Due to prolonged illness, his roar won’t be heard again.

Bangalore Mirror Bureau | Oct 31, 2015, 04.00 AM IST

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By: Nischith N

Heera, an Asiatic lion at BBP, breathed his last at a ripe age of 20

A pall of gloom descended on Bannerghatta Biological Park (BBP) after Heera, a male Asiatic lion and a star attraction at its Lion and Tiger Safari enclosure, died due to prolonged illness on Wednesday.

Usually Asiatic lions have a lifespan of 14 to 15 years in the wild, but Heera lived a whopping 20 years under captivity at the BBP.

Heera had been a part of the BBP family for the last 12 years ever since he was rescued from a circus in Maharashtra.

BBP sources revealed to BM that Heera has an epileptic fit in the first week of October and since then its health began deteriorating rapidly.

"It was not able to bear its weight on its forelimbs and used to fall while walking. Ever since the illness symptoms were noticed, our veterinarians were on high alert and continuously attending to it. A few days ago, it stopped taking any food or water and finally died on Wednesday morning," Santhosh Kumar, executive director of BBP briefed in an official communication.

A veterinarian at BBP said that the ailing lion was given multiple supplements of iron and calcium along with its daily food.

"Suffering epilepsy, the lion soon developed anorexia and refused to take any food. Instead, we began administering supplements like calcium and iron. Heera completing 20 years without any health issue was a laudable achievement," the veterinarian explained.

In the first week after his condition turned worse, doctors allowed it to be in lateral recumbence and treatment was given in isolation.

"He was showing signs of renal failure, suspected diabetes mellitus along with neurological manifestation. Towards the end it was not responding to the treatment at all," explained another veterinarian at BBP.

As a last resort, BBP officials decided to avail the services of veterinary experts, and Heera was diagnosed by Dr Ansar Kamaran, associate professor of medicine, Veterinary College, Hebbal.

"It was healthy all these years and never showed symptoms of illness. It fed on beef and supplements. Active and ferocious, it was much admired," said a caretaker.



Heera's story

Heera was rescued from New Grand Circus at Pandharapur in Maharashtra back in 2003 when he was just seven years old. Subsequently, the lion was handed over to BBP for care and upbringing. For more than 10 years, Heera was part of Lion and Tiger Safari of BBP entertaining the visitors and only a few months ago, it was shifted to the rescue centre.

http://www.bangaloremirror.com/bangalore/others/Due-to-prolonged-illness-his-roar-wont-be-heard-again/articleshow/49603063.cms

Feeding the lions at Bristol Zoo

Animals: Feeding the lions at Bristol Zoo

Daisay Johnson, October 28, 2015

< previous article | next article >

Lion fans can now step behind-the-scenes at Bristol Zoo for an unforgettable experience feeding the king of the jungle. Learn more about the zoo's two male lions Kamran and Ketan, who are endangered Asiatic lions from India, and get up close and personal to these magnificent beasts.
This is what happened when I was lucky enough to be able to give the lion feeding experience a try.

Firstly, Alan the zoo keeper tells me a bit about the pair of lions.
As he explains how I'll be feeding them, they recognise Alan - who helped to hand rear them - and  know that food is on its way.

We prepared the lions' food including horse meat stained blue so it couldn't find itself for sale to humans.

Due to the sharpness and weight of the knives, I was given these chainmail-like gloves before it was my turn to chop up the meat.

Alan's cutting was more deft and faster than mine.
Those lions were getting hungry, remember.

It was time for a few more safety tips and instructions of how to safely feed Kamran and Ketan as we walked back to the lion enclosure.

Once we got through the gate, my nerves started to set in.

Alan quickly and effortlessly fed Ketan.
He showed me how it's done with the help of a pair of giant tweezers.

I was always a safe distance away, but even so, Ketan was quite gentle and took his food through the metal mesh with ease.

Kamran was being fed at the same time to our left.
He's the smaller and less dominant of the brothers, but still very eager for his food.

Ketan the lion seemed very satisfied with my feeding skills.

Thanks Alan and all at Bristol Zoo for an amazing, eye-opening experience.

The lion feeding experience costs £140, and takes place on Tuesdays and Fridays from 11.45am to 12.30pm. The package includes entrance for yourself and a friend, and a t-shirt souvenir to remember the experience.
For more information, visit www.bristolzoo.org.uk/visitor-information/lion-feeding-experience

http://www.bristol247.com/channel/news-comment/features/animals/feeding-lions-at-bristol-zoo-gardens

First slot visitor permits for Gir jungle to be issued 100% online

 October 27, 2015  DeshGujarat

Junagadh
At present only 50% permits to visit the Gir National Park Safari are issued online, but from 1st November 100% permits to visit the part will be issued online for morning 6.00 am to 9.00 am slot. For other two slots ( 9:00 AM – 12:00 PM | 3:00 PM – 6:00 PM ) online and spot quota proportion will remain same 50:50.
This decision has taken by department of forests, Government of Gujarat considering heavy rush of visitors for spot permit.
All the procedures of Jeep Safari booking for Gir Jungle Trail are managed by the forest officials as per the rules of India’s forest department. Only 50% of total safari permits of Gir jungle Trail are available online and rest of the quota is kept reserve for the spot visitors. Travelers can obtain the safari permits on the spot also but it is too hectic.
With new decision 100% permits for the first slot will be available online.
It should be mentioned here that after four months monsoon break, the jungle was reopened for visitors on 16th of October, but 90 days of online permits were booked on the first day itself. This resulted into hectic rush for spot permits. Recently a person working in luxurious tourist facility in Gir was booked by Forest department officials for black marketing of permits.
– DeshGujarat

http://deshgujarat.com/2015/10/27/first-slot-visitor-permits-for-gir-jungle-to-be-issued-100-online/

WORLD EXCLUSIVE - Meet this extinct cave lion, at least 10,000 years old

By Anastasia Koryakina

26 October 2015

'Sensational' find of two cubs, the best preserved ever seen in the world, announced today.

