Jumana Shah
Friday, May 30, 2008 03:31 IST
AHMEDABAD: Now, here's one more reason for the last breed of Asiatic lions in Gir to cheer. Acknowledging the need to expand the habitat area of lions, the state government has accepted the Greater Gir proposal.
According to the proposal, the current sanctuary area has to be increased threefold and the entire corridor declared eco-fragile.
Through the Rs40 crore allocated to the Gujarat Lion Conservation Society in the state budget this year, the government has already initiated expansion of the habitat as the population of lions is expanding rapidly. The entire corridor up to Palitana in Bhavnagar and Mahuva in South Savarkundla and Jesar will be declared protected.
This expansion is in addition to the recent addition of a 180 sq km area of Girnar hills to the 1,460 sq km of the Gir Wildlife Sanctuary and Puniya and Mitiyala forest areas to the sanctuary in the past.
"The idea of Brihad (Greater) Gir has been accepted by the government. Nearly 200 sq km area will be given protected status sometime in the future and maybe even sanctuary status eventually," said principal chief conservator of forests (wildlife) Pradeep Khanna. He said efforts were on to identify and acquire land which used to be the traditional corridor of lions as they were straying there in huge numbers anyway.
Most of this land which was once habited by lions is now farmland, cattle grazing land (guachar) or villages. This is making the task of giving the area the requisite protected status rather difficult. "Identifying the ownership of the land is a lengthy process as the area is very large. But since the government has agreed in principle to expand the habitat of lions, it should not be very difficult," Khanna added.
Source: http://www.dnaindia.com/report.asp?newsid=1167381
Saturday, May 31, 2008
Thirty-three held for illegally entering Gir forest, released on self-bail
SIBTE HUSAIN BUKHARI
Posted online: Tuesday , May 27, 2008 at 11:26:03
Updated: Tuesday , May 27, 2008 at 11:26:03
Junagadh, May 26 Forest officials arrested 33 people for illegally entering the Gir Wildlife Sanctuary on Sunday. However, they were released later after producing self-bails.
According to forest officials, the arrests were made under the provision of the Wildlife Protection Act, 1972. They said the offenders will be prosecuted and fine will be slapped on them.
Officials said that Deputy Conservator of Forest (Gir east) J S Solanki, during his scheduled visit in the protected area, noticed a group of men and women there. When he questioned them, he found that the group had made an illegal entry.
“Illegally entering a protected forest area is a serious offence. They will be prosecuted before the court of deputy conservator of forest,” Solanki said. He added that on Saturday, a motorcyclist was also arrested while roaming around in the protected area.
Meanwhile, in a separate incident, a carcass of a full-grown lioness was recovered from Babaravidi, a protected area outside the Gir forest near Malia town. A postmortem conducted on the spot did not show any injury on the body.
“The exact cause of death could not be established immediately. Viscera of the animal have been sent to the Forensic Science Laboratory, Junagadh for a detailed clinical examination,” officials said.
Source: http://www.expressindia.com/latest-news/Thirtythree-held-for-illegally-entering-Gir-forest-released-on-selfbail/314893/
Posted online: Tuesday , May 27, 2008 at 11:26:03
Updated: Tuesday , May 27, 2008 at 11:26:03
Junagadh, May 26 Forest officials arrested 33 people for illegally entering the Gir Wildlife Sanctuary on Sunday. However, they were released later after producing self-bails.
According to forest officials, the arrests were made under the provision of the Wildlife Protection Act, 1972. They said the offenders will be prosecuted and fine will be slapped on them.
Officials said that Deputy Conservator of Forest (Gir east) J S Solanki, during his scheduled visit in the protected area, noticed a group of men and women there. When he questioned them, he found that the group had made an illegal entry.
“Illegally entering a protected forest area is a serious offence. They will be prosecuted before the court of deputy conservator of forest,” Solanki said. He added that on Saturday, a motorcyclist was also arrested while roaming around in the protected area.
Meanwhile, in a separate incident, a carcass of a full-grown lioness was recovered from Babaravidi, a protected area outside the Gir forest near Malia town. A postmortem conducted on the spot did not show any injury on the body.
“The exact cause of death could not be established immediately. Viscera of the animal have been sent to the Forensic Science Laboratory, Junagadh for a detailed clinical examination,” officials said.
Source: http://www.expressindia.com/latest-news/Thirtythree-held-for-illegally-entering-Gir-forest-released-on-selfbail/314893/
King of the Gir
RAVI CHELLAM
A forest-dwelling animal, the Asiatic lion is comfortable in the the Gir which is a combination of dry decidious and shrub forest interspersed with patches of grassland and riverine forest.
