ageing and weak tigers have increasingly been straying out of forest areas and moving towards human settlements, raising concerns over both animal safety and human-wildlife conflict. With the rising tiger population in the reserve, authorities say additional space is required. At present, the reserve has 76 tigers, tigresses and cubs, exceeding its ecological carrying capacity. According to a 2016 study by the Wildlife Institute of India, the reserve can sustain only 45 to 55 tigers. The proposal seeks transfer of around 62 acres of land belonging to Indian Oil Corporation, where a plant near the tiger reserve has remained non-operational for nearly two decades. The forest department plans to develop a safari park on the IOC land, which already has significant tree cover. Manas Singh, deputy conservator of forests, Ranthambore, said that if the Centre approves the proposal, old and weak tigers can be housed in a controlled environment. "This will help reduce the movement of tigers towards villages. Tourists will also get safari facilities similar to Nahargarh Biological Park," Singh said. Singh further said that similar enclosures should be developed in other tiger reserves across the state to better manage ageing and conflict-prone animals....