The cave lions were almost perfectly preserved in permafrost and could be much older. Picture: Academy of Sciences of Yakutia

The unprecedented discovery of the ancient predator was made this summer in the Sakha Republic, also known as Yakutia. The cave lions were almost perfectly preserved in permafrost and could be much older.
The Siberian Times is proud to be working with the Academy of Sciences of Yakutia which will introduce the cubs properly at a presentation to the Russian and international media in late November.
Along with the two lions, paleontologists will also show other Pleistocene animals preserved by ice in this vast region, the largest and coldest in the Russian Federation. Among these will be the famous woolly mammoth Yuka, the 'Oimyakon' mammoth, the carcass of a Kolyma woolly rhinoceros, and Yukagir bison and horses.
Interested media organisations are invited to use the contacts below if they wish to attend.
The cave lions - Panthera spelaea (Goldfuss) - lived during Middle and Late Pleistocene times on the Eurasian continent, from the British Isles to Chukotka in the extreme east of Russia, and they also roamed Alaska and northwestern Canada. The extinct creatures were close relatives of modern Afro-Asiatic lion.
Finds of  their remains are rare: today's announcement about the existence of the pair is coupled with the confident claim that they are best preserved ever unearthed in the world.

---

Along with the two lions, paleontologists will also show other Pleistocene animals preserved by ice in this vast region, the largest and coldest in the Russian Federation. Picture: Academy of Sciences of Yakutia, RGO

Full details will be given at the presentation in November, including the first results of research into the lions.
Previously, only fragments of carcasses, parts of skeletons and individual bones had been found. Until now, in Yakutia, only skulls, some teeth and bones were unearthed which has prevented scientists having more than an approximate image of the extinct creature.
Like other ancient animals, the cave lion became extinct: research on the two cubs could help to explain why they died out around 10,000 years ago, since the animal had few predators, was smaller than herbivores, and was not prone to getting bogged down in swamps, as did woolly mammoths and rhinos. One theory is a decline in deer and cave bears, their prey, caused their demise.
'The find is sensational, no doubt,' said a source close to the discovery. It is known the remains are free of dangerous infections such as anthrax following initial microbiological analysis, but no other significant details or pictures will be released before the presentation.
For bona fide media wishing to attend, please contact:
Anastasia Koryakina
Tel: +7 924 170 0012
e-mail: anastacia_joy@mail.ru
Dr Albert Protopopov 
Tel: +7 924 660 6395
e-mail: a.protopopov@mail.ru

http://siberiantimes.com/science/others/news/n0464-meet-this-extinct-cave-lion-at-least-10000-years-old/

In the lion's den: The Indian women who answer cat calls

• 23 October 2015
• From the section  
• IndiaFor a group of women forest guards working in India's Gir sanctuary, the only home to Asiatic lions, protecting and rescuing big cats is all in a day's work. The BBC's Geeta Pandey travels to Gir forest to meet some of them.

Rasila Vadher

Rasila Vadher was among the first batch of women guards recruited by the forest department in the western state of Gujarat in 2007.
The women's unit was set up that year, when then Gujarat chief minister Narendra Modi - now India's prime minister - ordered a 33% quota for women in Gir.
At the time, "I knew nothing about the forest department, animals or Gir", she tells me as we sit chatting in her office in the rescue centre, interrupted at regular intervals by growling leopards and roaring lions.


"My father had died early and my mother worked on other people's farms to send me and my younger brother to school. People in my community are very conservative so they told my mother, 'why educate the girl, she will get married and cook for her husband's family'. But my mother agreed to educate me because I wanted to study," she said.
In 2007, Vadher heard that the forest department was hiring guards, so she took her brother to the recruitment centre.
"I wanted him to get a job in the forest department. He was asked to take a physical fitness test, where he had to run and participate in a high-jump and long-jump competition. But he chickened out, so I decided to try my luck. And I made it through," she says.

Initially she was assigned office work, "but that was boring, so I thought let's try something new".
When Vadher began working as a guard in the field, protecting and rescuing wild animals, her male colleagues weren't too enthused about having a woman in their midst.
"Will we have to take care of the animals, or this woman?" they asked.
"I said let me try and we'll see how it goes," she says, adding that she "loves a good challenge".
 
Today, Vadher has come a long way from those days - she's a highly respected member of the rescue team and has been involved in nearly 900 rescues - 200 of them involving lions and 425 involving leopards.
Recently, along with some of the other women guards, Vadher has played a starring role in a four-part Discovery Channel series called The Lion Queens of India.
"My most memorable rescue was on 18 March 2012," she tells me.











"A leopard had fallen into a well, chasing a civet cat. The well had been newly-dug, it was dry and about 60-foot deep. We tried to tranquilise it, but we kept missing it because it was too far away. So I said I would go down in a cage and once the leopard is in range I would shoot the dart.
"I was lowered into the well in a small metal cage with a dart gun. The leopard was angry and growling. I had no experience and I was really afraid. But I fired the dart and hit the target. Once the animal was tranquilised, I captured it in a rope cage and it was hauled up," she says.
Vadher, who married last year, says she had warned her husband before they married. "I told him this is my work. And it's 24x7. I may be called in even at 3am. And I'll be working with men. He agreed. He understands and has no problems."

