AHMEDABAD: The swiftly-multiplying Asiatic lions of Gir have got the forest department
to consider expanding the lion's kingdom. Now that these big cats have
spread to parts of Amreli and Bhavnagar, the forest department has
decided to mark a 109 sq km-area between Bhavnagar and Amreli as a
conservation zone.
The new conservation reserve
will be in the Jesar-Hipavadli zone. The area is spread across 109 sq
km and is about 70 km from Gir forest. Officials said the state
government will create breeding and water facilities for the Asiatic
lion in the proposed reserve on the lines of those existing in Gir.
The only difference will be that this area will not be a national park,
where movement of the people is restricted without valid permission.
Here, all new activity in the area will be banned but the movement of
people in the area will not be restricted.
The May 2010 lion census revealed that population of Asiatic lions has reached 411.
The census had also revealed that like Savarkundla, Liliya and adjacent
areas of Amreli and Bhavnagar districts have a stable population of 53
lions.
Officials said that apart from being home to 53 lions,
the area also acts as a corridor for big cats to travel along the banks
of the Shatrunjay river. The area is a corridor to the newer territories
near Bhavnagar and Amreli. In the conservation zone, humans will not be
shifted out as is done in Gir National Park. Officials said that
conservation zone status would pave way for the area to be declared a
sanctuary.
"Once the proposal for a conservation reserve is
cleared by the state, there will be restrictions on new industries in
the area. There will also be no further mining here along with greater
legal protection for the lion. A conservation reserve allows the human
populace to co-exist in the area," said a senior officer.
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/home/environment/flora-fauna/New-109-sq-km-conservation-reserve-earmarked-for-lions-in-Ahmedabad/articleshow/14829910.cms
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