English language news articles from year 2007 plus find out everything about Asiatic Lion and Gir Forest. Latest News, Useful Articles, Links, Photos, Video Clips and Gujarati News of Gir Wildlife Sanctuary (Geer / Gir Forest - Home of Critically Endangered Species Asiatic Lion; Gir Lion; Panthera Leo Persica ; Indian Lion (Local Name 'SAVAJ' / 'SINH' / 'VANRAJ') located in South-Western Gujarat, State of INDIA), Big Cats, Wildlife, Conservation and Environment.
TNN | Jun 28, 2018, 04:00 ISTRajkot: Leopard attacked a 20-year-old shepherd in Kareni village of Gir
Gadhda taluka in Gir Somnath district on Wednesday morning. The injured
was first taken to Una hospital and then shifted to civil hospital in
Junagadh for further treatment. According to forest department, the
incident took place when Deepak Vinja Degan had taken his goat into the
forest area from grazing. Leopard tried to prey on the goat but when
Deepak tried to protect it, the leopard attacked him. Deepak sustained
injuries on the head. tnn
https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/rajkot/leopard-attacks-shepherd-in-gir-somnath-village/articleshow/64770301.cms
Parimal Nathwani, Rajya Sabha member, inaugurated the forest zone called ‘The Gir’ at the city airport on Tuesday. TNN | Updated: Jun 27, 2018, 06:33 IST
AHMEDABAD:
Flyers who land in Ahmedabad will now be welcomed at the domestic
terminal by the royal roar of Gujarat’s pride. The terminal offers a
glimpse of Asiatic lions
of Sasan Gir, their only abode in the world. A replica of Gir forest
has been conceptualised by Reliance Industries Limited (RIL).
Airports Authority of India (AAI) has
allotted an 11,000 sq feet area between the arrival and departure
terminals. This forest zone features lifesize replicas of lions, black
bucks, eagles, leopards, and few other animals that are found in Gir.
“Apart from the objective of giving a
glimpse of the Gir forests, the replicas are a marketing tool and can
facilitate mass awareness,” said Parimal Nathwani, Rajya Sabha
member and group president (corporate affairs), RIL. Nathwani
inaugurated the forest zone called ‘The Gir’on Tuesday. Accompaning him
was Lok Sabha MP and actor Paresh Rawal.
“Ahmedabad airport is likely to house an aviation museum in future,”
Rawal said. “J R D Tata, considered the father of civil aviation in
India, made the country’s maiden voyage from Juhu airport to Drigh
airstrip, Karachi, via Ahmedabad in October 1932.”
On the Gir exhibit, Rawal said:
“Instead of whiling away time in the waiting lounge, passengers can
spend some time at this interactive exhibit.” He said it is probably for
the first time that a special attraction belonging to any state has
been displayed at an airport.
“Lion population has increased with the tolerance the residents. But
more and more lions are moving out of protected forest areas and
settling into revenue land. This has increased man-animal conflict,”
said the officer. (Representational Image)The carcass of a male lion,
aged 10 to 12 years, was found in the Shetrunji river in Talaja taluka
of Bhavnagar district on June 6. At the time, the forest department did
not reveal the cause of death and had said that the matter was being
probed. By: Express News Service | Rajkot |
Published: June 27, 2018 8:55:05 am
The Asiatic lion which was found dead in the Shetrunji riverbed in
Bhavnagar district earlier this month died after coming in contact with a
live electric wire in an agricultural field, an inquiry by the forest
department has concluded.
The carcass of a male lion, aged 10 to 12 years, was found in the
Shetrunji river in Talaja taluka of Bhavnagar district on June 6. At the
time, the forest department did not reveal the cause of death and had
said that the matter was being probed.
However, a forest official in Bhavnagar informed The Indian Express
on Tuesday that the lion was electrocuted. “A panel of veterinarians of
animal husbandry department and forest department conducted the post
mortem and concluded that the lion was killed due to electric shock.
Burn injury marks were also visible on the animal’s body,” the officer
said.
According to the officer, the forest department had withheld the
findings of the post mortem report in order to identify the accused.