Darshana Kagada

Kagada comes from a family of eight sisters, and has no brothers.
"I belong to the Rajput caste which is very conservative. Girls and women in our families are treated as inferior beings. We are meant to get married, look after our families, cook and clean, and not have a career," she says.
Her father, she says, was no different in his beliefs.
"I had just finished senior school in 2011 when I heard that the forest department was recruiting. I went to my sister's house and persuaded her husband to take me for the exam.
"For 600 posts, there were 600,000 applicants," she says, adding that the competition was "very tough".
"First I had to clear the physical fitness test. Then I was taken on a 10km walk through the forest where I had to identify flora and fauna. That was followed by a written test and then an oral examination."
She told her father only after she got the job. "Today, he's very proud of me," she says.
On a cool October morning, 24-year-old Kagada escorts me into the lush green Gir forest.
We are in an open jeep and just a few minutes into our journey, we stop as we come across three guards patrolling the forest on foot.
As Kagada chats with them, I turn to my left, and there, less than three metres from us are three lionesses lounging around with five cubs. The guards only have wooden sticks, but they seem unconcerned.
"Lions are royal animals. They don't care about you and me," explains Kagada. "They will attack humans only if we intrude into their space, or if they feel you are threatening their cubs or you get too close to them when they are mating."
As the lionesses settle down to take a nap, we continue to hang around, chatting and looking at them. The only time one of the lionesses turns her head to look in our direction is when one of the guards starts talking a bit loudly on his walkie-talkie.


Kagada is among 48 women guards who are involved in the protection and rescue of lions and leopards in Gir.
She also trains forest guards and officials and teaches nature education courses to school children.
"I love my job, lots of children, especially girls, tell me they want to be like me," Kagada says.
"These women guards are an inspiration to women all over the country," says Sandeep Kumar, Deputy Conservator of Forests in Gir.
"Even Prime Minister Modi has said that people don't come to Gir to see lions, they come to see these women guards," he adds.

Geeta Ratadiya

For as long as she can remember, Ratadiya always wanted to be a forest guard.
"I was born in Gir, my grandfather and my father both worked as forest guards," she says.
Unlike Vadher and Kagada who had never seen a lion until they became forest guards, Ratadiya had her first encounter with the big cats when she was just four years old.
"My father used to take me to the forest with him all the time. One day I saw him standing close to a lion and a lioness. I was very afraid, I thought they would attack him, I started to cry," she says with a laugh.
But she continued to accompany her father into the jungle and, she says, gradually the fear faded.
"when I told my parents that I wanted to work in the forest, my mother thought I was too frail and would not qualify. She was thrilled when I was selected. But I always wanted to wear the khaki uniform and carry a walkie-talkie like my dad."
In the six years that she has worked as a forest guard, Ratadiya has been involved in many rescue operations and also takes care of the animals at the rescue centre.
On the days there is no rescue, there is plenty for her to do, taking care of injured, sick and abandoned animals.
Ratadiya had been married for just a couple of months when she got the forest department job.
Today, she often takes her two-year-old daughter to work. "She pesters me to bring her here every day. She loves looking at lions and other animals."
I ask her if her daughter will also grow up to be a forest guard.
"No," she says, adding, "I don't mind if she joins the department, but I want her to study and be a senior official."

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-india-34594692

Lion conservation: NDA says no funds under IDHW

Himanshu Kaushik,TNN | Oct 20, 2015, 08.01 PM IST
AHMEDABAD: At a time when the lion population is increasing and now spread in an area of 22,000 sq km across Saurashtra, the Narendra Modi-led NDA government has denied funds under the Integrated Development of Wildlife Habitats (IDWH) for the long term conservation of Asiatic Lion in Greater Gir area.

The state has 523 lions according to the 2015 census. Of these, 170-odd lions (one-third of the population) have made their permanent homes outside Gir Sanctuary.

The state forest department officials said the state has first drawn a project worth Rs 264 crore for the long term conservation of the lions in the area outside the protected area. However, during the UPA region, the state government first sought funds from the Planning Commission.

However, the commission refused funds and asked the state to scale down the proposal. Finally Rs 150 crore was sent, of which 135 crore was to be funded by the Centre, while the remaining was the state government's share.

However, in 2011 the UPA government in a reply to Darshana Jardosh question had stated in Lok Sabha: "Planning Commission did not provide additional funds for supporting the project, and advised the ministry that it should be supported within the budget allocated for the centrally sponsored scheme of IDWH. Despite paucity of funds under the scheme, the ministry released financial assistance amounting to Rs 6.74 crore during the financial year 2010-11 to the Gujarat government for undertaking some activities proposed during the first year of the project."

However again in 2015, BJP Junagadh MP Rajesh Chudasma sought to know whether the Centre proposed to grant necessary funds for conservation of Asiatic Lions and also the quantum of funds to be released for the project.

Union minister of state for environment, forest and climate change Prakash Javadekar replied in Lok Sabha that the ministry had received proposal from the Gujarat government with a total cost of Rs 150 crores. The state government had sought central funding of Rs135 crores and had proposed to share Rs 15 crore. The proposal had been examined by the ministry. However, requisite funds were not available under the IDWH.

