Nagpur:it has been raining questions regardig forest, wildlife and environment.

 Jul 26,2010

Story/Place- Nagpur


NAGPUR: It has been raining questions regarding forest, wildlife and environment issues in the ongoing monsoon session of the state legislature in Mumbai. Does it mean that our MLAs are becoming green? TOI spoke to a section of environmentalists, who don't feel that is the case.



The session is in full swing now, and the number of questions on wildlife, forest and environment issues may go over the 100 mark by the time the session concludes on July 28. Till July 16, 62 such questions had come up for discussion in the House.



Noted wildlife expert Kishor Rithe says the trend about asking questions on problems related to wildlife is good. "But looking at the questions, I don't think it will really change the ground situation," he felt.



Several of the questions asked appeared to be superficial like — number of tigers in the state; whether crop compensation would be given for loss due to wildlife; new method of tiger census; worshipping God in Tadoba; restrictions in Chandoli and Koyna sanctuaries etc. Most of the questions were such that information could have been acquired by any individual under RTI, and you don't need to be an MLA for that.



Wildlife experts said, there are 41 protected areas (PAs) in Maharashtra. These PAs have been playing an important role by contributing several ecological services for the development of their 'command areas'. These areas act as healthy watersheds, which enrich underground watertable, provide pest controllers, regulate climate for agriculture, provide conservation-based employment to locals and also give minor forest produce to buffer villages.



"The present set of questions by MLAs do not highlight the importance of PAs and have failed to address the real issues," Rithe said. MLAs who have never seen or known the ground reality in a particular area appear to be raising questions about such areas, he said.



For example, Achalpur MLA Bacchu Kadu raised a question on Koyana and Chandoli wildlife sanctuaries in Satara district. Similarly, the MLA from Satara district Vikramsingh Patankar asked questions related to Melghat. It would be very unlikely for any of these MLAs to have visited either of the PAs.



Interestingly, several questions pertained to Sahyadri Tiger Reserve and the maximum were complaints about wildlife and damage from them. The newly formed Sahyadri Tiger Reserve has been in the media for illegal projects in the reserve under political patronage.



However, none of the MLAs raised the burning issue of 'climate change'.



Bittu Sahgal, environmentalist and editor of 'Sanctuary' magazine, said, "We should be more concerned about the present situation of environment. The casual questions and casual answers in the House won't help to overcome the crisis."



Nishikant Kale, president of Nature Conservation Society, Amravati (NCSA), feels that MLAs should also be worried about the deteriorating situation of our wildlife reserves. "Sadly, the questions asked by the MLAs hardly made any difference. So many questions were raised but no one asked why things have been worsening. Our MLAs are beating about the bush," said Kale.



Debi Goenka, executive trustee of Conservation Action Trust (CAT), Mumbai, also felt that core issues of threat to wildlife and forests from proposed mining activities in Vidarbha have been sidelined in the volley of questions raised by the MLAs.



TOI spoke to a couple of MLAs who raised questions. Independent MLA from Achalpur Bachhu Kadu said, "The fact that MLAs asked so many questions indicates that they are very much concerned about environment."



Kadu had raised a question on Chandoli and Koyana sanctuaries. However, he himself did not know which question he had asked. "I'll know about it when the issue comes before the House," he quipped. The MLA admitted he has never visited these two areas.



MLC Jainuddin Javheri says as forest and wildlife is mostly centred in Vidarbha, questions pertaining to it are bound to increase. MLAs asking many questions on these issues don't necessarily mean they are turning green. "Many questions asked by the MLAs get twisted replies and hence the issues fail to get justice," Javheri said.




source-timesofindia.indiatimes.com



sourced by Jimsjungleretreat .com

Send tigers for Sariska: Jairam to MP, Maharashtra

Story/place - Sariska

Conceding that the tigers of Ranthambhore may not be able to ensure “genetic vigour” in the population being raised in Sariska, Environment and Forest Minister Jairam Ramesh has written to the chief ministers of Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra requesting them for a few tigers for Sariska. An HT investigation (June 29, 2009) 

exposed how siblings were sent from Ranthambhore to repopulate Sariska. Following the report, the tiger relocation process was put on hold, a DNA analysis of Ranthambhore tigers was ordered and genetic tests proved that the tigers sent to Sariska were indeed siblings. 

Forest and the wildlife establishment had so far resisted the demand for sourcing tigers from outside Rajasthan. While some argued that the purity of Rajasthan tigers was at stake, others felt inter-state talks on shifting tigers would hit roadblocks.

But in his letters sent this week to CMs Ashok Chavan and Shivraj Singh, Ramesh wrote: "To bring in genetic vigour, we need a few wild caught tigers (males and females) for Sariska from adjoining states…I would appreciate if two straying males are provided at the outset to Rajasthan…"

Welcoming the decision, conservationist Valmik Thapar said, "...We can also look at an exchange as the male that has so far failed to breed with his siblings in Sariska should now be sent to Panna (MP)..."