“The lion was electrocuted after it accidentally touched a steel wire
which was connected to an electricity source in order to prevent wild
boars and blue bulls from raiding the standing crop. When the farmers
came to know about the death of the lion, they dumped the carcass in the
riverbed,” the officer said.
Farmers in the area often erect such electric wires around their
farms to prevent the entry of herbivores like wild boars and blue bulls
or nilgais that often damage standing crop by raiding farms, especially
at night
“We have already questioned a man who is a share-cropper on a nearby
field. However, we suspect more than one persons were involved and
efforts are on to identify them,” the officer added.
“Lion population has increased with the tolerance the residents. But
more and more lions are moving out of protected forest areas and
settling into revenue land. This has increased man-animal conflict,”
said the officer.
Farmer Raju Ghelabhai Jadav, sleeping in an open field in Fareda village, was attacked by the leopard early morning on Thursday TNN | Updated: Jun 22, 2018, 08:47 IST
RAJKOT: A 25-year-old man was attacked by a leopard in the wee hours of Thursday while he was sleeping in an open field in
Fareda village of Gir-Gadhda taluka of Gir-Somanath district. He was
admitted to Junagadh civil hospital after treatment in Gir-Gadhda
primary health centre.
According to forest officials, Raju Ghelabhai Jadav, resident of
Fareda village, was attacked by the leopard when he was sleeping in the
farm of Dilip Parmar. Jadav suffered injuries on his head and cheek. Another person who was sleeping besides Jadav woke up on hearing his
cries and started throwing stones at the leopard to drive it away.
Jadav was first taken to the primary health centre in Gir Gadhdhda and later to Junagadh civil hospital for further treatment.
Forest officials have set up cages at various places in the village to nab the leopard.
Attack on humans by leopards have
become frequent in Gir-Somnath and Junagadh districts. In April, a
five-year-old girl was killed in Sutraparad in a leopard attack.
According to the forest department, between April 2017 and March 2018,
nearly 110 leopard attacks have been reported from Gir-Somnath, Junagadh
and Amreli districts.
MB2, a sub-adult tiger at Kanha Tiger Reserve in Madhya Pradesh, was
tranquilised before being taken on a 680-km journey to Satkosia Tiger
Reserve in Odisha in the first such inter-state relocation. (Express
Photo)
The tiger was tranquilised before being taken on a 680-km journey to
Satkosia Tiger Reserve in Odisha in the first such inter-state
relocation. (Express Photo)
MB2 being shifted from Kanha to Satkosia. The project involves
relocating six tigers from MP to Odisha. (Photo: MP Forest Department)
Camera traps had already
identified MB2, a sub-adult tiger aged a little over three years, as the
first potential target, after it emerged that it had a kill and was not
likely to move from the area.
Written by Milind Ghatwai
| Bhopal |
Updated: June 22, 2018 9:34:25 am
IN THE first such case of inter-state relocation, MB2, a 195-kg
tiger, was shifted from the Kanha Tiger Reserve in Madhya Pradesh to the
Satkosia Tiger Reserve in Odisha on Thursday. This is part of an ambitious project conceived by the Union Ministry
of Environment and Forests, National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA)
and Wildlife Institute of India (WII), Dehradun, that involves shifting
six tigers (three pairs) from different reserves in the central state
to the eastern state. Camera traps had already identified MB2, a sub-adult tiger aged a
little over three years, as the first potential target, after it emerged
that it had a kill and was not likely to move from the area. On
Wednesday afternoon, MP to Odisha: first inter-state tiger relocation it
was tranquilised by wildlife veterinarians from Pench and Kanha. It
took two darts to immobile the big cat. Elephant-mounted staff then
poked the tiger to check for any signs of activity. When it did not
move, it was blindfolded and taken on a special stretcher. The team then
measured all parameters, from its temperature to its canines, neck
girth and length. The tiger was collared and later shifted to a cage.
While the cage was loaded on to a truck, three other vehicles with
doctors and experts accompanied MB2 during the 680-km journey, which
took about 22 hours. The tiger was finally released in Satkosia around
1.30 pm on Thursday.