In the past the Union government had stated that the Planning Commission had not provided additional funds for supporting the project citing that there was no project like Project Tiger which was taken up by the Centre and also that lions were found only in one state. The UPA government had agreed in principal to fund the project. However, it is the first time that this NDA government led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi has clearly said that no funds can be allocated.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/ahmedabad/Lion-conservation-NDA-says-no-funds-under-IDHW/articleshow/49470725.cms

BJP MLA threatens to kill Asiatic lions, CM Anandiben Patel ‘pained’

CM more concerned about lions than nine Patidar youths killed during quota violence: Dhari MLA Nalin Kotadiya
By: Express News Service | Rajkot | Published:October 18, 2015 12:35 am
A DAY after BJP MLA from Dhari, Nalin Kotadiya, exhorted farmers to kill lions if they affected their livelihood, Chief Minister Anandiben Patel on Saturday said she was pained and wondered “if he has any compassion for wildlife.” But the MLA hit back saying the CM was more concerned about lions than nine Patidar youths who were killed during quota violence in August.
Addressing a farmers’ rally in Talal town of Gir-Somnath district Friday, Kotadiya had said, “Lions are national heritage and to conserve them is the duty of everybody. But if we are forced to conserve lions at the cost of our livelihood, we shall not hesitate to kill lions themselves. If this area is suitable for lions, then shift all of us to Gandhinagar.”

Kotadiya had taken out the rally to protest proposed eco-sensitive zone (ESZ) of Gir forest, the only natural habitat of Asiatic lions in the world. Gir forest is spread across Junagadh, Gir-Somnath and Amreli districts in Saurashtra region and the MLA has been protesting against the proposed green zone around the protected forest since September 25. Gujarat government has sent draft ESZ of Gir forest to Central government and it is yet to be notified formally. The MLA has been demanding that ESZ of Gir be kept only a few kilometre from the boundary of the forest.
Reacting to the MLA’s threat, CM said she was dismayed at what the MLA had said. “I am extremely pained, my friends, that an MLA has given a statement saying lions should be killed if eco-sensitive zone is being created only for saving lions. I wonder if the MLA has any compassion for wildlife,” Patel said while addressing a public function in Bhavnagar on Saturday.
However, Kotadiya shot back saying the CM was attaching more importance to the lives of lions than human beings. “Nine Patidar youths were killed (during violence in the state in August) and she has not spoken a word on it. But she feels pain at mere talk of killing lions,” the MLA told The Sunday Express. He also denied the charge of not having compassion for wildlife.
“People of Saurashtra have compassion for wild animals and therefore lions are there. Go check the jungles in tribal belt of the state. You will not find even a squirrel there. Not even in the constituency of the forest minister,” said Kotadiya.
Incidentally, Kotadiya has openly extended his support to Patidars who are agitating for OBC status and reservation benefits. But after Kotadiya started espousing the case of Patidar reservation stir and protesting against the government over ESZ of the Gir forest, senior Gujarat BJP leader Mansukh Mandavia had disowned him a few weeks ago, saying he was not a BJP MLA. However, Kotadiya says that till date he has not received even a notice from the saffron party.

http://indianexpress.com/article/cities/ahmedabad/bjp-mla-threatens-to-kill-asiatic-lions-cm-anandiben-patel-pained/

Kotadiya had taken out the rally to protest proposed eco-sensitive zone (ESZ) of Gir forest, the only natural habitat of Asiatic lions in the world. Gir forest is spread across Junagadh, Gir-Somnath and Amreli districts in Saurashtra region and the MLA has been protesting against the proposed green zone around the protected forest since September 25. Gujarat government has sent draft ESZ of Gir forest to Central government and it is yet to be notified formally. The MLA has been demanding that ESZ of Gir be kept only a few kilometre from the boundary of the forest.
Reacting to the MLA’s threat, CM said she was dismayed at what the MLA had said. “I am extremely pained, my friends, that an MLA has given a statement saying lions should be killed if eco-sensitive zone is being created only for saving lions. I wonder if the MLA has any compassion for wildlife,” Patel said while addressing a public function in Bhavnagar on Saturday.
However, Kotadiya shot back saying the CM was attaching more importance to the lives of lions than human beings. “Nine Patidar youths were killed (during violence in the state in August) and she has not spoken a word on it. But she feels pain at mere talk of killing lions,” the MLA told The Sunday Express. He also denied the charge of not having compassion for wildlife.
“People of Saurashtra have compassion for wild animals and therefore lions are there. Go check the jungles in tribal belt of the state. You will not find even a squirrel there. Not even in the constituency of the forest minister,” said Kotadiya.
Incidentally, Kotadiya has openly extended his support to Patidars who are agitating for OBC status and reservation benefits. But after Kotadiya started espousing the case of Patidar reservation stir and protesting against the government over ESZ of the Gir forest, senior Gujarat BJP leader Mansukh Mandavia had disowned him a few weeks ago, saying he was not a BJP MLA. However, Kotadiya says that till date he has not received even a notice from the saffron party.
- See more at: http://indianexpress.com/article/cities/ahmedabad/bjp-mla-threatens-to-kill-asiatic-lions-cm-anandiben-patel-pained/#sthash.vEX3lrlQ.dpuf

Crouching Tiger, Hidden Cow: Or what the demand for a new national animal means

It would mean that this republic no longer believes in separating religion from the state and privileges the beliefs of the majority.

