LIST OF CONTENTS
A new minister at the helm
NEWS FROM INDIAN STATES
CEE to develop nature interpretation centre at Mahatma
Gandhi Marine National Park
Checklist of the birds of Pulicat
Two biosphere reserves proposed for Andhra Pradesh
Assam 4
Gibbons
in Gibbon WLS not crossing over the railway line
Hand reared Asiatic black bears released in Manas NP
Hydroelectric projects in the North East may pose threat to
KNP: Researchers
Rhino count in Kaziranga now 2048
Kaziranga
Tiger Foundation not formed yet; reserve deprived of central funds
Wildlife enforcement workshop held
in Raipur
Gujarat 6
State Wildlife Board allows for diversion of land in four
PAs
More
wells around Gir covered after government hikes subsidy
Gujarat cites Panna TR case to keep lions to itself
93 lion deaths in Gujarat in last three years
Panel says no to scrapping of sanctuaries
Only elephants to ferry tourists in PAs
Project Elephant Directorate in Madikeri
Proposal to close road through Bandipur NP, Wayanad WLS
withdrawn
Kerala 9
Tiger
population in Wayanad WLS estimated at 20-25
Road widening through Pench TR opposed
Change
in Field Directors at Kanha, Panna and Bandavgarh TRs
No more tigers in Panna TR – it’s official now; four cats
to be translocated
Maharashtra 11
CAT asks
state to appoint Head of Forest Force within eight weeks
CEE to develop nature interpretation centre at Nandur
Madhmeshwar WLS
Villagers relocated from Botezari arrested for ‘violating’
and entering Tadoba Andhari TR
11.44 acres reclaimed by Sanjay
Gandhi NP
NGO alleges that Sanjay Gandhi NP authorities claiming land
illegally in Malad area
Soil
testing in Tulsi Lake area in Sanjay Gandhi NP without FD permission
Dogs
form 50% of leopard diet in
Sanjay Gandhi NP
Orissa 13
Nandankanan now a member of world zoo body
Rs.
Three crore project to deal with human elephant conflict at Chandaka WLS
Rs. 5 crore Elephant Management Plan for state
E-bulletin on the Forest Rights
Act in Orissa
Greenpeace report on turtle-fisheries issues in Orissa
Rajasthan 15
70 black bucks die in Tal Chappar WLS due to ‘weather
shock’
Sikkim 16
Forest fires across the state in March
PANDA
Newsletter from ENVIS Sikkim
Tamil Nadu 16
Field
Guide to the plants of the Northern Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve
Nature
Interpretation Centre in the Sathyamangalam WLS
Uttarakhand 17
Rs. 8.5 crore security plan for Corbett TR
West Bengal 17
Nepal police fire at elephant herd
Community based tourism project in North Bengal
SC to CAMPA: Provide Rs. 1000 crore per year to states in next five years
Interactive database on threatened
lakes
Proposal for a National Green
Tribunal
Tripartite
MoUs to be signed between Centre, State and Project Tiger Reserves
Simlipal TR, Pachmari and Nokrek NP added to UNESCO’s
Global Biosphere Reserve Network
Forest Administration to be ‘modernised’ to deal with naxal
threat
NTCA directives on tourism in
tiger reserves
Whitley Award for Dr. MD Madhusudan
Prem Bhatia Award for Environmental Journalism to Gargi
Parsai
Tiger relocation protocol approved
Environment in the Indian Parliament: An Analysis 2007
SOUTH ASIA 22
Consultation on Landscape Approach to Biodiversity
Conservation and Management in the Eastern Himalayas
UPCOMING 22
International Conference on
Wildlife Conservation, Health and Disease Management
Protected Area
Update
Vol. XV, No.
4, August 2009 (No. 80)
Editor: Pankaj
Sekhsaria
Illustrations: Madhuvanti
Anantharajan
Produced by: Kalpavriksh
Ideas, comments,
news and information may please be sent to the editorial address:
KALPAVRIKSH,
Apartment 5, Shri Dutta Krupa, 908 Deccan Gymkhana, Pune
411004, Maharashtra, India. Tel/Fax: 020 – 25654239.
Email:
psekhsaria@gmail.com
Website: www.kalpavriksh.org
Publication of the PA
Update Vol. XV, No. 4 has been supported by the Duleep Mathai Nature
Conservation Trust, the Foundation for Ecological Security and Greenpeace
India.
A new minister at the helm
Ever since the new government was sworn in, there
has been a flurry of activity on the environment front. The new Union Minister
for Environment and Forests, Mr. Jairam Ramesh has certainly been very active,
as he has gone around the country meeting officials, people’s representatives
and NGOs alike.
The
developments and his pronouncements too have been wide ranging – covering a
diversity of issues that include the proposed Coastal Zone Management regime
(allowing for its lapse), ensuring that provisions of the Forest Rights Act are met
prior to seeking diversion of forest lands under the Forest Conservation Act; a change in the structure
and operation of the CAMPA fund; engagement with a range of actors on
provisions of the Biological Diversity Act (BDA) and more resources and steps
for wildlife conservation in general and the tiger in particular.
There
are still initial days, but clearly, those working on matters of livelihood security,
issues of the environment and wildlife protection see a glimmer of hope in all
that has been happening. It has been clear that over the years there has been a
relentless assault at the hands of a development paradigm that only understands
the language of industrialization, urbanization and growth in the GDP. This,
therefore, will also then be the location of the biggest challenge for the new
minister and the new government.
The
undeniable reality is that the Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF) and
the concerns it is supposed to advance have been at the bottom of the
priorities of successive governments for a long time. If anything, the MoEF has
been considered an unnecessary irritant in the path of development and economic
growth - a line of thinking that is not going away very soon. Dealing with
particular legislations or policy frameworks, while necessary, is not what is
going to stem the rot. There has to be an attempt at dealing with, or at least
questioning the fundamental issues related to ‘development’. In the current
political and economic climate it will not be the easiest thing to do, but then
if there is one space and Ministry that can even start the process it is
without doubt, the MoEF.
The
developments are, certainly, going to be watched with deep interest as they
unfold.
---
OBITUARY
Mr. Mir Inayatullah, the former Principal
Conservator of Forest, Jammu and Kashmir (J&K), passed away recently owing
to a sudden heart complication. He had a distinguished career as a forest and
conservation administrator and served the state in various capacities.
He
was Chief Wildlife Warden of J&K in the 1970s and 80s and is credited with
taking path -breaking steps that led to the adoption and implementation of
significant policy decisions that helped protect threatened species like the
Kashmir Stag (Hangul), Snow Leopard and Black-necked crane. He was also
instrumental in the creation and protection of a number of new protected areas
in J&K.