The Gir Forest in Saurashtra, Gujarat is the only remaining large tract of natural forest in the region. Most of this forest was initially established as a wildlife sanctuary primarily to provide a safe home for the Asiatic lions. Subsequently the central part of the Sanctuary was declared as a National Park to upgrade the protection afforded to the habitat of this endangered wild cat. This population is the last remaining free ranging and wild population of lions in Asia. For a species that was once very widespread in its distribution from Syria eastwards through most parts of northern and central India and possibly numbered in thousands this has been quite a dramatic decline in distribution as well as numbers. The current population is estimated to be about 370 which in itself is remarkable as the population had hit a low of about 20 animals in the late 1880s.
The Asiatic lion is a forest dwelling animal. The Gir forest is a combination of dry deciduous and scrub forest interspersed with patches of grassland and riverine forest. The terrain is undulating with a few expansive plains. These forests on an average receive between 650 and 1000 mm of rainfall and droughts are quite common.
Invaluable collection
Gir is a delight to the wildlife tourist as well as a wildlife researcher as it holds a wonderful variety of plant and animal life. Both lions and leopards are regularly sighted. Chital, sambar, nilgai, chinkara, wild pig, chousingha, two species of mongoose, small Indian civet, common langur are species of mammals that can be sighted easily. The forest has a rich bird life especially raptors. The reservoirs and rivers hold large populations of mugger crocodile.
I have had the good fortune to sight five leopards together. This group was a mother with her four fully grown cubs. This in many ways indicates both the health and productivity of the forest and also the good protection that is given to the wildlife here.
There is a fairly large human population living in and around the Sanctuary. The Maldharis who live in the forest are pastoral who graze herds of buffaloes in the forest. They live in thorn enclosed settlements called ness. Thousands of tourists visit Gir every year. They all want to see lions and in their anxiety to sight the wild cat they often fail to notice and enjoy the landscape and other species of wildlife.
While seeing a wild lion is always a thrilling experience it is good to also develop an interest in other wildlife. Junagadh and Veraval are the closest towns to the headquarters of the protected area in Sasan village. Since there can be no guarantee for sighting wildlife it is important to invest sufficient time to sight the wildlife of Gir and to savour the experience. I can assure you that seldom will a visit to Gir be disappointing.
Source: http://www.hindu.com/yw/2008/05/27/stories/2008052750280200.htm
A forest-dwelling animal, the Asiatic lion is comfortable in the the Gir which is a combination of dry decidious and shrub forest interspersed with patches of grassland and riverine forest.
The Gir Forest in Saurashtra, Gujarat is the only remaining large tract of natural forest in the region. Most of this forest was initially established as a wildlife sanctuary primarily to provide a safe home for the Asiatic lions. Subsequently the central part of the Sanctuary was declared as a National Park to upgrade the protection afforded to the habitat of this endangered wild cat. This population is the last remaining free ranging and wild population of lions in Asia. For a species that was once very widespread in its distribution from Syria eastwards through most parts of northern and central India and possibly numbered in thousands this has been quite a dramatic decline in distribution as well as numbers. The current population is estimated to be about 370 which in itself is remarkable as the population had hit a low of about 20 animals in the late 1880s.
The Asiatic lion is a forest dwelling animal. The Gir forest is a combination of dry deciduous and scrub forest interspersed with patches of grassland and riverine forest. The terrain is undulating with a few expansive plains. These forests on an average receive between 650 and 1000 mm of rainfall and droughts are quite common.
Invaluable collection
Gir is a delight to the wildlife tourist as well as a wildlife researcher as it holds a wonderful variety of plant and animal life. Both lions and leopards are regularly sighted. Chital, sambar, nilgai, chinkara, wild pig, chousingha, two species of mongoose, small Indian civet, common langur are species of mammals that can be sighted easily. The forest has a rich bird life especially raptors. The reservoirs and rivers hold large populations of mugger crocodile.
I have had the good fortune to sight five leopards together. This group was a mother with her four fully grown cubs. This in many ways indicates both the health and productivity of the forest and also the good protection that is given to the wildlife here.
There is a fairly large human population living in and around the Sanctuary. The Maldharis who live in the forest are pastoral who graze herds of buffaloes in the forest. They live in thorn enclosed settlements called ness. Thousands of tourists visit Gir every year. They all want to see lions and in their anxiety to sight the wild cat they often fail to notice and enjoy the landscape and other species of wildlife.
While seeing a wild lion is always a thrilling experience it is good to also develop an interest in other wildlife. Junagadh and Veraval are the closest towns to the headquarters of the protected area in Sasan village. Since there can be no guarantee for sighting wildlife it is important to invest sufficient time to sight the wildlife of Gir and to savour the experience. I can assure you that seldom will a visit to Gir be disappointing.
Source: http://www.hindu.com/yw/2008/05/27/stories/2008052750280200.htm
The Lion People
May 25, 2008
Deepa Krishnan
Everyone knows about the Masai of Africa, but have you heard of the Lion People of Gujarat?
My daughter went to Sasan Gir Lion Sanctuary, and brought back this portrait of a Maldhari herdsman.