Ipsita Chakravarty  · Oct 18, 2015 · 09:15 am

That way things are moving, it should not be long before a movie production house announces Crouching Tiger, Hidden Cow, or Revenge of the Vegetarians, a fast-paced action thriller by Anil Vij. Sacrificing cow gets sidelined by carnivorous tiger in the bid for national animal status. The tiger has a showy habit of getting poached but does anyone ask where all those beef kebabs came from? But the meek (or the tasty) shall inherit the earth and when the right government comes to power, cow finally edges out tiger to become national animal.

That, broadly speaking, is the plot Haryana Health and Sports Minister Anil Vij has in mind. Living up to his reputation of being a maverick, caller of spades, Vij went on Twitter to add his two bit to the controversy on beef and cow slaughter. Make the cow the national animal and you won’t need laws for its protection. The Royal Bengal Tiger can protect itself, Vij reasoned, and held an online poll on the matter. Of the 329 people who cast their vote, 88% agreed with Vij.

Not a representative sample size, really, but Vij and his online voters are not the first to demand Project Cow. Last year, the Sanatan Brahma Foundation, believed to be an offshoot of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, voiced the same opinions. Earlier this year, over 100,000 groups and individuals appealed to the Centre for national animal status for the cow, according to one report. And the government is said to have given the idea due consideration.

This time, the demand has moved from the fringe to the mainstream. Vij, a minister of the Bharatiya Janata Party, now seems to be mobilising public opinion around it. It shouldn’t come as a surprise, since the state government he belongs to has already passed laws banning cow slaughter and the sale of beef. Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar has also recommended that minorities give up beef if they want to stay in India. So why not make the cow, a holy animal for some Indians, a national animal for all Indians?

How to choose a national animal

A changeable skein of reasons goes into the choice of a national animal. But what we choose says much about our priorities as a society at that point of time and what qualities we wish to identify ourselves with.

The real and the symbolic meet in the body of the national animal. The animal that lives in the collective imaginary, the significance attached to it, the qualities attributed to it, and how we use those qualities to describe ourselves. And the actual living, breathing creature with biological needs like food and water, circumscribed by evolutionary conditions such as habitat and breeding seasons. Indian governments so far have chosen animals with a cultural resonance, recognising their physical realities through projects of conservation. Which means they generally picked endangered species, animals that needed to be tracked, counted, protected from harm. Their very elusiveness, the fragility of their existence, gave them a new symbolic significance in the public imagination.

Between 1952 and 1972, it was the lion, perhaps appropriate for a new republic anxious to establish its sovereignty. It matched the statues on the Ashok Chakra, the new national symbol, it stood for kingliness, power and courage across religious traditions. Lions were also early subjects of conservation, dating back to colonial times. Hunted at an alarming rate in the 19th century, there were just 12 left in the Gir forest at the beginning of the 20th. Appalled, the nawab of Junagadh put a stop to hunting and declared the area a reserve. By 1950, there were 240 lions in Gir, numerous enough for the conservation to be called a success story, few enough for them to keep needing protection.

More recently, the lion has been absorbed into the iconography of the Modi government, his brand of muscular development and the figure of the prime minister himself. Earlier this year, it was suggested that the lion might become national animal again, newly laden with associations such as Make in India, Vibrant Gujarat and “hoonkar” rallies. Even conservation was caught up in a competitive jingoism, as Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh sparred over the proposal to transfer lions out of Gir and into the Kuno Palpur Wildlife Sanctuary.

Back in 1972, the lion had been edged out by the tiger as conservation gained new urgency. It was the same year that the government passed the Wildlife Protection Act, compiling a list of protected species and outlining an agenda for conservation. The following year, it launched Project Tiger. The tiger, which ranged over a much larger area than the lion, came to represent the modern state’s new environmental consciousness, the wealth of its biodiversity. But the tiger is also a much storied animal in the subcontinent, returning to culture in symbols of power and valour.

The Chola kings used it as their symbol and the Mughals liked to be painted hunting tigers. The tiger is also a familiar for several deities and the form favoured by a divine king in the Sunderbans, known for both his wrath and mercy. To British colonisers in the early 19th century, it stood for Oriental savagery. Their most difficult opponent, Tipu Sultan, had fashioned himself as the “Tiger of Mysore”. Later, Rudyard Kipling’s Jungle Book would also cast Sher Khan as the villain of the piece. Colonial hunting lore only acquired the conscience of conservation in the last few decades of empire.

In post-colonial India, Tipu Sultan was reinvented as a national hero, known for his courage, martial prowess and sense of independence, and the tiger acquired the same virtues. The National Portal of India says, “The combination of grace, strength, agility and enormous power has earned the tiger its pride of place as the national animal”. It also mentions the animal’s dwindling numbers.

National holy animal

People demanding that the cow be made national animal, however, have tended to focus on the tiger as non-vegetarian, a trait that is increasingly reviled and identified as non-Hindu. The vegetarian cow, in contrast, is sacrificing and nurturing, giving up its milk for humans and spending its energies on the field. Since cows populate the landscape in large numbers, conservation is not an objective here. What is being protected here is the agricultural animal, absorbed over time into Hindu mythology.

Writing about how Western culture “pictures the beast”, historian Steve Baker refers to an older symbolic relationship with animals in rural settings. Farmers depended on animals for food and labour, and therefore attributed mythic significance to them. They worshipped and sacrificed animals because they reared, worked with and ate these animals. Urbanisation disrupted this relationship, separating the symbolic from the real as animals disappeared from the essential business of living.