In a period when the political situation in J&K was
tense and the relationship between the state and the center was often marked by
an incapacitating sullenness, Mr. Inayatullah used his immense people skills to
keep the focus on the need to find collaborative solutions for conserving the
state's wildlife and forests.
Remembering Mr. Inayatullah’s contribution, George Archibald, the renowned conservationist called him “the father of conservation in Kashmir”. He will be remembered and missed by his admirers in India and abroad. KV extends its heartfelt condolences to Mr. Inayatullah’s family.
NEWS FROM INDIAN STATES
CEE to develop
nature interpretation centre at Mahatma Gandhi Marine National Park
The Centre for Environment Education,
Ahmedabad will be developing a Nature Interpretation Centre at the Mahatma
Gandhi Marine National Park, Wandoor, in the Andaman Islands.
The
aim of the centre would be to sensitize public at large about the importance of
marine life and garner their support and motivate action towards conservation
of fragile marine eco-systems.
More
details of the proposal are not presently available.
Source: Interpretation Centre at Wandoor, Andaman &
Nicobar’, ceenario, May 1-15, 2009
Contact: CEE. Email: ceedo@ceeindia.org
CF, Wildlife, Van Sadan, Forest
Department, Port Blair – 744102.
Checklist of the birds of Pulicat
The Pulicat Lake Bird Lover’s Society
(PLBLS) has published ‘Birds of Pulicat Lake – A Checklist’. The 60 page
publication has been authored by Chennai based Dr. PJ Sanjeeva Raj and Prof Odd
Jacobsen of the Bergen University College, Norway.
Contact: Dr. PJ
Sanjeeva Raj, 17/1724, 21st Main Road, Anna Nagar, Chennai –
600040. Email: rajsanjeeva@gmail.com
Two biosphere
reserves proposed for Andhra Pradesh
The Union Ministry of Environment and
Forests has proposed the creation of two biosphere reserves (BRs) in Andhra
Pradesh. One of these will be in the Chintapalle area in Visakhapatnam district
while the second one has been proposed in the Seshachalam hills spread over the
Chittoor and Kadapa districts.
Mr.
Jairam Ramesh, Union Minister for Forests and Environment, announced this
recently in Hyderabad following a meeting with the State Chief Minister, Mr.
YSR Reddy. The full details of the proposals and time lines for its
implementation are however not presently available.
Source: Santosh Patnaik. ‘NGO hails biosphere reserve plan
in agency’, The Hindu, 09/06/09.
Contact: CWLW, Govt. of Andhra Pradesh, Aranya Bhavan, Saifabad, Hyderabad - 500004, Andhra Pradesh. Tel: 040-23230561 / 23232668. Fax: 337889
Gibbons in Gibbon WLS not crossing over the railway line
Hollock Gibbons
in the Gibbon Wildlife Sanctuary have refused to use the temporary arrangements
made for them to cross over the railway line that runs through the forests
here. A Rs. 15 lakh bridge proposal to facilitate the movement of the gibbons
was mooted in 2008 (PA Updates Vol.
XIV, No. 1 and Nos. 57 & 50) and recently a huge wire was hung across on an
experimental basis to see if the idea would work.
Since this has not worked the Forest
Department (FD) is now planning to connect the both sides with pipes that will
be covered with artificial creepers.
In another move, the FD has decided
to construct a two km gravel road inside the sanctuary to facilitate the
movement of tourists in the dense forests and allow them an opportunity to see
the wildlife in the sanctuary, including the endangered gibbons.
Source:
‘Forest project on gibbons in sanctuary go awry’, Assam Tribune, 06/05/09
Contact: DFO, I/c Gibbon WLS, Jorhat Division, P.O. Jorhat, Dist. Jorhat – 785001, Assam. Tel: 0376-32008(O), 320456®
Hand reared
Asiatic black bears released in Manas NP
Three orphaned Asiatic black bears that
were hand reared have been returned to the wild in the Manas National Park. The
bears were acclimatised to the wild conditions through daily walks in the
forests, following a soft-release protocol called assisted release. The release
was executed jointly by the International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW), the
Wildlife Trust of India (WTI) and the Assam Forest Department (FD)
The
bears had been rescued by the FD in three different incidents from local
people, who had held them captive around March 2008. They were handed over to
the lower Assam unit of the IFAW-WTI Mobile Veterinary Services for
hand-raising and eventual rehabilitation.
This
is the third such batch of bears to be successfully sent back to the wild. The
first two batches were rehabilitated by the IFAW-WTI and Arunachal Pradesh
Forest Department in 2006 and 2008 respectively in the Pakke Tiger Reserve,
Arunachal Pradesh.
Source: ‘Bears back to the wild’, The Hindu, 31/05/09
Contact: Director, Manas NP, PO Barpeta Rd. Dist. Barpeta – 781315, Assam.
Tel: 03666 – 261413. Fax: 232253
/ 260253
Hydroelectric
projects in the North East may pose threat to KNP: Researchers
A recent research paper: ‘Probable
impact of flushing and sluicing of sediment from dam reservoirs in the North
Eastern India’ has expressed concern that the Ranganadi Hydro Electric Project
(RHEP) and the Lower Subansiri Hydro Electric Project may pose serious threats
to the Kaziranga National Park. This, the paper argues, is in addition to
destroying the habitat of the endangered Gangetic dolphins in the Subansiri
River.
The
report says that the practice of frequent flushing and sluicing sediment and
debris by the projects will create a natural sediment dam at the confluence of
the Ranganadi and Subansiri rivers with the Brahmaputra. This may compel the
Brahmaputra to change its morphology for maintaining the river continuum
process, resulting in more inundation and erosion and this in turn could pose a
threat to the Kaziranga National Park.
The
research project was carried out by a team led by Dr Debojit Baruah of
Lakhimpur Girls’ College Botany Department and is part of a major Union Grants
Commission (UGC) project on the pre-impact assessment of the Lower Subansiri
hydel project on its downstream areas. The team conducted a study in the down
stream areas of the 405-MW Ranganadi Hydroelectric Project (RHEP) which had
been affected by flash floods on June 14, 2008 due to the alleged sudden
release of waters by the RHEP authorities.
It
has been argued that during the last six years of its operation, RHEP has
caused lots of negative changes to the Ranganadi river morphology down stream
of its dam, besides affecting the river ecology and status of groundwater level
and people’s livelihood in the riparian areas. The most significant of all
these changes is the gradual deposition of sediment from 2003, which attained
its peak in 2008 due to sediment sluicing throughout the monsoon. The intensity
of sediment deposition was such that even residential houses in Lakhimpur town,
situated at a distance of six km from the river course and 50 km from the dam
site, recorded deposits of 1.02 cm of sediment.
