Recent headlines have brought Panna Tiger Reserve back into the spotlight.

The reason is the Ken-Betwa River Link Project, whose proposed Daudhan Dam is expected to submerge thousands of hectares of forest within one of India's best-known tiger landscapes.

The discussion goes beyond the fate of a single reserve. It raises questions about the future of one of India's greatest wildlife recovery stories.

Just over 15 years ago, Panna had lost all its tigers. Through one of the country's most ambitious conservation efforts, the reserve rebuilt its population from scratch. Today, it is home to around 80 tigers.

Now, conservationists are asking a new question: what happens when a landscape painstakingly restored over decades begins to change?

Because bringing back tigers was only one part of Panna's recovery. Healthy forests, abundant prey, connected habitats and reliable water sources all played an equally important role.

Scientists say that when any of these ecological building blocks are altered, the effects can ripple across the entire ecosystem.

When Panna lost its Tigers

For decades, Panna was considered ideal tiger country.

The reserve, spread across the forests of Madhya Pradesh, was once the hunting ground of the princely states of Panna, Chhatarpur and Bijawar. It became a national park in 1981 and was later declared a tiger reserve in 1994. Over the years, adjoining forests and buffer areas expanded the protected landscape to nearly 1,600 sq km.

On paper, everything seemed in place.

Yet poaching quietly undid years of conservation.

During the early 2000s, Panna supported an estimated 24 to 40 tigers. But by 2009, only one lone male tiger remained.

The reserve had lost the very species it was created to protect.

For conservationists, it was more than the disappearance of a predator. It marked the collapse of an entire ecological process.

What followed became one of India's most closely watched wildlife recovery programmes.

The comeback that few thought was possible

In June 2009, the Madhya Pradesh Forest Department, with support from WWF and the Panna Tiger Reserve management, began an ambitious tiger reintroduction programme.

The first arrivals were two tigresses — T1 from Bandhavgarh and T2 from Kanha. They were........

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