Sariska may get its fourth tiger much sooner if any of the three Ranthambhore tigers shortlisted for relocation are found to be genetically compatible. The DNA report of these tigers is expected from Bangalore-based National Centre for Biological Sciences this Friday. If the tests are negative Sariska, may have to wait for a positive response from Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra.

source - hindustantimes.com

sourced by - Jimsjungleretreat.com

NH-58 and NH-72 piercing through the heart of Rajaji National Park in Uttarakhand.

Trapped from all sides by expanding towns, heavy traffic highways and railway tracks, mining and poaching, can the precious little strip of Rajaji National Park save its tigers?
Akash Bisht Chilla/Rishikesh

As the tussle between the Union ministries of environment and surface transport intensifies over environmental clearances for 17 highways across tiger reserves in the country, two choked highways - NH-58 and NH-72 - are piercing through the heart of the ecological hot spot, Rajaji National Park in Uttarakhand. It is effectively killing the twin hopes of repopulating tigers in the entire Shivalik Forest Region, while maintaining a healthy core population at the Jim Corbett National Park. 

NH-58 connects Haridwar to Delhi, while NH-72 (A) connects Haridwar to Dehradun. Both witness heavy traffic and vehicular movement every day. Increasing tourism and developmental activities in recent years have led to massive increase of vehicles plying on these highways. "They bifurcate the park and obstruct the passage of animals from one forest division to another. This traffic is like a cancer which is spreading and eating into the park's vital organs," says SS Rasaily, Project Director, Rajaji National Park. 

In 2007, park authorities conducted a survey to calculate the number of vehicles that pass through the two highways everyday. The results were shocking: 29,000 vehicles ply on these highways on a daily basis and as many as 600 from 1:30am to 2:30am. According to the National Highways Authority of India, these two highways witness a vehicular traffic growth of nearly 7 per cent each year. Rasaily pegs the current numbers at close to 50,000. 

This virtual wall of fast moving vehicles deters the animals from passing through their natural habitat or even going to the nearby rivers to quench their thirst. Additionally, 40 trains plying on the same route during early mornings and late evenings - peak time for animals to move around the forests - are inflicting daily and long-term damage on their free movement. 

"Human expressions are rude and animals do not understand them. Their natural environment is shrinking by leaps and bounds while traffic and railways play havoc on their well-being in Rajaji. A train engine's sound or a loud horn can be very discomforting for animals,

The park shot to fame after reports confirmed that the park has the capacity to sustain a healthy breeding population of wild tigers and act as a catalyst for ensuring healthy tiger population across north India. A Wildlife Institute of India report, The Status of Tigers, Co-Predators and Prey in India, 2008, declared it as the most promising landscape for long-term tiger conservation that would help in repopulating the forests which were once ruled by this majestic predator. The report reads: "If such small breeding populations in mini core areas are fostered in Rajaji by good management practices and protection, there is a possibility of repopulating the Shivalik Forest Division (UP) by dispersing tigers from Rajaji."

Mindless development activities in and around Rajaji Park is turning into a nightmare for conservationists who dream of turning the landscape into a tiger haven. Says Chandola, "Rajaji is a thin strip of forest that is surrounded by big towns like Haridwar, Rishikesh and Dehradun. These expanding townships are confining the animals to small spaces which can spell doom for all the species, including tigers." 

He mentions how villages have turned into towns, towns to cities while forests have only shrunk in recent years. He recalls, "Gone are the days when I would sit in a village courtyard and watch wild animals from close proximity. This 'islandisation' of the park will devastate its pristine ecology."  

Also posing a threat to the ecology of Rajaji Park is a toxic foreign weed (lantana). This rapidly growing weed is ruining the habitat, spreading its tentacles through most of the park, eliminating the diversity of species and sub-species of grass, small plants and shrubs. "Due to its toxicity, the weed is usually avoided by the animals. Though it increases the green cover of the forest, it deprives herbivores of their diet of grass and other smaller plants," points GS Rajwar, an environment scientist.  

"Lantana is turning Rajaji into an ecological desert. It adapts perfectly to any environment and allows nothing else to survive," informs Rasaily. According to the forest department, 5,000 hectares of land out of the total of 26,000 hectares was cleared of lantana, but to everyone's dismay, the weed had spread further to 36,000 hectares. "Such is the endurance of the weed that even its seeds have a life of 60 years," he says.

Poaching too is a dangerous threat. Though no cases of tiger poaching have been reported from the park, poaching of other animals is a routine. "We are not aware of any tiger poaching in the area, but cases of leopard and deer poaching have been brought to our notice," says Tito Joseph, Programme Manager, Wildlife Protection Society of India. CBI sources confirmed Tito's views. Timber poaching and illegal mining is shrinking crucial habitat too.  