Source: ‘Hydroelectric projects may pose threat to KNP:
research team’, The Assam Tribune,
12/06/09.
Rhino count in Kaziranga now 2048
The rhino count
in the Kaziranga National Park is now 2048, substantially higher than the
number of 1855 from the last census in 2006.
As per the detailed findings of the
2009 rhino census, Kaziranga has 404 female rhinos with calves. The total
number of calves are as follows: 100 calves (0-1 year), 221 calves (1-3 years),
83 calves (over 3 years). The rest of the population is made up of 597 adult
males, 306 adult females, 165 adults of unidentified sex, 54 sub-adult males,
80 sub-adult females, 35 sub-adults of unidentified sex and three abandoned
calves.
Source:
Bijay Sankar Bora. ‘Rhino count goes up at Kaziranga’, The Tribune, 15/06/09.
Contact: Director, Kaziranga NP, PO Bokakhat,
Dist. Golaghat – 785612, Assam. Tel: 03776-268095(O), 268086®
Kaziranga Tiger Foundation not formed yet; reserve deprived of central
funds
The Assam
government is yet to constitute the Kaziranga Tiger Foundation, due to which
the tiger reserve has been deprived of the direct flow of funds from the
National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA). The reserve is also yet to create
its full-fledged Tiger Conservation Plan.
The state is required to set up the
foundation in accordance with the memorandum of understanding it signed with
the NTCA. Of the total of Rs. 4.22 crore sanctioned by the NTCA for the
Kaziranga TR for 2008-09, the Central assistance promised was Rs. 3.06 cr,
while the balance of Rs. 1.16 cr was to be provided by the state.
Without the creation of the
foundation the raising of a dedicated tiger protection force, procurement of
weapons and ammunitions, setting up of anti-poaching camps and undertaking
other protection and conservation work have also been delayed.
The NTCA had also released Rs. 1.5 cr. as the
first installment to the Kaziranga National Park authorities, currently
managing the tiger reserve. The money was to be spent before the end of the
financial year with the unutilized amount to be returned to the Centre.
Source:
Kaziranga tiger reserve deprived of direct flow of Central funds’, The Hindu, 10/06/09.
Chief Wildlife Warden –
Assam, Rehabari, Guwahati – 781008, Assam. Tel: 0361-2566064. Fax 2547386
Wildlife
enforcement workshop held in Raipur
TRAFFIC India
and the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) - India in partnership with the Chattisgarh
Forest Department (FD) and National Tiger Conservation Authority, conducted a
two day training workshop on wildlife enforcement in Raipur. The workshop that
was held in June was attended by over 50 officials of the FD.
Those who spoke at the workshop
included Mr Vikram Usendi, Minister of Environment & Forests, Chattisgarh;
Mr Sergeous Minj, Addl. Chief Secretary, Chattisgarh; Mr R.K. Sharma, Principal
Chief Conservator of Forests, Chattisgarh; and Mr. N.K. Bhagat PCCF (Wildlife)
Chattisgarh.
Technical sessions during the
workshop were led by Mr Ritwick Dutta & Mr Saurabh Sharma, Supreme Court
Advocates; Dr. SP Goyal, Wildlife Forensics expert of the Wildlife Institute of
India and Mr Khalid Pasha of TRAFFIC India.
Contact: Shubhobroto Ghosh, WWF, Tel:
011-41504786/43516290. Email: shubhobrotoghosh@gmail.com
Web: www.traffic.org
State
Wildlife Board allows for diversion of land in four PAs
The Gujarat
State Wildlife Board has agreed to diversion of land from four protected areas
to allow for projects of the government and some industrial houses. The four
PAs are the Gir Wildlife Sanctuary, the Wild Ass Sanctuary in the Little Rann
of Kutch, the Velavadar Blackbuck Sanctuary and the Narayan Sarovar Bird
Sanctuary.
The board has agreed to the
diversion of 89.74 hectares of land in the Wild Ass Sanctuary for the power
transmission line of Adani Power Limited, and another 241.59 hectares for the
state-owned Power Grid Corporation’s transmission lines in the same sanctuary.
7.29 hectares of land in the Gir WLS is being made available for Usha Breco
Limited’s power ropeway construction, and another 0.450 hectares each for
Vodafone Gujarat Limited and Reliance Communication Gujarat Limited for laying
fibre-optic lines in the Narayan Sarovar Bird Sanctuary.
The board also cleared the proposal
of the State Road Development Corporation, seeking diversion of 4.40 hectares
of land in the Velavadar Blackbuck Sanctuary and BSNL’s proposal for 0.315
hectares diversion in Balaram Ambaji Sanctuary.
The decisions were taken in the
meeting of the board held in the first week of July under the chairmanship of
the Chief Minister, Narendra Modi. The proposals will now be sent to the Centre
for its approval.
Source: ‘Wildlife board
clears sanctuary land for Power Grid, Adani transmission line’, The Indian Express, 05/07/09.
More wells around Gir covered after government hikes
subsidy
The recent decision of the Gujarat State Government to double the
subsidy for covering open wells on the periphery of Gir has seen a significant
increase in the number of wells that have been covered. The government used to
give a grant of Rs 4,000 on each well and had increased it to Rs 8,000 in 2008.
The Forest Department
(FD), supported by NGOs and some corporate houses had initiated the move of
covering the open wells after it was found that a number of lions and other
wild animals had died after falling into them (see PA Updates Vol. XIV, No.; Vol XIII, Nos. 5 & 2 and Vol. XII,
No. 6). State government figures put the number of lions that died in this
manner at 57 for the period 2001 to 2009
The project to
barricade the wells was initiated in September 2007. In the initial months 325
odd wells were barricaded on an average every month. Following the increase in
subsidy this number has almost doubled and now nearly 650 wells are being
covered every month.
Source: Vikram Rautela. ‘More wells around Gir
covered after government hikes subsidy’, The
Indian Express, 16/06/09.
Contact: CF
(Wildlife) Junagadh, Sardar Bag, Junagadh, Gujarat. Tel: 0285 - 631678/
630051. Fax: 631211. Email: cfwildlife_ad1@sancharnet.in
Gujarat cites Panna TR case to keep lions to itself
The Gujarat State Government has argued that the disappearance of the
tiger from Panna Tiger Reserve (see Page 10) means that Madhya Pradesh is not
doing a very good job, and that this is a good reason why lions should not be
translocated from in and around Gir National Park. This was an argument the
state made recently before the Supreme Court.