The Maldharis are buffalo-herders, who live in little mud nesses inside the Gir forest. Like the Masai, the Maldhari count their wealth in cattle and build their ness with a thorn enclosure to safeguard livestock from predators. But unlike the Masai, the Maldharis are vegetarian and do not slaughter their livestock for meat. They live instead, by selling milk and milk products, and use the earnings to barter or buy vegetables.
Maldhari homes have no electricity or running water. Every morning, the Maldhari men take their cattle to the forest to graze, while the women gather firewood and grass, draw water, and tend to the home. While letting their cattle graze, the Maldhari have to keep a sharp lookout for Gir's Asiatic lions, for whom the cattle are an easy target.
They're good looking people, these men, aren't they? Sharp features, confident, and so very macho. Maybe you'd be macho too, if you had to watch out for prides of hunting lionesses, with only a stick or an axe to protect your herd? The lions take 8 out of every 100 cattle that the Maldhari own, but the Maldharis do not hunt or kill the lions. They have learned to live alongside them.
The Forest Department believes Maldhari cattle over-graze the forest and deplete its water resources, making life difficult for the deer, nilgai and other ungulates of Gir. In addition, they fear domestic cattle will bring disease into the forest, wiping out the last surviving pure breed of Asiatic lions.
But other conservationists say the Maldhari herds are still vital to the survival of the lions. A 16-month study monitoring six Maldhari nesses in 2006-2007 established that almost 50% of the diet of Gir lions consists of Maldhari livestock. If you were to remove the Maldharis from the park, the study says, it would significantly affect the lion density, pride size and structure.
Sasan Gir has a complex set of problems. The biggest one is that it has too many lions and too little space. So there are territorial fights among the lions, and this leaves the smaller and younger males with no choice but to look for new places outside the protected area. Gir's lions have now started migrating outside the park. I'm glad they are reclaiming the lands where they once roamed, but this brings them into populated areas and creates new sources of conflict. Relocating the lions to another sanctuary would be a good idea - but the Gujarat government doesn't want to move the lions out of Gujarat, so it blocked a plan recommended by the Wildlife Institute of India to move some lions to Madhya Pradesh.
Five state highways pass through Sasan Gir, and there is a widespread limestone mining nearby. There's a cement plant barely 15 kilometers outside the protected area. There are 23 temples, and 250,000 tourists every year. In an area that has very little rainfall, these human activities drain scarce resources, and leave the waterholes dry in summer (Lions in Gir have fallen into human wells!).
Instead of fixing these issues (which involve influential people and big money), the government has got it into its head that the Maldharis - a community that does not poach - are the chief problem.
In my view, the biggest threat to the Asiatic lion is not the Maldharis. The biggest threat is that the only 300-odd surviving Asiatic lions in the world are all hemmed together in one small forest. A single epidemic could wipe out the entire species. This is a disaster just waiting to happen.
Deepa Krishnan has a consulting practice in banking technology. She owns Mumbai Magic and Delhi Magic, companies that offer insightful, off-beat city tours
Source: http://desicritics.org/2008/05/25/153727.php
Deepa Krishnan
Everyone knows about the Masai of Africa, but have you heard of the Lion People of Gujarat?
My daughter went to Sasan Gir Lion Sanctuary, and brought back this portrait of a Maldhari herdsman.
The Maldharis are buffalo-herders, who live in little mud nesses inside the Gir forest. Like the Masai, the Maldhari count their wealth in cattle and build their ness with a thorn enclosure to safeguard livestock from predators. But unlike the Masai, the Maldharis are vegetarian and do not slaughter their livestock for meat. They live instead, by selling milk and milk products, and use the earnings to barter or buy vegetables.
Maldhari homes have no electricity or running water. Every morning, the Maldhari men take their cattle to the forest to graze, while the women gather firewood and grass, draw water, and tend to the home. While letting their cattle graze, the Maldhari have to keep a sharp lookout for Gir's Asiatic lions, for whom the cattle are an easy target.
They're good looking people, these men, aren't they? Sharp features, confident, and so very macho. Maybe you'd be macho too, if you had to watch out for prides of hunting lionesses, with only a stick or an axe to protect your herd? The lions take 8 out of every 100 cattle that the Maldhari own, but the Maldharis do not hunt or kill the lions. They have learned to live alongside them.
The Forest Department believes Maldhari cattle over-graze the forest and deplete its water resources, making life difficult for the deer, nilgai and other ungulates of Gir. In addition, they fear domestic cattle will bring disease into the forest, wiping out the last surviving pure breed of Asiatic lions.
But other conservationists say the Maldhari herds are still vital to the survival of the lions. A 16-month study monitoring six Maldhari nesses in 2006-2007 established that almost 50% of the diet of Gir lions consists of Maldhari livestock. If you were to remove the Maldharis from the park, the study says, it would significantly affect the lion density, pride size and structure.