However, despite several adversities, the park authorities are hopeful of turning Rajaji Park into a tiger retreat. Chandola is optimistic and claims that the 14 tiger mark could easily reach to 60 if the government shows the will to save the tiger and its habitat in Uttarakhand. Confirming Chandola's view, a forest official in Dehradun points to a study which claims that the park and its adjoining areas have the largest prey base for tigers in the world. "If managed and monitored strictly, we can achieve these numbers as these forests are a haven for the tigers to bloom," says Chandola.  

The forest department has initiated several steps for tiger conservation by proposing to build three flyovers - two flyovers on NH-72 and one on NH-58 - to ensure peaceful animal passage. Rasaily has vowed to annihilate any sort of poaching from the forests under his jurisdiction and plans to add huge tracts of grassland for tiger survival.   Locally extinct from 29 per cent of the districts of the Shivalik Gangetic flood plains, the great predator could make a grandiose return to these forests only if the breeding populations of tigers thrive inside the Rajaji Park. "If the tiger has to survive in India for generations to come, Rajaji needs fostering and care. Only then will the wild cats flourish in the forests that were their natural home before we forced them out," says Rasaily.

5 year old Leopard caught in Gurgaon

Gurgaon, July 11

A five-year-old female leopard was recovered from a country villa in the Aravali area of Gurgaon, a satellite town of the national capital, an official said Sunday.
“The owner of the farmhouse set a trap and caught the leopard after it ate up his dog. We have taken the custody (of the leopard) and will release it into the forest again,” a wildlife official said.

However, the villagers who informed the officials were angry as they said country villa owners have encroached on the forest area. They said the Aravali area is a forest area and wild animals are always present there.

“The farmhouses have come up illegally and human beings have encroached the forest area. They should understand this and should not catch leopards,” said Ram Pal, a local.

In March 2008 also, wildlife officials caught a leopard from the area and few months after the incident a leopard died in an accident on a national highway.

“Most of the owners don’t live in their farmhouses and come on weekends only. Leopard sighting is normal but they never hurt anyone,” the wildlife official said.

Farmhouses are a euphemism for country villas that are built on agricultural land but where no agricultural activities take place.

source - thaindian.com

edited by - Jim's jungle retreat

Three leopard skins and bones seized in Dehradun

on Jul 7 ,Uttarakhand forest officials have arrested three persons following the seizure of three leopard skins and bones allegedly from their possession in Dehradun. The accused have been identified as Ajab Singh, Jagat Singh and Mohan Singh, all residents of Vikas Nagar area in the state's capital. "They were arrested yesterday night by the anti-poaching cell of the forest department. Bullet holes were found on the skins and it is believed that the animals were killed in the nearby forest areas of Vikasnagar and Kalsi. "One poacher, Gangu Singh who allegedly shot the animals is currently absconding," according to a statement by Wildlife Protection Society of India (WPSI) which assisted the state forest officials in seizing the skins. A case under the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972, has been registered against the accused in Kalsi forest division. If convicted, the accused will face imprisonment for a term between three and seven years with a fine not less than ten thousand rupees. Poaching of leopards for their body parts has taken a toll on the animal's population as out of the total of 202 leopard deaths reported this year, fifty four per cent involved either seizure of its body parts or death due to poaching. 65 leopard deaths, under different circumstances, have been reported this year from Uttarakhand alone, the WPSI statement said.

source - ibnlive.com

edited by - Jim"s jungle retreat

15 caught with fake animal skin in Bhavnagar

Bhavnagar district forest department on Sunday arrested around 15 men and women — mostly married couples — from the outskirts of Bhavnagar for selling fake lion and tiger skin and bones. All accused are from Karnataka.

According to range forest officer (RFO) Bhavnagar KK Bharwad, the department was tipped off by volunteers of a Bhavnagar-based nature club. The accused were selling the skin and bones to common people. "The accused sold these skins by going from house to house. They happened to sell an item to a member of nature's club, who alerted the forest department. Following this, we organised a trap and arrested them from their makeshift houses," Bharwad said.

"We have arrested 15 people, including eight women. All those arrested are from Karnataka. They arrived in Bhavnagar just two days ago. The forest department has seized all the materials that the group was selling. They used their network to reach residents and sold the skins and nails of tigers and lions," he added.

The skin and bones were sent to the department for a thorough examination, where it was verified that none of them were original. The accused purchased skins of dogs and goats from around the place where they lived. The skins were then painted and tampered with chemicals and made to look like those of tigers and lions.

"We have confirmed that all the material seized is duplicate," Bharwad said.

According to officials, it was the women's job to get clients and sell them while the males were the ones who reworked the skins. Taking note of lion poaching incidents earlier in the state, state forest department officials did not want to take chance and arrested all the people involved.

edited by - Jims Jungle Retreat

Source - Times of  India