The matter of the
translocation of lions from Gujarat has been unresolved for a very long time
(see PA Updates Vol XV, No. 3; and
Nos. 50, 46, 43, 34, 33, 32, 26, 22 & 20) and the latest developments are
related to a case filed in the Supreme Court by the Biodiversity Conservation
Trust. In its response to the case the Gujarat government has also argued that
tigers and lions cannot coexist.
Source: Neha Sinha. ‘No tigers in MP’s Panna means
Gir keeps lions’ share, says Gujarat’, Indian
Express, 15/06/09
93 lion deaths in Gujarat in last three years
The Gujarat Government has said that 93 lions including 50 cubs have
died in the state in the last three years. The figures were presented in the
state assembly recently. Of these 85 deaths were due to natural causes while six
lions were killed by poachers. (Eds note: Earlier reports have indicated
however that the number of lions poached is higher, with the number being eight
in the single big case that occurred in 2007: see PA Update Vol. XV, No. 3)
It was also informed that
the forest and police departments were now working in coordination to check
poaching. A joint monitoring committee had been created under the leadership of
the Range Inspector General of Police, Junagadh and that the committee had met
eight times so far.
It has also been
further decided to keep a check on vehicles entering the jungle and a special
watch was being kept on activities and movement of labourers coming from other
states. In another move to protect the animals 9,350 wells have been covered with
parapet walls till May 2009.
Replying to a question
on how many persons have been arrested in the poaching incident a couple of
years ago (PA Updates Vol. XV, No. 3;
Vol XIV, No. 3; and Vol XIII Nos. 5 & 4), it was pointed out that 19
persons have been arrested, of which 18 have been sentenced while one person
had died in police custody.
Source: ’93 lions have died in three years’, The Times of India, 09/07/09.
Contact: CWLW
- Gujarat, Block 14, Dr. Jivraj Mehta Bhavan, Old Sachivalaya, Gandhinagar-382010,
Gujarat. Tel: 02712-230007. Fax: 221097.
Panel says no
to scrapping of sanctuaries
The panel deputed by the National Board
of Wildlife for the final appraisal of the Himachal Pradesh Government’s move
to rationalise wildlife sanctuaries in the state has disagreed with the
proposal to totally scrap some of the sanctuaries (PA Updates Vol XIV, No. 2; Vol XIII, No. 3; Vol. XII, Nos. 5 &
3). Instead, it has suggested setting up conservation reserves.
During
its week-long visit to the state in April, the two-member committee comprising
the Director, Wildlife Institute of India, PR Sinha and well-known expert Dr MK
Ranjit Singh, inspected all sanctuaries proposed to be scrapped. They
reportedly disapproved of the plan to de-notify the Silli and Darlaghat
sanctuaries on the grounds that these included good forests and supported a
wide range of wild animals. The panel also did not give its final view on the
proposal to scrap the Naina Devi WLS.
Appreciating
the state’s argument that taking out populated areas was essential for proper
management, the committee observed that the purpose would be better served by
establishing conservation reserves in such protected areas. The committee, has
however, approved the move to de-notify the Gobind Sagar Sanctuary, endorsing
the view that the wetland created by impounding the water of the Sutlej did not
support any important wildlife.
In
case of the Norgu WLS in Mandi, the committee gave its nod for taking out the
thickly populated villages subject to the condition that the forest area of
adjoining Kullu was included in it to make it a viable wildlife protected area.
Besides,
the boundaries of 20 other sanctuaries would be redrawn to exclude human
habitations.
Source: Rakesh Lohumi. ‘Panel’s no
to scrapping of sanctuaries’, The Tribune,
27/04/09.
Contact: CWLW,
Talland, Shimla – 171001. Tel: 0177-2624193. Email: Vtandy@gmail.com
Only elephants to ferry tourists in PAs
The Karnataka State Government had decided to implement the M K Appaiah
committee report on the operations of private tour operators in protected
areas. A government order has been issued in this regard.
The Government had
appointed the committee early in 2008, to study and advise it on formulating a
policy on private operators taking tourists on safari rides, and the period and
time duration of closing national parks and sanctuaries in a year. The
committee had submitted its report to the government on August 2, 2008.
Acceptance of the
recommendations of the committee means that the operations of private operators
in protected areas is to be phased out in the next three years. Elephants will
be used to ferry tourists and if necessary, only vehicles of the State Forest
Department will be permitted.
The committee has also
held that closing down national parks and wildlife sanctuaries in a particular
month of a year, would not help breeding activities of wild animals as this is
dependant on a number of factors including environmental conditions. It has
been suggested that the Chief Wildlife Warden should be authorised to decide on
closing the parks based on the local condition.
Source: PM Raghunandan. ‘It’s bye to vehicles, hello
to jumbos’, http://www.deccanherald.com/content/3649/its-bye-vehicles-hello-jumbos.html
Project Elephant Directorate in Madikeri
The Central Government is reported to have approved the setting up of a
Project Elephant Directorate in Madikeri.
An official of grade of Conservator of Forest will be appointed to the
directorate that is to be set up within six months. The directorate will also
have a veterinary doctor, ambulance, vehicles and other personnel.
The region has seen
increased human elephant conflict in recent years and it is hoped that the
setting up of this office will help deal with the problem.
Government figures
indicate that 15 people died due to wild elephant attack last year, while 20 to
25 elephants were killed in the same period due to shooting or poisoning. The
12 year period of 1996-97 to 2008-09 saw the death of 40 people due to
elephants and the total financial loss experienced was a little more than Rs.
146 lakhs.
Source: ‘Directorate will be set up in Madikeri
within 6 months’, http://www.deccanherald.com/content/8538/centre-okays-elephant-project-directorate.html
Proposal
to close road through Bandipur NP, Wayanad WLS withdrawn
The Karnataka
State Government move to close the forest stretch of the Kozhikode-Bangalore
National Highway 212 between the Kerala border and Gundalpet in Karnataka has
been withdrawn following strong opposition from many quarters. The road that
passes through the forests of the Bandipur National Park and the Wayanad
Wildlife Sanctuary in Kerala was to be closed from 9.30 pm to 6 am. The
decision of the closure was announced recently by the Collector of Chamrajnagar
district in light of the threats to wildlife, particularly elephants, tiger and
deer crossing the road and was taken as per the instructions of the Karnataka
Forest Department. Reports say that the there has been a significant growth in
the number of accidents involving vehicles and wildlife in the past several
months, and observations have proved that mishaps increased during the rainy
season.