Sasan Gir has a complex set of problems. The biggest one is that it has too many lions and too little space. So there are territorial fights among the lions, and this leaves the smaller and younger males with no choice but to look for new places outside the protected area. Gir's lions have now started migrating outside the park. I'm glad they are reclaiming the lands where they once roamed, but this brings them into populated areas and creates new sources of conflict. Relocating the lions to another sanctuary would be a good idea - but the Gujarat government doesn't want to move the lions out of Gujarat, so it blocked a plan recommended by the Wildlife Institute of India to move some lions to Madhya Pradesh.
Five state highways pass through Sasan Gir, and there is a widespread limestone mining nearby. There's a cement plant barely 15 kilometers outside the protected area. There are 23 temples, and 250,000 tourists every year. In an area that has very little rainfall, these human activities drain scarce resources, and leave the waterholes dry in summer (Lions in Gir have fallen into human wells!).
Instead of fixing these issues (which involve influential people and big money), the government has got it into its head that the Maldharis - a community that does not poach - are the chief problem.
In my view, the biggest threat to the Asiatic lion is not the Maldharis. The biggest threat is that the only 300-odd surviving Asiatic lions in the world are all hemmed together in one small forest. A single epidemic could wipe out the entire species. This is a disaster just waiting to happen.
Deepa Krishnan has a consulting practice in banking technology. She owns Mumbai Magic and Delhi Magic, companies that offer insightful, off-beat city tours
Source: http://desicritics.org/2008/05/25/153727.php
Gujarat's Pride?
Will some of Gir's prized Asiatic Lions find home in MP?
Debarshi Dasgupta
Why Gir Lions Are Sacred
A central proposal to move some lions to Kuno in MP from Gir has been in limbo for over two decades
Gujarat has been resisting since the lions are widely seen as the pride for Gujarat
Distributing the lions, feel experts, will reduce risks from an epidemic or natural calamity at one spot
Now MP and the Centre want to introduce some zoo lions into Kuno
The Supreme Court is hearing a pil pleading the court to order Gujarat to part with some lions
***
The dispute between Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh over sharing wild Asiatic lions has taken a new turn.
The possession of the only surviving wild Asiatic lions has been a matter of pride for the Gujarat government.
With the Narendra Modi government rejecting an ambitious federal proposal to relocate some of lions from Gujarat's Gir sanctuary, Madhya Pradesh is now going ahead with transferring zoo-bred animals to Kuno—where a special habitat will be readied. Conservationists say this may have disastrous consequences since the lions will have to be adapted to the wild by humans and their offspring, if any, then prepared to be released. Brij Kishor Gupta of the Central Zoo Authority (CZA), however, says: "It's the second or third generation of these parent lions that we can think of releasing into the wild. This will take about 10 years."
Three genetically 'pure' Asiatic lions, two females and a male, have been identified to be moved from zoos in Delhi and Hyderabad, once the facility at Durandi in the Kuno sanctuary is ready. P.B. Gangopadhyay, principal chief conservator of forests (PCCF), wildlife, with the MP government, claims this is an interim measure. "Hopefully, Gujarat will one day understand our position that relocation is in the interest of the safety of the lion. Even the National Board of Wildlife has strongly endorsed our stand," he says. The stakes are high for MP as it has already spent Rs 15 crore to prepare Kuno and relocate over 1,500 families from the area.
Gir is home to 360 of the last surviving wild Asiatic lions. The proposal to shift some of these animals to a new location was first mooted in 1995 to ensure the lions have better chances of survival in case of a natural calamity, such as an epidemic. The outbreak of Canine Distemper Virus in Serengeti, Kenya, in 1994 which killed 30 per cent of the lions, typifies the kind of risk that exists. However, Gujarat's argument against the relocation plan is that the population of lions in the state has gone up from 327 in 2001 and that the Kuno sanctuary is not suitable enough.
Meanwhile, last month, in cooperation with the CZA, the Madhya Pradesh government demarcated an area in Kuno to house the "off-display conservation breeding centre" for zoo lions. But the move to 'rehabilitate' zoo lions in the wild has many critics. Says Asad Rahmani, director of Bombay Natural History Society: "The whole idea of conservation will be defeated, more so because we have a surviving wild population. It is a pity that politics is determining the outcome of such a prestigious project. Animals don't recognise political boundaries but only those that are ecological and Kuno is well within the ecological boundary of the Asiatic lion."
Adds Raghunandan Singh Chundawat, a conservationist specialising in big cats: "These zoo-bred lions are used to human presence and their offspring will require training to adapt to the wild and hunt. But what is the guarantee that these lions will not at some point stray into conflicts with humans for easy prey?"
The Supreme Court is hearing a pil seeking the relocation of wild lions filed in 2006 by Faiyaz Khudsar, a trustee with the Biodiversity Conservation Trust of India. "The people were relocated around Kuno to make way for wild lions.
Would it be ethical to introduce zoo lions instead?" asks Khudsar. While Gujarat is not legally bound to hand over its lions, Ritwick Dutta, the lawyer for the petitioner, argues, "Wildlife was kept a concurrent subject so that the centre can direct a state to carry out a task in the interest of protecting endangered species such as the Asiatic lion."