In Indian slums and cities, a similar process has taken place. Cows rummaging in garbage dumps, cows run over by cars, cows swallowing filth and plastic – these are the physical realities that city dwellers know. In the countryside, too, the cow’s uses have waned. Vij and his supporters may be surprised to find that most of the milk drunk in India today comes from buffaloes, and mechanisation has forced cows off the field in many places.

The symbolism that remains, hollowed out of real ties, is overtly religious and political. Next-door Nepal, which recently named the cow its national animal, has adopted a constitution that is secular but especially for Hindus. It is the country of Muluki Ain, or a criminal code based on Hinduism, which treats cow slaughter like homicide and imprisons people for eating beef. The laws have interfered with the customs of indigenous groups and religious minorities, who feel the constitution is another instrument of exclusion.

In India, where people are lynched for allegedly eating beef and where chief ministers tell minorities to change their habits if they want to live in the country, this experience could be repeated. Cow as national animal would mean this country has given up the attempt to separate religion and the state, that it identifies completely with the beliefs and practices of the religious majority, even if it means criminalising the beliefs and practices of other religions.

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http://scroll.in/article/762962/crouching-tiger-hidden-cow-or-what-the-demand-for-a-new-national-animal-means

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Himanshu Kaushik, TNN | Oct 17, 2015, 06.17AM IST
AHMEDABAD: A weak cub whose leg was infested with maggots after he got injured was brought for treatment to Sasan outside Gir sanctuary. After a week long treatment, in a heart-warming scene, the cub was reunited with his mother.

There was rejoice all over as the cub, when released, straight away walked towards the mother who recognized him through his smell and took him back into the pride. Forest officials say that this kind of rescue and treatment operation by taking a cub away from the wild is rare.

Deputy conservator of forest Sandeep Kumar said, "Usually in case of cubs in the wild, the injuries don't get easily noticed and they surface only when the body is recovered. But in Gir forest, it is vigil of the beat guard who are monitoring the forest daily. The beat guard immediately informed the rescue team."

The mother accepted the cub after smelling it. (TOI photo)

Kumar said that on observing the cub, it was decided to rescue it and bring it to the rescue centre at Sasan for treatment. However, caging the cub was not possible as it would not be lured by the trap and hence it was decided to trap the cub in the ring cage. A special cage was set up and when the entire pride walked out of it, the team immediately closed the gates of the cage and trapped the cub.

Kumar said that according to the guards, it was seen that there were four cubs of the same age in the group and the remaining three used to take the feed leaving behind this cub. The cub was weak and then got an injury which resulted in maggots. While the cub was away the lioness used to search for it initially but when it did not find it, she gave up.

However, after the treatment the biggest worry was to reunite the baby back in the group. "Usually on several occasions, the cub is left to die and is not accepted back by the pride. But in this case, as soon as we released the cub, it started walking towards the pride. The mother too walked towards the cub and started smelling it.

After smelling the cub, the mother drove it in the pride and the other two lioness and the three other cubs too came close and accepted him. The department is now constantly monitoring the cub and has observed that the mother is feeding it first.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/home/environment/flora-fauna/Reunion-of-mother-son-in-Gir-jungle/articleshow/49425902.cms

Gir roars after sightings of 100 Asiatic lion pups

By Agencies |Posted 16-Oct-2015
Vadodara: With several new Asiatic lion cubs being sighted in Gujarat’s Gir wildlife sanctuary, forest officials are expecting more tourists to the national park, which opens today after being closed for four months.
“We have sighted about 100 Asiatic lion cubs in the sanctuary during the four-month closure period which is likely to attract more tourists, including foreigners, to the place,” Gir National Park’s Deputy Conservator of Forests Sandeep Kumar said on Thursday. This is the first time foresters have seen a substantial jump in the cub count, he added.
Gir sanctuary is the sole home of Asiatic lions and is considered to be one of the most important protected areas in Asia due to its supported species. “The four month closure from June 15 to October 15 this year was part of the management plan since it was mating season for the wild animals. The chances of visitors sighting the cubs have increased as many of the little ones are in the tourist zone of the forest,” he said.
Kumar said, “As per the 14th lion census conducted in the wildlife sanctuary in May this year, there are 523 Asiatic lions in Gir forest, other protected areas and revenue areas in Junagadh, Gir Somnath, Amreli and Bhavnagar districts of Saurashtra region of Gujarat. It means the population has increased by 112 as compared to 411 counted in 2010.”
“We have seen an increase in the number of cubs with each passing year. It is possible only because of the co-operation that the forest department gets from villagers and patrolling staff. People immediately inform us if they see an injured cub in the area. This helps reduce mortality,” the forest official said.
The forest management conducted a special rescue and protection drive during the monsoon. “During the monsoon, there were chances of animals being infested by maggots, if they sustain injury. We divided our staff into teams and gave them maps. They conducted special drives in the forest, checking on the health status of the animals, giving them treatment when needed,” he said. “While we do this for all animals, our main focus was on the Asiatic lions. We also checked for cubs who might have strayed,” Kumar added.

http://www.mid-day.com/articles/gir-roars-after-sightings-of-100-asiatic-lion-pups/16611154

More Asiatic Lion Cubs Sighted in Gir Sanctuary in Gujarat

File photo of lions at the Gir sanctuary in Gujarat

All India | Press Trust of India | Updated: October 15, 2015 13:12 IST

Vadodara:  With several new Asiatic lion cubs being sighted in Gujarat's Gir wildlife sanctuary, the forest officials are expecting more tourists to the national park which opens tomorrow after being closed for four months.