The Karnataka authorities had
informed that those traveling between Mysore to Kozhikode during nights would
now have to take the Coorg-Virajpetta-Kannur road and travelers on the Ooty
route will have to take the Chamaraj Nagar-Sathyamangalam-Coimbatore road
during nights.
There was however strong opposition
to the move and it was argued that the closure would cause great inconvenience
to several transport companies, traders and thousands of people from the Kozhikode,
Kannur, Wayanad and Malappuram districts. Several political parties and rights
groups also aired their opposition to the road-closure. The closure decision was finally reversed
following an intervention from Kerala legislators. The Kerala Chief Minister
was said to have spoken to his Karnataka counterpart over the issue.
There had been intense
protests when the forest stretch of the
Mananthawadi-Mysore, winding through the Nagarhole Wildlife Sanctuary was
closed earlier.
(Also see PA Update Vol. XIV. No. 6)
Source: VR Jayaraj. ‘NH
through forest to be closed to protect wildlife’, The Pioneer Online Edition, 09/06/09.
‘Govt.
withdraws order banning vehicle
movement’,http://www.deccanherald.com/content/7449/govt-withdraws-order-banning-vehicle.html
Contact: Field Director, Bandipur Project Tiger Reserve, Aranya Bhawan, Ashokapuram, Mysore – 570008, Karnataka. Tel: 0821-2480901(O), 2484980 (R).
Chief Wildlife
Warden -
Karnataka, 2nd Floor, 18th Cross, Malleshwaram, Bangalore
– 560003, Karnataka. Tel: 080-3341993 / 3345846. Email: pccfwl@vsnl.com
Tiger population in Wayanad WLS estimated at 20-25
The tiger population in the Wayanad Wildlife Sanctuary has been
estimated to be between 20 and 25. The numbers have been suggested following
the conclusion of a census exercise in the month of May. Ten big cats,
including three cubs, were sighted in the sanctuary during the three-day survey
of tigers and co-predators. Five tigers including a cub were sighted in
Tholpetty range, one tiger and two cubs were seen in the Sulthan Bathery range
and one tiger each was seen in the Kurichiayd and Muthanga areas during the
count.
It is based on the
actual sightings of these 10 tigers that the total population estimate of 20-25
has been suggested. If correct this would be at least 10 tigers more than were
reported during the last census conducted two years ago.
It has also been
pointed out, however that a firm idea of the exact number of big cats in the
sanctuary could be given only after a detailed analysis of the indicators
gathered during the survey, like pug-marks, droppings, hair and scratch marks
on trees. The team that carried out the survey is reported to have come across
about 50 pug-marks, droppings and hair and scratches on trees. DNA analysis is
to be done at the Wildlife Disease Diagnosing Laboratory at Sulthan Bathery.
Source: ‘Ten tigers sighted in Wayanad sanctuary’, The Times of India, 12/05/09
Contact: Wildlife
Warden, Wayanad Wildlife Division, P.O. Sulthan Bathery, Wayanad-673
592, Kerala. Tel: 0493-2620454
Chief Wildlife Warden – Kerala, Vazhudacaud, Trivandrum – 695014, Kerala. Tel: 0471-2322217 / 2360452 / 2204896. Fax: 2360452 / 2322217
Road widening through Pench TR opposed
The Supreme
Court appointed Central Empowered Committee (CEC) has turned down the proposal
of the National Highways Authority of India's (NHAI) to widen a road passing
through the Pench Tiger Reserve in Madhya Pradesh, contending that it will be a
threat to animals and the fragile ecosystem. The National Tiger Conservation
Authority (NTCA) too had earlier come out against the road widening proposal (PA Update Vol XV, No. 1)
In the report submitted to the apex
court in June, the CEC members said that the widening of the road connecting
Nagpur to Jabalpur from two lanes to four lanes will increase traffic frequency
in the area, and could lead to scaring wild animals and also accidents in which
they could fall victim to speeding vehicles. NHAI's alternative Rs 600- crore
plan to build 13 bridges and underpasses on the route so that wildlife movement
is not hampered, was also rejected by the CEC.
The highway project which is a part
of the North-South corridor covers a distance of 8.7 kilometre and passes
through the tiger reserve and contiguous reserve forest areas. It was referred
to the panel after the Wildlife Trust of India (WTI) moved a petition for
stopping the project. The CEC has, however, not sought closing down of the road
but suggested that only light vehicles at a specified speed should be permitted
while a complete ban be imposed on night traffic to prevent animal casualty.
Source:
Sheren Shrestha. ‘CEC opposes NHAI road project in Pench Tiger Reserve’, Economic Times, 05/07/09
Contact: Field Director, Pench
Tiger Reserve, P.O. Barapathar, Dist. Seoni - 480 661. Tel: 07692-250794/250594. Fax: 250794/221180.
Email: root@trpench.ren.nic.in
Change in Field Directors at Kanha, Panna and Bandavgarh TRs
The Field
Directors of three tiger reserves, Kanha, Panna and Bandavgarh were changed in
the month of May. The changes were announced by the State Chief Minister (CM),
Mr. Shivraj Singh Chouhan following consistent pressure from the Centre regarding
the state of the tiger reserves.
Additionally, the CM also asked for
the list of directors who served in these parks in the last five years and the
chief conservators of forests. He said strict action would be taken against
officials showing laxity in conservation of tigers and other animals.
Panna director LK Chaudhary and
Bandavgarh director Aseem Shrivastava were transferred to the PCCF’s office in
Bhopal while Kanha director RP Singh was transferred to the State Forest
Research Institute in Jabalpur.
Source:
‘MP shifts 3 tiger reserve chiefs’, The
Indian Express, 22/05/09.
No more tigers
in Panna – it’s official now; four cats to be translocated
It has now been officially admitted that
there is no tiger in the Panna Tiger Reserve. The Madhya Pradesh Minister for
forests, Rajendra Shukla, confirmed recently that the last resident tiger of
the reserve sighted early this year was untraceable. This now only leaves the
two tigresses who were recently translocated from nearby Kanha and Bandavgarh.
A
special investigation team, headed by former Chief of Project Tiger, PK Sen,
was sent to Panna by the National Tiger Conservation Authority in May. The team
conducted an inquiry and interviews — all on camera — to now claim that Panna
has lost all of its own tigers. The team members visited Panna again in the
first half of June to recheck the park's logs and documents. The team found no
evidence of the presence of the big cats in the reserve.