Pradeep Khanna, PCCF, wildlife, with the government of Gujarat, insists relocation does not recognise the successful conservation efforts of the state. "This proposal continues despite our success in tackling poaching and our ongoing efforts to repair wells that trap the lions. Even the local people of Gir take pride in conserving the lions and have paid a price in terms of losing some of their cattle," he says.
Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh, in their affidavits submitted to the Supreme Court, have argued over various points such as whether the prey base in Kuno is adequate for lions, whether lions and tigers can coexist or if the lions will be adequately protected from poachers in Kuno. However, many conservationists argue that Gujarat's reasons for refusing to hand over some lions are not ecological but more political and economic in nature. The possession of the only surviving wild population of Asiatic lions has been an emotive issue for long in the state and the official press releases portray them as the 'pride of Gujarat'. It is common to find local politicians who bristle at talk of moving the lions.
Achyut Yagnik, honorary secretary of the Centre for Social Knowledge and Action in Ahmedabad, says the possession of the lions has become a 'political legacy' that the Modi government has inherited from Shankersinh Vaghela. "When this proposal first came up, people from Saurashtra (where Gir is located) campaigned to retain ownership of the lions. The people of Gujarat take great pride in these lions who have a special place in local folk traditions," he says. The sanctuary attracts over a lakh of visitors annually. Revenues from Gir touched Rs 1.37 crore in 2007.
All eyes are now on the Supreme Court. Will it settle the dispute and end Gujarat's 'monopoly' over the Asiatic lion? Or will Madhya Pradesh have to continue to make do with lions in captivity? The fate of the conservation programme virtually rests on the apex court ruling.
Source: http://www.outlookindia.com/full.asp?fodname=20080602&fname=Lion+%28F%29&sid=1&pn=2
Debarshi Dasgupta
Why Gir Lions Are Sacred
A central proposal to move some lions to Kuno in MP from Gir has been in limbo for over two decades
Gujarat has been resisting since the lions are widely seen as the pride for Gujarat
Distributing the lions, feel experts, will reduce risks from an epidemic or natural calamity at one spot
Now MP and the Centre want to introduce some zoo lions into Kuno
The Supreme Court is hearing a pil pleading the court to order Gujarat to part with some lions
***
The dispute between Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh over sharing wild Asiatic lions has taken a new turn.
The possession of the only surviving wild Asiatic lions has been a matter of pride for the Gujarat government.
With the Narendra Modi government rejecting an ambitious federal proposal to relocate some of lions from Gujarat's Gir sanctuary, Madhya Pradesh is now going ahead with transferring zoo-bred animals to Kuno—where a special habitat will be readied. Conservationists say this may have disastrous consequences since the lions will have to be adapted to the wild by humans and their offspring, if any, then prepared to be released. Brij Kishor Gupta of the Central Zoo Authority (CZA), however, says: "It's the second or third generation of these parent lions that we can think of releasing into the wild. This will take about 10 years."
Three genetically 'pure' Asiatic lions, two females and a male, have been identified to be moved from zoos in Delhi and Hyderabad, once the facility at Durandi in the Kuno sanctuary is ready. P.B. Gangopadhyay, principal chief conservator of forests (PCCF), wildlife, with the MP government, claims this is an interim measure. "Hopefully, Gujarat will one day understand our position that relocation is in the interest of the safety of the lion. Even the National Board of Wildlife has strongly endorsed our stand," he says. The stakes are high for MP as it has already spent Rs 15 crore to prepare Kuno and relocate over 1,500 families from the area.
Gir is home to 360 of the last surviving wild Asiatic lions. The proposal to shift some of these animals to a new location was first mooted in 1995 to ensure the lions have better chances of survival in case of a natural calamity, such as an epidemic. The outbreak of Canine Distemper Virus in Serengeti, Kenya, in 1994 which killed 30 per cent of the lions, typifies the kind of risk that exists. However, Gujarat's argument against the relocation plan is that the population of lions in the state has gone up from 327 in 2001 and that the Kuno sanctuary is not suitable enough.
Meanwhile, last month, in cooperation with the CZA, the Madhya Pradesh government demarcated an area in Kuno to house the "off-display conservation breeding centre" for zoo lions. But the move to 'rehabilitate' zoo lions in the wild has many critics. Says Asad Rahmani, director of Bombay Natural History Society: "The whole idea of conservation will be defeated, more so because we have a surviving wild population. It is a pity that politics is determining the outcome of such a prestigious project. Animals don't recognise political boundaries but only those that are ecological and Kuno is well within the ecological boundary of the Asiatic lion."
Adds Raghunandan Singh Chundawat, a conservationist specialising in big cats: "These zoo-bred lions are used to human presence and their offspring will require training to adapt to the wild and hunt. But what is the guarantee that these lions will not at some point stray into conflicts with humans for easy prey?"