“The operation was first planned for Thursday but was preponed by a
day as the conditions were favourable,’’ said Dr Sanjay Shukla, Chief
Conservator of Forests and Kanha park director.
While the intra-state tiger relocation experiment has been hugely
successful in Madhya Pradesh — the Panna Tiger Reserve (PTR), where
tiger sightings stopped in 2009, now has over 30 tigers — this is the
first such case of inter-state relocation.
Confirming this, Madhya Pradesh Principal Chief Conservator of
Forests Shazbaz Ahmed said this was the first time that a tiger had been
relocated from one state to another for being released into the wild.
Wildlife conservationist Belinda Wright also said this was the first
such inter-state relocation, adding that the experiment “is a viable
idea as long as they don’t shift breeding animals’’. “Satkosia is a
lovely tiger habitat. I hope they will take every measure to keep the
tigers safe,’’ she said.
While a lot will depend on how MB2 adapts to its new home, which has a
good prey base, the next relocation, of a tigress, is likely to be
undertaken only after monsoon. Kanha has about 105-107 tigers. The other
pairs are likely to be be sent from Bandhavgarh and Pench.
Meanwhile Madhya Pradesh is still waiting for lions from Gujarat. A
project to find an alternate home for the Asiatic lion outside the
western state was conceived nearly three decades ago. A new site has
been created in Palpur Kuno in Sheopur district of Madhya Pradesh, but
Gujarat has not parted with the lions. In 2013, the Supreme Court had
asked Gujarat to share the lions.
The squirrel, which is the state animal of Maharashtra, is an endangered species. Updated: Jun 21, 2018 16:34 IST Prachi Bari
Hindustan Times, Pune There are five Indian giant squirrels in the Katraj zoo.(Kedar Bhatt)
The Rajiv Gandhi Zoological
Park and Research Centre will begin the exclusive conservation breeding
programme of Indian giant squirrel which is an endangered species and
also, the state animal of Maharashtra, from July. The Indian giant
squirel is otherwise known as the Malabar Giant squirrel or ‘Shekru’.
“ This programme will help us understand the breeding pattern, lifestyle and lifespan of the Indian giant squirrel,” said DrRajkumar Jadhav, director. Rajiv Gandhi Zoological Park and Research Centre.
The
central zoo authority has identified 73 endangered species across India
for the exclusive conservation breeding programme. The programme began
across zoos in India in 2008. The breeding for larger cats like Asiatic
lion, Royal Bengal tiger and Cheetah, and smaller cats like leopard and
spotted cats have begun in some of the schools.
Last year, the zoo began its trial on a pair of Indian giant squirrel
and they gave birth to two young ones, within a span of a year. The
zoo authorities are confident about rearing the new squirrels. A new
cage of around 125 square metres with 25 feet height is being set up for
the breeding programme. “ We have a total of 5 Indian giant squirrels,
including the young ones.The newly-born young ones are female,” said
Jadhav.
The
zoo authorities added that they will now be able to work on the
squirrels in a scientific manner in a separate breeding facility and
they will be able to assess whether the squirrels are compatible and are
able to adjust to the climatic conditions.
Conservation
breeding is being carried out to restore the population of wild animal
species. The animals selected for conservation breeding will not be
displayed and will be kept in isolated places. They need special care.
“It
is an honour to be selected for such a breeding programme where we are
also contributing towards an important conservation. This kind of
programme will play a vital role in studying about these endangered
animals,” said Jadhav.
When
a video of locals harassing a lioness with a bait in the unprotected
areas of Sasan at Gujarat's Gir went viral recently, social media lit up
with outrage.
The
Gujarat High Court had already pulled up the state government in March
over poor measures to save Asiatic Lions – the pride of Gujarat, and of
India – after reports of 184 deaths recorded between 2016 and 2017 were
made public.
As many as 32 had perished due to unnatural causes,
such as lions falling into open wells, electrocution by barbed wires,
and road and rail accidents. The PIL is still being heard in the HC.