The
MP state government too admitted in the state assembly that there were no
tigers left in Panna. It claimed, however, that only
four tigers were poached in the state between 2004 and 2009, two of which were
in Panna in May 2006 and two in Kanha TR in April 2006 and November 2008
respectively. The state government said 39 big cats died in its nine reserves
in five years till 2009 and attributed the remaining 35 deaths to fights,
disease and old-age among other reasons.
In
a subsequent development the Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF) has
also cleared a proposal to translocate two tigers and two tigresses to the
reserve. In a letter granting the approval, the Union Minister, MoEF, Mr.
Jairam Ramesh has asked the state government to take urgent ‘administrative and
ecological action’ after the ‘Panna disaster’. It also asked for the fixing of
responsibility as pointed out in the Special Investigation Team (SIT) report
and for disciplinary action to be taken against the erring officials.
The Madhya Pradesh Congress has also demanded for the creation of an
all-party MLAs committee to look into the matter
(Also see PA Updates Vol. XV, Nos. 3, 2 & 1)
Source: ‘It’s official: Panna reserve has no tiger’, The Times of India, 14/06/09.
‘Congress
demands probe into vanishing tigers’, Economic
Times, 14/06/09.
‘Centre
clears translocation of 4 big cats to Panna’, The Indian Express, 27/06/09.
Milind Ghatwai. ‘MP agrees but
says only 4 fell prey to poaching’, Indian
Express, 08/07/09.
Contact: Field Director, Panna National Park, Panna – 488001, Madhya Pradesh. Tel: 07732-252135. Fax: 07732-252120
Dr. Rajesh Gopal NTCA,
Annexe No. 5, Bikaner House, Shahjahan Road, New Delhi-110011.Telefax: 2338
4428. E-mail: dirpt-r@nic.in
CWLW,
MP, Van Bhawan, Tulsi Nagar, Bhopal 462003, Madhya Pradesh. Tel: 0755-557371/
550391.
CAT asks state to appoint Head of Forest Force within eight weeks
The Central
Administrative Tribunal (CAT) has directed the Maharashtra State Government to
appoint the Head of the Forest Force (HoFF) from among the senior-most
principal chief conservators of forests (PCCF) within a period of eight weeks.
The Maharashtra government had
sought clarification on April 24 from the Ministry of Environment and Forests
(MoEF) asking whether the post of PCCF (general) automatically stood elevated
as HoFF. The MoEF had clarified on June 2, that one of the existing posts of
PCCFs in each state had been upgraded to a higher administrative grade (HAG) in
the apex scale of Rs 80,000 from September 27, 2008. It said that in
Maharashtra, the post of PCCF (general) should be upgraded as HoFF. It also
made it clear that HoFF had to be appointed from among the officers holding the
rank of PCCF.
It has been suggested by some that
the CAT ruling now has tied the hands of Maharashtra Forest Minister, who is it
alleged, wanted to appoint a person of his choice to the post after sidelining
seniors. The Forest Department (FD) has been without a chief since December 31,
2008.
Source:
‘CAT tells state to name forest chief in 8 weeks’, The Times of India.
CEE to develop nature
interpretation centre at Nandur Madhmeshwar WLS
The Centre for Environment Education,
Ahmedabad will be developing a Nature Interpretation Centre at the Nandur
Madhmeshwar Wildlife Sanctuary in Nashik District of Maharashtra.
The
main aim of the Centre would be to disseminate information and create awareness
about the importance of the wetland, including a glimpse of its cultural and
biological diversity.
More
details of the proposal are not presently available.
Source: Interpretation Centre at Wandoor, Andaman &
Nicobar’, ceenario, May 1-15, 2009
Contact: CEE. Email: ceedo@ceeindia.org Web: www.ceeindia.org
Villagers
relocated from Botezari arrested for ‘violating’ and entering Tadoba Andhari TR
16 residents of Village Bhagwanpur, who
were relocated from village Botezari in the Tadoba Andhari Tiger Reserve in
March 2007, were arrested on May 21, 2009 after they entered the TATR to gather
tendu leaves and start cultivation on
their old lands.
The
Forest Department (FD) charged the group with having felled 60-70 trees and
booked them for several offenses. The villagers claimed that they were in a
state of semi-starvation in their new location due to lack of irrigation
facilities and employment, and all efforts to communicate with officials in
this regard had proven futile.
The
main bone of contention between the forest and revenue departments of the
district on the one hand and the residents of Bhagwanpur on the other is an
irrigation tank that was promised to the residents at the time of relocation.
The village had been provided a tank situated lower than their fields, and
hence unsuitable for irrigation. As a result then have been unable to take a
single crop in the last two crop seasons.
In
meeting held in the village on May 20, and attended by the TATR field director
Sheshrao Patil, RFO Arun Tikhe and District Collector Pradeep Kalbhor, the
residents demanded that they be allowed to cultivate their old lands in
Botezari village till irrigation facilities were provided at the relocation
site. Villagers have alleged that the officials threatened them with arrest
during the meeting. Following this a group of people from 24 different
households went into the tiger reserve for tendu
leaf collection and for cultivation.
16
of these (eight men and eight women) were subsequently arrested and presented
in court where the women were granted bail on personal bonds. The women,
however, refused to accept bail and demanded that the men be freed too. All
sixteen people were then remanded to magisterial custody.
Bhagwanpur
residents have demanded that the arrested residents be released and all charges
against them be dropped. They have also reiterated their demand for cultivation
rights on their old lands till all necessary facilities are provided at
Bhagwanpur. Villages Kolsa and Rantalodhi located inside the TATR have also
supported these demands.
(Also see PA Updates Vol XIV, Nos. 5 & 3)
Source: Manohar K. Email to forestrights@yahoogroups.com
dated 08/06/09
Contact: Manohar K.
Email:
vanvpss.ngp@gmail.com
Field Director, Tadoba-Andhari Tiger Project, Mul
Road, In front of Sanchiti Chamber, Chandrapur – 442401, Maharashtra. Tel:
07172-51414(O), 56382(R)
11.44 acres
reclaimed by Sanjay Gandhi NP
11.44 acres of land of the Sanjay Gandhi
National Park (SGNP) that was in the possession of a private individual due to
a clerical mistake was recently restored to the park. The issue is linked to
land acquisition notices issued under the Indian Forest Act on August 27, 1975
to owners of 987.2 acres of land bearing survey number 291 in Owala, Thane.
49.20 acres of this had already been sold by the original owners then, and the
FD that should have got possession of the remaining 937.22 acres, actually got
only 926.12 acres.