"We have sighted about 100 Asiatic lion cubs in the sanctuary during the four-month closure period which is likely to attract more tourists, including foreigners, to the place," Gir National Park's Deputy Conservator of Forests Sandeep Kumar told PTI over phone today.

This is the first time foresters have seen a substantial jump in the cub count, he said. Gir sanctuary is the sole home of Asiatic lions and is considered to be one of the most important protected areas in Asia due to its supported species.

It remains mandatorily shut for four months during the monsoon period.

"The four months' closure from June 15 to October 15 this year was part of the management plan since it was mating season for the wild animals. The chances of visitors sighting the cubs have increased as many of the little ones are in the tourist zone of the forest," he said.

"As per the 14th lion census conducted in the wildlife sanctuary in May this year, there are 523 Asiatic lions in Gir forest, other protected areas and revenue areas in Junagadh, Gir Somnath, Amreli and Bhavnagar districts of Saurashtra region of Gujarat. It means the population has increased by 112 as compared to 411 counted in 2010," Mr Kumar said.

"We have seen an increase in the number of cubs with each passing year. It is possible only because of the cooperation that the forest department gets from villagers and patrolling staff. People immediately inform us if they see an injured cub in the area. This helps reduce mortality," the forest official said.

Taking advantage of the lean season, the forest management conducted special rescue and protection drive during the monsoon time.

"During monsoon, there were chances of animals being infested by maggots, if they sustain injury. We divided our staff into teams and gave them maps. They conducted special drives in the forest, checking on the health status of the animals, giving them treatment when needed," he said.

"While we do this for all animals, our main focus was on the Asiatic lions. We also checked for cubs who might have strayed," Mr Kumar added.

http://www.ndtv.com/india-news/more-asiatic-lion-cubs-sighted-in-gir-sanctuary-in-gujarat-1232491

Lion Safari to have leopards, deer and bears from Dehradun.

Faiz Rahman Siddiqui, TNN | Oct 13, 2015, 12.51PM ISTKANPUR: Lion Safari may get leopards, deer and bears from the Dehradun forest department. Separate areas for these animals are being carved within the safari premises. Three more Asiatic lions would become a part of the safari soon. These lions will be brought from Gir Forest of Gujarat. "The visitors at the safari would also come across leopard, deer and bear," divisional forest officer Anil Patel said.

The state government is set to develop separate zones for leopard, deer and bear within 350 acres of area at the safari in Etawah. "A detailed project report seeking clearance for it has been submitted to Central Zoo Authority. Separate areas for leopard, deer and bear in many hectares of land within the safari premises have been identified. National Chambal Sanctuary is already a home for a host of migratory birds coming from all parts of the Asiatic region, besides aquatic animals like Gangetic Dolphin, turtles and gharials, leopard, deer and bear at lion safari will create a natural ambience for wildlife lovers," Patel added.

A team of forest officials, including veterinarians had gone to Junagarh Zoo in Gujarat to undergo training to upkeep Asiatic lions.

The veterinarians were sent to Gujarat following the death of five cubs in Etawah lion Safari. Two of the five were stillborn and three died within weeks of birth. The vets said that the training honed their skills. Currently, there are six lions, including three females, in the safari. Patel said, "We have hired Chagan Lal Guha, an expert of Junagarh zoo. He stayed at lion safari for about a week and gave us tips helpful in rearing Asiatic lion. Three more Asiatic lions, one male and two females would be brought here from Junagarh zoo. Recently, a team of forest department and senior government officials from the state had visited Junagarh zoo to complete formalities in this regard."

The DFO said that a team of four keepers from Hyderabad would be hired during next breeding of Asiatic lions. "We are in the process of collecting data on male and female lions and their cubs from Junagarh zoo so that we customize it to suit the requirements of felines during next breeding session here. Chagan Lal Guha gave us tips regarding feeding and mating habits of lions," Patel added.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/home/environment/flora-fauna/Lion-Safari-to-have-leopards-deer-and-bears-from-Dehradun/articleshow/49334506.cms

Gujarat High Court tells govt not to make changes in new policy for Gir Sanctuary

PTI | Oct 7, 2015, 08.37PM ISTAHMEDABAD: The Gujarat High Court today told the state government not to make any changes in the new policy for Gir Sanctuary, the last abode for Asiatic lions, without its approval.

A two-judge bench of acting Chief Justice Jayant Patel and justice N V Anjariya directed that if the government wanted to make any change to the draft policy it should first place the proposal before the Court.

This was after Additional Advocate General Prakash Jani submitted before the HC that the state government wanted to make some changes in the policy as locals near the sanctuary and their elected representatives have represented to the authorities about their objections regarding the new policy.

The locals of the area and their representatives said that they will have to take permission of a central committee to make any construction in their residential buildings. The committee comprises representatives of revenue and forest departments along with the district authorities.

However, they will have to later take the permission of the particular Gram Sabha which might prolong the entire process to take permission just to make any changes in their residential building, the state government said before the HC while seeking its permission to make changes in the new policy.

However, the HC said the matter was pending before it and the new proposed policy was also not finalised, therefore no changes can be made before their approval.

The case will be taken up by the HC in due process.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Gujarat-High-Court-tells-govt-not-to-make-changes-in-new-policy-for-Gir-Sanctuary/articleshow/49261174.cms

Meet Raseela Vadher, who rescues lions for a living!