As
the backlash of the viral video rattled the state government, they
pulled out an "affirmative action" plan to silence their critics.
Although
the action plan includes increasing forest land cover for lions,
serving harsher punishments to miscreants who illegally film lions, and
better infrastructure, whether any of these plans will work towards
protecting and conserving the lions is highly debatable.
Confining Excess lion Population Within Gujarat
There
are over 523 lions living in Gujarat as per the 2015 census. Three
years on, the number could be well over 600, according to some wildlife
experts. One of the major issues that the lion conservation movement in
Gujarat faces, is that around 54.6 percent lions live outside the
protected areas of the wildlife sanctuary.
As a result, lion and
human interactions are at an all-time high, with videos of locals riding
bikes in the lions’ vicinity or tourists chasing them around in
vehicles disturbing the feline’s ecology making it to social media
frequently.
One of the solutions that conservationists swear by is translocation of lions to new territory outside Gujarat.
For
starters, the Supreme Court on 15 April 2013, had issued an order to
move certain number of lions out of Gir to Kuno Wildlife Sanctuary in
Madhya Pradesh. However, five years have passed, and not a single lion
is on the prowl in Kuno.
Gujarat Not Keen on Inter-State Translocation?
An Asiatic lion rests in Gir forest. (Photo: Reuters)
Five
years on, the Gujarat government claims that lions will be
translocated, but under the International Union for Conservation of
Nature (IUCN) guidelines. These guidelines state that 33 studies need to
be conducted before translocation is undertaken.
When The Quint
asked the Principal Chief Conservator of Forest GK Sinha by when the
translocation process will be completed, he passed the buck on to the
Centre, and said only they will be able to reply.
Now, the state government is keen on moving lions to newer sanctuaries within the state.
“We
are considering the translocation of lions but within the state. We
have already identified new alternative sanctuaries; one in Porbandar
called the Barda Sanctuary and one near Rajkot named Rampura Sanctuary.
As of now we are building a prey base for lions in these sanctuaries.
Once we have enough game to go around for the lions, the wild cats will
be moved out.”
Dushyant Vasavda, Chief Conservatorof Forests,
By when? He did not respond.
Onus of Translocation Lies on Govt: Conservationist
Ravi
Chellam, who is a member of an expert committee formed by the Ministry
of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEF & CC) based on the
SC Order to implement translocation pointedly said it is the complete
unwillingness of the governments to deal with the complexity and urgency
of the problem.
“It
is the governments of India, of Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh, who need to
answer whether they will adhere to the SC Order or not. In fact, a
contempt petition was filed in the SC which was heard in March this year
and the government said that a committee meeting will be held in a
week’s time based on which the SC did not take any further action. It is
three months since the SC hearing but till now there is no indication
of any progress.”
Ravi Chellam, Conservation Scientist
The Quint
Spoke to Madhya Pradesh-based wildlife activists Ajay Shankar Dubey who
had filed the contempt Petition in Supreme Court in 2014.
“Though the petition was filed in 2014, the first hearing was held on
November 2017. In March 2017, the central government gave an assuranance
that the translocation process will be undertaken soon and the matter
was discharged. But three months have already passed and now we will
again file a contempt petition in court.”
Ajay Shankar Dubey, Wildlife Activist
"If
they want to translocate lions within the state, why has that step not
been taken, what has stopped the Gujarat government so far? Do we
respect the SC order or not? Because it was supposed to be implemented
in six months’ time after the order was issued, and now five years down
the line, and we are still talking about translocation," he added.
The forest department will also institute a network of informers who
will tip off the authorities on illegal activities such as filming of
the Asiatic lion. Updated: Jun 20, 2018 16:35 IST HT Correspondent
Hindustan Times, Ahmedabad
As many as 523 lions were detected at the Gir National Park and Sanctuary in the 2015 census.(AP File Photo)
Teasing or illegally attracting
an Asiatic lion’s attention at the Gir National Park and Sanctuary, the
last abode of the big cat, can now attract punishment on the lines of
poaching. Stricter rules announced recently by the Gujarat
government have prescribed seven years’ imprisonment for offenders. The
step was taken after authorities came across several instances of people
offering bait in order to lure the endangered animal into the open for
the benefit of tourists. “The new decisions were taken to provide a
safety net for lions and ensure that they are conserved,” said Gujarat
forest minister Ganpat Vasava.