After
realising the mistake, the FD approached the court of the Sub Divisional
Officer, Thane, for correction of the land records, which has now been made.
Senior
forest officials have pointed out that the land was situated at a prime
location along Ghodbunder Road and was being eyed by many influential persons,
including a few politicians. The FD is said to have been under tremendous
pressure throughout these legal proceedings but managed to successfully regain
the land.
Source: ‘Borivili national park gets back land’, DNA, 18/06/09
Contact: DCF, SGNP, Borivili (East), Mumbai – 400066, Maharashtra. Tel: 022-28860362, 28860389(O), 8862780(R) Email: sgnpb@rediffmail.com
NGO
alleges that Sanjay Gandhi NP authorities claiming land illegally in Malad area
The Ghar Hakka Jagruti Parishad (GHJP), an
organisation representing the slum-dwellers of Malad has claimed that the
Sanjay Gandhi National Park (SGNP) management was illegally claiming land that
never belonged to it. The land covers an area of 200 acres and is part of
survey number 239(1) in Malad.
The NGO has argued that the Supreme
Court has rejected the plea of the Bombay Environmental Action Group (BEAG)
that the SGNP is occupied by unauthorised occupants and held that the Bombay
High Court has no jurisdiction under Article 226 of the Constitution to decide
the factual adjudication of encroachment, and that this can only be done by a
competent statutory authority. The NGO also claimed that the Supreme Court had
given the appellants the opportunity to move the appropriate authority to
decide the issue.
Forest Department officials have,
however, said that re-measuring the boundaries cannot be done since Section
[35(5)] of the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972, doesn't allow alteration of
boundaries unless a resolution is passed by the state legislative assembly.
(Also see PA Updates Vol XV, No. 2; Vol. XIV, No.
3; and Nos. 47, 45, 43, 41 & 39)
Source: 'Forest dept laying
claim to our land', DNA,
http://www.dnaindia .com/report.asp?newsid=1261022
Soil testing in Tulsi Lake area in Sanjay Gandhi NP
without FD permission
Workers employed by the Bombay Municipal Corporation (BMC) were found
doing soil testing work in the Tulsi Lake area that is located within the
Sanjay Gandhi National Park (SGNP) without the needed permissions. Park
officials and those in the civic body initially claimed ignorance about the work.
Neither had a clue about who gave permission for the work, or if any such
permission was granted at all.
Forest officials
subsequently visited the site, stopped the work and seized all the equipment.
The lake is under the BMC but permission for surveys, repair works and new
projects has to be taken because it falls within the national park boundaries.
About a year ago, the
BMC had sought permission to lay pipes through the SGNP to connect the Bhandup
water purification complex with the Malad reservoir. The Ministry of
Environment and Forests (MoEF) had denied permission to dig up the park's core
zone, but it has been alleged that the staff at SGNP had unofficially allowed
them to do so.
Source: Yogesh Naik. ‘BMC’s soil work puts wildlife
to the test’, The Times of India,
29/06/09
Dogs form 50% of leopard diet in Sanjay Gandhi NP
An analysis of 117 scats, collected between May 2008 and March 2009, by
the Bombay Natural History Society (BNHS) has indicated that almost half of the
prey as detected by studying the droppings was the domestic dog. Rodents and
wild boar constitute the majority of the rest. The findings correlated with the
results of the human-leopard interaction survey, which indicated that
dog/livestock lifting is common in areas surrounding the park.
Source: ‘Leopards prefer domestic dogs as prey’,
http://www.mid-day.com/news/2009/may/270509-leopard-dogs.htm
Contact: Krishna Tiwari, BNHS, Hornbill House, Shahid Bhagat Singh Marg, Mumbai
400 023 Maharashtra.
Tel: 022-2821811. Fax: 2837615
Nandankanan now a member of world zoo body
The Nandankanan
Zoological Park has become the first zoo in India to be accepted as a member of
the World Association of Zoos and Aquariums (WAZA). The zoo houses a population
of nearly 1,200 animals, including 107 reptiles, 574 birds and 437 mammals.
Having more than 240 zoos and
aquaria as its members, WAZA works as a catalyst for joint conservation. WAZA
membership provides leadership and support for zoos, aquaria and partner
organizations around the world in animal care and welfare, conservation of
bio-diversity, environmental education and global sustainability.
The tag would
also enable Nandankanan staff to take part in different meetings and
conferences in which they could interact with other members of WAZA as well as
renowned experts in various fields. It would also provide the staff an
opportunity to visit foreign zoos, aquaria and nature reserves.
Source:
Minati Singha. ‘Nandankanan now a member of world zoo body’, The Times of India, 03/07/09
Contact:
Director, Nandankanan
Zoological Park, Bhubaneshwar at
Mayurbhawan, P.O. – Saheednagar, Dist.
Khurda - 751007. Tel: 0674-515840(O). Email: director_n@hotmail.com
Rs. Three crore project to deal with human elephant conflict at
Chandaka WLS
The Orissa
Forest Department (FD) has proposed a Rs. Three crore project to deal with the
problem of human-elephant conflict at the Chandaka Wildlife Sanctuary that
abuts the state capital, Bhubaneshwar. There have been many instances in recent
years when elephants from the sanctuary have entered the capital city leading
to huge problems (PA Updates Vol.
XIII, Nos. 6, 3 & 1; Vol. XI, No. 4; and Nos. 49, 46, 41, 39, 34, 32, &
29).
The proposal includes habitat
improvement of the degraded forest blocks of Bharatpur and Jagannathprasad that
the elephants have used to enter the city. As part of the project the FD has
decided to first raise plantations over 450 hectares of the 1,180 hectares in
the Bharatpur block. This will be followed by a Rs. Two crore similar project
in the Jagannathprasad block.
It is hoped that this will increase
the fodder and food availability for the pachyderms and prevent their movement
forward into human habitation. In addition to this, the height of the guard
wall would be raised by about a metre from its present height of two metres and
the trench will be given laterite stone lining. A bamboo plantation is also to
come up as the third line of protection.
Nearly 10,000 saplings are to be
planted over an area of 25 hectares to begin with and the plantation was
recently initiated in Bharatpur in the presence of senior forest and wildlife
officials of the state.
Source:
‘Fodder for jumbos, protection for capital’, Indian Express, 09/07/09.
Contact: DFO, Chandaka WLS, SFTRI Campus, Ghatikia, P.O. Barmunda Colony, Bhubaneshwar – 751003. Tel: 0674-2440168 ®
Rs. 5 crore Elephant Management Plan for state
The Orissa
Forest Department is reportedly finalizing a Rs. 5 crore Elephant Management
Plan for the state. The string of measures to be implemented under the plan
include improvement of elephant habitats for which corridor mapping would soon
be carried out to understand the extent of degradation and encroachment. Field
officers have been asked to assess new roads, railway lines, farmlands and
degraded patches in these corridors.