The Supreme Court is hearing a pil seeking the relocation of wild lions filed in 2006 by Faiyaz Khudsar, a trustee with the Biodiversity Conservation Trust of India. "The people were relocated around Kuno to make way for wild lions.
Would it be ethical to introduce zoo lions instead?" asks Khudsar. While Gujarat is not legally bound to hand over its lions, Ritwick Dutta, the lawyer for the petitioner, argues, "Wildlife was kept a concurrent subject so that the centre can direct a state to carry out a task in the interest of protecting endangered species such as the Asiatic lion."
Pradeep Khanna, PCCF, wildlife, with the government of Gujarat, insists relocation does not recognise the successful conservation efforts of the state. "This proposal continues despite our success in tackling poaching and our ongoing efforts to repair wells that trap the lions. Even the local people of Gir take pride in conserving the lions and have paid a price in terms of losing some of their cattle," he says.
Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh, in their affidavits submitted to the Supreme Court, have argued over various points such as whether the prey base in Kuno is adequate for lions, whether lions and tigers can coexist or if the lions will be adequately protected from poachers in Kuno. However, many conservationists argue that Gujarat's reasons for refusing to hand over some lions are not ecological but more political and economic in nature. The possession of the only surviving wild population of Asiatic lions has been an emotive issue for long in the state and the official press releases portray them as the 'pride of Gujarat'. It is common to find local politicians who bristle at talk of moving the lions.
Achyut Yagnik, honorary secretary of the Centre for Social Knowledge and Action in Ahmedabad, says the possession of the lions has become a 'political legacy' that the Modi government has inherited from Shankersinh Vaghela. "When this proposal first came up, people from Saurashtra (where Gir is located) campaigned to retain ownership of the lions. The people of Gujarat take great pride in these lions who have a special place in local folk traditions," he says. The sanctuary attracts over a lakh of visitors annually. Revenues from Gir touched Rs 1.37 crore in 2007.
All eyes are now on the Supreme Court. Will it settle the dispute and end Gujarat's 'monopoly' over the Asiatic lion? Or will Madhya Pradesh have to continue to make do with lions in captivity? The fate of the conservation programme virtually rests on the apex court ruling.
Source: http://www.outlookindia.com/full.asp?fodname=20080602&fname=Lion+%28F%29&sid=1&pn=2
Two lion cubs drown in Gujarat village well
May 22nd, 2008 - 1:26 am ICT by admin
Junagadh (Gujarat), May 21 (IANS) Two one-month-old lion cubs were found dead in a well in a village near Gujarat’s Gir forest Wednesday, even as a cub rescued from a well in another village was reunited with its mother. The two cubs, a male and a female, had fallen into the well owned by farmer Chagganbhai Parshottambhai in Khilavad village, 195 km from here. Chagganbhai saw the carcasses in the morning and informed forest officials.
Assistant conservator of forests J.K. Dhami told IANS that a lioness and her cubs could have wandered near the farm in search of prey. The cubs might have entered the machine room, where a large steel pipe is connected directly to the well, he said.
The autopsy confirmed they had died due to drowning, Dhami said.
Meanwhile, a six-month-old lion cub that was rescued Monday from a well near Sutrapada village, 150 km from here, was reunited with its mother Tuesday night.
To unite the cub with the lioness, forest officials put the young animal in a cage and left it near the border of the village. Their efforts paid off when a lioness came near the cage Tuesday night to retrieve her cub. As soon as the door of the cage was opened, the six-month-old rushed to its mother, who carried it away to a nearby forest.
Source: http://www.thaindian.com/newsportal/enviornment/two-lion-cubs-drown-in-gujarat-village-well_10051322.html
Junagadh (Gujarat), May 21 (IANS) Two one-month-old lion cubs were found dead in a well in a village near Gujarat’s Gir forest Wednesday, even as a cub rescued from a well in another village was reunited with its mother. The two cubs, a male and a female, had fallen into the well owned by farmer Chagganbhai Parshottambhai in Khilavad village, 195 km from here. Chagganbhai saw the carcasses in the morning and informed forest officials.
Assistant conservator of forests J.K. Dhami told IANS that a lioness and her cubs could have wandered near the farm in search of prey. The cubs might have entered the machine room, where a large steel pipe is connected directly to the well, he said.
The autopsy confirmed they had died due to drowning, Dhami said.
Meanwhile, a six-month-old lion cub that was rescued Monday from a well near Sutrapada village, 150 km from here, was reunited with its mother Tuesday night.
To unite the cub with the lioness, forest officials put the young animal in a cage and left it near the border of the village. Their efforts paid off when a lioness came near the cage Tuesday night to retrieve her cub. As soon as the door of the cage was opened, the six-month-old rushed to its mother, who carried it away to a nearby forest.
