AHMEDABAD: The latest guidelines of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) on translocation of wildlife could prove to be a major roadblock for Madhya Pradesh's lion
dreams. The world's oldest and most trusted global environmental
organization says shifting animals outside their indigenous range "is
high risk".
The guidelines, issued on July 12, warn,
"There is a high risk of failure if the species originate from
environments markedly different to the destination area. The risk is
accentuated by the fact that the animals may be poorly adapted to the
destination area."
Gujarat has resisted Madhya Pradesh's demand
for Gir lions for the past decade. The Supreme Court had ordered
translocation of lions to the Kuno Palpur sanctuary in its April 15
order after which Gujarat has filed a review petition.
Under
the guidelines, shifting lions out of Gujarat would be classified as
'assisted colonization' where the species translocated is outside the
indigenous range. The guidelines specify, "Translocations of organisms
outside of their indigenous range are considered to be especially high
risk given the numerous examples of species released outside their
indigenous ranges subsequently becoming invasive, often with massively
adverse impacts."
IUCN
cautions that such translocation should be taken up only in cases where
the risk is low and that the idea should be abandoned if there is any
doubt. "If extinction of the species in the proposed destination area
occurred long ago, or if conservation introductions are being considered
for the first time, local communities may not develop a connect with a
species new to them, and hence may oppose the move. In such cases,
special effort to counter such attitudes should be made well in advance
of any release," the guidelines said.
TOI has regularly
reported on how both licensed and unlicensed guns are commonplace in
villages around Kuno with the government making no effort to sensitize
the people about lion translocation. Besides, in the early 1900s,
African lions had been introduced here but the local populace had hunted
them out of existence within a year.
The new guidelines say,
"Multiple parties involved in most translocations have their own
mandates, priorities and agendas. Unless these are aligned through
effective facilitation and leadership, unproductive conflict may fatally
undermine translocation implementation or success."
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