Other decisions included declaring
an area of around 109 square kilometres in Amreli and Bhavnagar as a
“conservation reserve”. Of the 523 lions detected in the protected zone
during the 2015 census, around 200 inhabit these two districts along the
coastal route.
The Gir National Park and Sanctuary is spread over an area of 1,500 square kilometres.
The
forest department will also institute a network of informers who will
tip off the authorities on illegal activities such as filming of the
Asiatic lion. Wildlife guards and drivers were found arranging for
illegal sightings of the animal in peripheral areas of the national park
in recent times.
The state government is also taking steps to
enhance tourism at the Gir National Park and Sanctuary. Given the spike
in visitor count, the forest department has decided to increase the
number of permits from 30 to 50 during weekdays and 50 to 60 during
weekends. Additionally, it plans to launch safaris in the area around
Mount Girnar in Junagadh city. https://www.hindustantimes.com/india-news/now-teasing-gir-lion-can-get-you-seven-years-imprisonment/story-mfRxj72oFo1acMItc1xf7M.html
AHMEDABAD:
Flyers who land in Ahmedabad will now be welcomed at the domestic
terminal by the royal roar of Gujarat’s pride. The terminal offers a
glimpse of Asiatic lions
of Sasan Gir, their only abode in the world. A replica of Gir forest
has been conceptualised by Reliance Industries Limited (RIL).
“Lion population has increased with the tolerance the residents. But
more and more lions are moving out of protected forest areas and
settling into revenue land. This has increased man-animal conflict,”
said the officer. (Representational Image)The carcass of a male lion,
aged 10 to 12 years, was found in the Shetrunji river in Talaja taluka
of Bhavnagar district on June 6. At the time, the forest department did
not reveal the cause of death and had said that the matter was being
probed. 
RAJKOT: A 25-year-old man was attacked by a leopard in the wee hours of Thursday while he was sleeping in an open field in
Fareda village of Gir-Gadhda taluka of Gir-Somanath district. He was
admitted to Junagadh civil hospital after treatment in Gir-Gadhda
primary health centre.
IN THE first such case of inter-state relocation, MB2, a 195-kg
tiger, was shifted from the Kanha Tiger Reserve in Madhya Pradesh to the
Satkosia Tiger Reserve in Odisha on Thursday.
This is part of an ambitious project conceived by the Union Ministry
of Environment and Forests, National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA)
and Wildlife Institute of India (WII), Dehradun, that involves shifting
six tigers (three pairs) from different reserves in the central state
to the eastern state.
Camera traps had already identified MB2, a sub-adult tiger aged a
little over three years, as the first potential target, after it emerged
that it had a kill and was not likely to move from the area. On
Wednesday afternoon, MP to Odisha: first inter-state tiger relocation it
was tranquilised by wildlife veterinarians from Pench and Kanha. It
took two darts to immobile the big cat. Elephant-mounted staff then
poked the tiger to check for any signs of activity. When it did not
move, it was blindfolded and taken on a special stretcher. The team then
measured all parameters, from its temperature to its canines, neck
girth and length. The tiger was collared and later shifted to a cage.
The Rajiv Gandhi Zoological
Park and Research Centre will begin the exclusive conservation breeding
programme of Indian giant squirrel which is an endangered species and
also, the state animal of Maharashtra, from July. The Indian giant
squirel is otherwise known as the Malabar Giant squirrel or ‘Shekru’. 
Stricter rules announced recently by the Gujarat
government have prescribed seven years’ imprisonment for offenders. The
step was taken after authorities came across several instances of people
offering bait in order to lure the endangered animal into the open for
the benefit of tourists. “The new decisions were taken to provide a
safety net for lions and ensure that they are conserved,” said Gujarat
forest minister Ganpat Vasava.