Source: http://www.thaindian.com/newsportal/enviornment/two-lion-cubs-drown-in-gujarat-village-well_10051322.html
Water points for Asiatic lions in Sasan Gir in Gujarat
21 May 2008, 1907 hrs IST,ANI
SASAN GIR SANCTUARY: With mercury registering high temperature with each passing day, the forest authorities in Sasan Gir sanctuary have made arrangements to protect lions and other wild life and domestic animals from being thirsty.
About 215 artificial water points have been made to arrange drinking water for animals.
The wildlife division in Sasan Gir is sending in a large number of tractor-tankers to replenish water holes and is also keeping a watch on movements of the prides.
According to B D Pati, the Chief Conservator of Forests, the drive of creating man-made waterholes is on and a good number of people are involved to make sure that pride of the jungle has no such problem.
"The work of filling water point is on and we are sending a team inside the jungle with tankers. They are keeping it well. We have made several artificial water points and we are filling them regularly wherever we believe that the lions are returning to drink water. A good number of people too are engaged in this drive," B D Patil said.
Wild Life Conservation Trust is one such non-government organization (NGO) that is active in construction of a wall surrounding open wells in the nearby villages, lest the animals from the sanctuary fall into them.
"Actually Sasan Gir is a dry deciduous forest type of area. There are seven parallel rivers, which go dry at times in summers. So to prevent these wild animals to come out of the wild forest and to make sure they get water inside the forest we have installed 200 artificial water points in the sanctuary area," said Kishor Kotecha, Founder, Wild life Conservation Trust.
Gir Forest National Park and Wildlife Sanctuary (also known as Sasan-Gir) is the sole home of the pure Asiatic Lions.
Spread over about 258 kilometres for the fully protected area (the National Park) and 1,153 kms for the Sanctuary, the area is considered to be one of the most important protected areas in Asia due to its supported species.
Established in 1965, the total area of 1,412 kms is located about 65 km from Junagadh city of the Junagadh district in Kathiawar peninsula of Gujarat.
Seven rivers that pass through Gir namely Hiran, Saraswati, Datardi, Shingoda, Machhundri, Ghodavadi, and Raval have started drying up.
Less than 250 watering points are presently available for more than 390 lions, 350 leopards, and 40,000 ungulates, including spotted deer, Sambar, Nilgai, Chinkara, antelope, and wild boar.
Besides, Gir harbours 1,000 species of birds and 26 species of reptiles
Source: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Earth/Water_points_for_lions_in_Gir/articleshow/3060312.cms
SASAN GIR SANCTUARY: With mercury registering high temperature with each passing day, the forest authorities in Sasan Gir sanctuary have made arrangements to protect lions and other wild life and domestic animals from being thirsty.
About 215 artificial water points have been made to arrange drinking water for animals.
The wildlife division in Sasan Gir is sending in a large number of tractor-tankers to replenish water holes and is also keeping a watch on movements of the prides.
According to B D Pati, the Chief Conservator of Forests, the drive of creating man-made waterholes is on and a good number of people are involved to make sure that pride of the jungle has no such problem.
"The work of filling water point is on and we are sending a team inside the jungle with tankers. They are keeping it well. We have made several artificial water points and we are filling them regularly wherever we believe that the lions are returning to drink water. A good number of people too are engaged in this drive," B D Patil said.
Wild Life Conservation Trust is one such non-government organization (NGO) that is active in construction of a wall surrounding open wells in the nearby villages, lest the animals from the sanctuary fall into them.
"Actually Sasan Gir is a dry deciduous forest type of area. There are seven parallel rivers, which go dry at times in summers. So to prevent these wild animals to come out of the wild forest and to make sure they get water inside the forest we have installed 200 artificial water points in the sanctuary area," said Kishor Kotecha, Founder, Wild life Conservation Trust.
Gir Forest National Park and Wildlife Sanctuary (also known as Sasan-Gir) is the sole home of the pure Asiatic Lions.
Spread over about 258 kilometres for the fully protected area (the National Park) and 1,153 kms for the Sanctuary, the area is considered to be one of the most important protected areas in Asia due to its supported species.
Established in 1965, the total area of 1,412 kms is located about 65 km from Junagadh city of the Junagadh district in Kathiawar peninsula of Gujarat.
Seven rivers that pass through Gir namely Hiran, Saraswati, Datardi, Shingoda, Machhundri, Ghodavadi, and Raval have started drying up.
Less than 250 watering points are presently available for more than 390 lions, 350 leopards, and 40,000 ungulates, including spotted deer, Sambar, Nilgai, Chinkara, antelope, and wild boar.
Besides, Gir harbours 1,000 species of birds and 26 species of reptiles
Source: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Earth/Water_points_for_lions_in_Gir/articleshow/3060312.cms
Tuesday, May 20, 2008
Indian champion of animal rights
Tuesday, 20 May 2008, 2:36 pm
Press Release: University of Auckland
20 May 2008
A prominent Indian lawyer and advocate for the rights of wild and domesticated animals will be speaking in Auckland in early June.
Raj Panjwani has dedicated his career to preventing cruelty to animals used for food production, entertainment, hunting and research.