Sunday, 4 October 2015 - 7:35am IST | Place: Mumbai | Agency: dna | From the print edition

Averil Nunes

What is it like for a woman forest guard who lives in the jungles far away from her family? Averil Nunes meets the intrepid Raseela Vadher, for whom rescuing lions and leopards is all in a day's work, to find out

• Gir forest guard Raseela Vadher with a rescued leopard cub

"This is a 24-hour job, we have no schedule," she laughs when asked to describe a typical day in her life. After all, Raseela Vadher's work day as a rescue forester in Gujarat's Gir National Park could include anything from rescuing a lion in a well or controlling a leopard on the prowl.
It has been seven years of responding to calls to rescue wildlife in and around Gujarat and participating in literally hundreds of rescue operations for the 31-year-old who signed up as a forest guard with Gir in 2007 and worked in the communications division till May 2008 when she took up her current assignment.
There's no saying what tomorrow may bring. Rescues can take as little as 15 minutes if it's just a question of getting an animal out of a well or up to 24 hours if it involves tracking and rescuing - as it did in Mahiya village when Raseela and her team had to rescue four leopard cubs left alone in a 50-metre long cave after their mother had been caught.
"There's a difference between training and a real life situation," says Raseela. "No amount of training can prepare you for a rescue; you have to assess the situation, surroundings and context afresh in each case. You learn from each experience. We say a rescue is successful only when neither the animal nor anyone in the ream is hurt in the process".
Of course, understanding animal behaviour is a large part of that experience. "Lions, leopards, pythons... each animal behaves differently."
Lions, for instance, are social creatures but leopards are not, she says. "They will never hurt you unless provoked- if disturbed when mating, if you move too close to a lioness with cubs or if they can't find food - and even then, they will warn you to back off before they attack, either by waving their tail or growling when you cross what they regard as their boundary. As kings of the jungle they are confident about their place in the scheme of things and don't feel the need to attack. Leopards, on the other hand, are solitary creatures and are rather unpredictable. They don't need a reason to attack."
Once, the team headed out at 3 a.m. after reports that a leopard had injured a girl in Devaliya range and was roaming wild. The wild cat was found sitting in the guest house lobby, she recalls. An attempt to tranquilize him in the open would have meant it would have too many avenues to escape and could harm guests in the process. So, the team sat and watched. Finally, at 6.30 a.m., they managed to corner the animal in a room. Everyone was too scared to bolt him in but Raseela picked up the courage to do so.
The animal had been trapped but the problem of how to tranquillize him remained. Just as they decided to break the glass on the window of the room, the leopard's paw crashed through the glass door. But the rescuers managed to tranquillize him just in time. The same day, the team dealt with a leopard which had injured four people in the Visavadar range and rescued another leopard from a well in the Dedakadi range.
Phew! How's that for a day's work?
Leopards strolling around to eat goats or dogs in the villages around Gir are not uncommon. Luckily, the people of Gir know how to live with animals, says Raseela. "We try to respond to calls within 15 minutes and people are confident. That is a great help."
There's plenty to do even when there's no emergency. On days such as those, she reaches the the rescue headquarters around 8 a.m. and tends to the various jobs -- treating sick/injured animals, feeding baby animals, arranging for provisions and living quarters for new arrivals that are being brought in, ensuring that all animal quarters are well maintained, micro-chipping lions and leopards and, of course, paperwork. Of these, treating injured animals and feeding cubs rank high on Raseela's list of favourite tasks.
Raseela lives in the park and manages to visit her home in Bhanduri, about 42 kilometres away, just once a month or maybe not even that. But the distance from her family doesn't bother her too much. Her husband though works in the village of Verawal about 60 kilometres away and manages to visit every alternate day. "The animals are my family," says the woman who has been married for a little over a year.
What's the best part about her job? "I get paid to spend time with nature and animals," she answers happily. She is hoping that her life – glimpses of which will be seen in Discovery Channel's forthcoming Lion Queens of India series – will convince more girls to join the forest guards department. "Girls can do anything," she insists. "We are not meant to sit at home and make rotis."
No, indeed.

http://www.dnaindia.com/lifestyle/report-meet-raseela-vadher-who-rescues-lions-for-a-living-2131351

Gir green zone: BJP MLA booked for protest

“We have registered a case against him and eight others. Some the accused are nephews of Kotadiya. We shall soon summon the MLA and others,” Dhari police sub-inspector Mitesh Barot said Thursday.
By: Express News Service | Rajkot | Published:October 2, 2015 2:28 am

BJP MLA from Dhari Nalin Kotadiya and eight others have been booked for reportedly burning an effigy of the proposed Eco-Sensitive Zone around Gir forest.  Dhari police registered a case against Kotadiya and eight others on Wednesday evening after the MLA and his supporters allegedly burnt an effigy of the proposed green zone at Kubda village of Dhari taluka in Amreli district on Monday night. The MLA and his supporters have been booked under Section 135 of the Gujarat Police Act for organising a public event without prior permission of authorities.
“We have registered a case against him and eight others. Some the accused are nephews of Kotadiya. We shall soon summon the MLA and others,” Dhari police sub-inspector Mitesh Barot said Thursday.

Kotadiya had taken out a rally in Dhari on September 25, demanding 121 villages on the borders of Gir forest in Amreli not to be included in the proposed green zone. However, senior forest officers refuted claims of the MLA saying the proposed green zone does not extend up to 10 km as being claimed by Kotadiya and that the green zone norms are regulatory in nature and not prohibitory.

http://indianexpress.com/article/cities/ahmedabad/gir-green-zone-bjp-mla-booked-for-protest/