Over the past 25 years he has advocated on behalf of animals such as turtles, antelope, tigers, deer, goats, buffalo and bears.
Mr Panjwani’s notable Supreme and High Court successes in India include:
• Banning the use of tigers, lions, panthers, bears and monkeys in circuses.
• Obtaining a right of choice for school students opposed to dissection and experiments on animals.
• Securing the imprisonment of Sansar Chand, one of India’s most notorious wildlife criminals.
• Acquiring the mandatory labelling of animal-derived food products.
• Defending a legal challenge by traders seeking to reinstate the trade in ivory and the fur and skins of endangered animals.
In 2002 the Supreme Court of India Bar Association acknowledged his efforts by awarding him a citation for “Adding knowledge to the practice of law”.
At The University of Auckland’s Law Faculty he will deliver a public lecture on the current state of animal protection in India and the implications of the global expansion of agribusiness for farm animals.
His visit to Auckland, his only stop in New Zealand, will mark the end of a ten-day speaking tour organised and sponsored by Voiceless, the fund for animals, that is taking Mr Panjwani first to leading law schools in Australia.
India is a nation that is largely committed to the principle of non-violence, says Mr Panjwani. “It also has possibly the largest vegetarian population. Despite this, animals in India continue to suffer enormously and in staggering numbers even though the Constitution mandates that every citizen have compassion towards all living creatures."
Mr Panjwani’s lecture will provide a rare insight for lawyers and non-lawyers alike into the cutting-edge field of animal law, says Peter Sankoff who teaches an animals and the law course at the Auckland Law School.
“Relying on the notion of compassion for animals, Mr Panjwani has over the last two decades continually broken new ground for animals in the courtroom, working as legal counsel for India's major environmental and animal protection organisations.”
What: “Animal law talk: An Indian perspective”. Public lecture by Raj Panjwani, hosted by the Faculty of Law and the Animal Rights Legal Advocacy Network (ARLAN)
Date: Tuesday 3 June 2008
Time: 7-8.30pm
Venue: Stone lecture Theatre, Faculty of Law, 17 Eden Crescent. The lecture is free and open to the public.
RSVP: events@voiceless.org.au
RAJ PANJWANI WILL AVAILABLE FOR MEDIA INTERVIEWS IN AUCKLAND ON 3 JUNE (MORNING ONLY) AND 4 JUNE.
Press Release: University of Auckland
20 May 2008
A prominent Indian lawyer and advocate for the rights of wild and domesticated animals will be speaking in Auckland in early June.
Raj Panjwani has dedicated his career to preventing cruelty to animals used for food production, entertainment, hunting and research.
Over the past 25 years he has advocated on behalf of animals such as turtles, antelope, tigers, deer, goats, buffalo and bears.
Mr Panjwani’s notable Supreme and High Court successes in India include:
• Banning the use of tigers, lions, panthers, bears and monkeys in circuses.
• Obtaining a right of choice for school students opposed to dissection and experiments on animals.
• Securing the imprisonment of Sansar Chand, one of India’s most notorious wildlife criminals.
• Acquiring the mandatory labelling of animal-derived food products.
• Defending a legal challenge by traders seeking to reinstate the trade in ivory and the fur and skins of endangered animals.
In 2002 the Supreme Court of India Bar Association acknowledged his efforts by awarding him a citation for “Adding knowledge to the practice of law”.
At The University of Auckland’s Law Faculty he will deliver a public lecture on the current state of animal protection in India and the implications of the global expansion of agribusiness for farm animals.
His visit to Auckland, his only stop in New Zealand, will mark the end of a ten-day speaking tour organised and sponsored by Voiceless, the fund for animals, that is taking Mr Panjwani first to leading law schools in Australia.
India is a nation that is largely committed to the principle of non-violence, says Mr Panjwani. “It also has possibly the largest vegetarian population. Despite this, animals in India continue to suffer enormously and in staggering numbers even though the Constitution mandates that every citizen have compassion towards all living creatures."
Mr Panjwani’s lecture will provide a rare insight for lawyers and non-lawyers alike into the cutting-edge field of animal law, says Peter Sankoff who teaches an animals and the law course at the Auckland Law School.
“Relying on the notion of compassion for animals, Mr Panjwani has over the last two decades continually broken new ground for animals in the courtroom, working as legal counsel for India's major environmental and animal protection organisations.”
What: “Animal law talk: An Indian perspective”. Public lecture by Raj Panjwani, hosted by the Faculty of Law and the Animal Rights Legal Advocacy Network (ARLAN)
Date: Tuesday 3 June 2008
Time: 7-8.30pm
Venue: Stone lecture Theatre, Faculty of Law, 17 Eden Crescent. The lecture is free and open to the public.
RSVP: events@voiceless.org.au
RAJ PANJWANI WILL AVAILABLE FOR MEDIA INTERVIEWS IN AUCKLAND ON 3 JUNE (MORNING ONLY) AND 4 JUNE.
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