It has also been decided to place 48
anti-depredation squads, equipped with communication facilities, across 150
ranges. Each squad will have two trackers and will be provided with vehicles
and mobile phones to keep an eye on the movement of elephants on a daily basis.
`Kunki’ elephants will be procured
from Assam for assistance in anti-depredation measures and steps with be taken
to get the Crime Cell working.
Protected areas are to be fenced
using solar power and each circle is to be assigned a tranquiliser specialist.
The issues of mishaps caused by railways lines is to dealt with by the
formation of a joint team of railway officials, putting up of signages at
crucial points and enforcing speed restrictions on the trains. Steps will also
be taken to deal with the problem of electrocution of elephants due to sagging
electricity lines.
These decisions were taken by circle
heads of elephant regions of the State at the end of a two-day Wildlife DFOs
Conference held in Bhubaneshwar recently.
Source:
‘Jumbo management plan takes shape’, Indian
Express, 08/06/09.
E-bulletin on
the Forest Rights Act in Orissa
A monthly new E-bulletin ‘Swikruti’ has been launched to track the
Scheduled Tribes and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest
Rights) Act in Orissa.
It
is a digest of news, information and major happenings in the state in regards
to the Act and attempts to be a reflection of the actual issues, conflicts and
cooperation faced on the ground as compared to the one presented by the State
and Ministry of Tribal Affairs (MoTA). It can be accessed on www.fra.org.in
Source: Y Giri Rao. Email dated
04/07/09
Contact: Y Giri Rao.
Email:
ygiri.rao@gmail.com
Greenpeace
report on turtle-fisheries issues in Orissa
Greenpeace India recently released an
evaluation of the performance of the Orissa State Government on the
turtle-fisheries issue in the 2008-2009 season. The report has pointed out that
there is a huge gap between measures agreed to by the government on paper and
effective action on the ground. It says, for instance, that the state
government is yet to effectively act on its commitment of including local and
independent organisations in the process of monitoring turtle mortalities along
Orissa’s coastline and that the state government has also not committed to an
annually depreciating turtle mortality target model to demonstrate that it is
serious about reducing turtle deaths.
Estimates
suggest that a little over 7000 turtle carcasses were recorded in the Chilika
to Paradip stretch alone in the 2008-2009 turtle season (November to May). This
is above the average turtle mortality of 6,280 recorded in this area in the
last six seasons but a marginal decline of 8% when compared to mortality
figures from 2007-2008 in the Devi region. Taken together with mortality
figures south of Chilika, in Gahirmatha and north of the Dhamra river mouth,
including Udabali Island, the total mortality for the entire state, the report
says, is once again likely to be in the region of 14,000–15,000. Similarly,
trawler violations in this region, have been in the mean monthly average range
of around 473 violations in the critical phase of the turtle season (November
to February), resulting both in large scale turtle deaths and severe hardship
via loss of fish catch to traditional fisher communities.
The
report also points out that the patrol boats acquired by the Fisheries
Department have not yet been deployed in an active patrolling programme and
that the government has yet to expedite an additional income generation scheme
for impacted traditional fishermen in the Gahirmatha, Devi and Rushikulya
regions.
Source: ‘Turtle Fisheries crisis: Government of Orissa gets
a ‘Moderate Pass’ in Theory by a ‘Fail in Practicals’, Press Release by
Greenpeace India, 30/06/09.
Contact: Areeba
Hamid, Greenpeace India. Tel: +91-99005 69456. Email:
areeba.hamid@greenpeace.org
CWLW– Orissa, Plot No. 8, Shahid Nagar, Bhubaneshwar – 751007, Orissa. Tel: 0674- 2512502 / 2513134 / 2515840. Fax: 512502
RAJASTHAN
70 black bucks
die in Tal Chappar WLS due to ‘weather shock’
At least 70 black buck were reported
dead in the last week of May and early June in the Tal Chappar Wildlife
Sanctuary. The deaths were blamed on ‘weather shock’ following unseasonal
downpours accompanied by thunderstorms and lightning.
The
victims were mostly old animals and the infants and were said to have died due
to heart failure on account of shock experienced because of the thunderstorms
and lightning.
Source: Rakhee Roy Talukdar. ‘Storm shock kills 50 black
bucks’, The Telegraph, 02/06/09
PJ
Joychen. ’70 blackbucks die of shock in rain-hit Tal Chappar’, The Times of India, 02/06/09
Contact: I/c Tal Chappar WLS. Dist. Churu, Rajasthan. Tel 0291-2544371 / 2433656. Fax: 0291-2629038
Forest fires
across the state in March
The continuous dry spell in Sikkim led to widespread fires across the
state in the month of March. Areas affected by fire include the following:
East Sikkim: Khesay, Gangyap, Sichey, Ganseh Tok, Daragaon, Nam
Nang, Gangyap, Sang, Nazitam, Rongli, Basmey, Ranka Lingdum, Rongey, Namnang;
Sang RF, Singchyel RF, Nimthang RF, Syari RF, Rangpo, Rhodong Khasmal forest,
Kopibari (private holding), Central Pandam Khasmal area, Basmey RF, Fambong Lho
wildlife sanctuary.
West Sikkim: Nethang,
Malbasey, Pipaley, Tatopani, Sakyong, Barsey Rhododendron Sanctuary, Achalay
RF, Tatopani RF, Reshi RF, Sakey RF, Sakyong RF, Burung RF, Raksang RF
North Sikkim: Dikchu,
Lower Phodong (private holding)
South Sikkim: Melli Tribeni RF, Malbasey RF, Rabongla RF,
SumbuRF, Tumin RF, Sadam Tareybhir, Salghari, Ralong.
Source: ‘Outbreak of forest fires across Sikkim’, Panda Newsletter 2009
PANDA
Newsletter from ENVIS Sikkim
The Sikkim ENVIS, Forests, Environment
and Wildlife Management Department, Govt of Sikkim have recently published the
PANDA Newsletter 2009.
It
is a bi-annual news magazine which was initially published in 1993 but had gone
into hibernation after that. It was re-launched on June 5, 2009 by the Sikkim
Forest Minister. It can be accessed at the following weblink
http://www.sikenvis.nic.in/Newsletter.htm
Contact: Rajen
Pradhan, ENVIS Centre Sikkim, Forest, Env. & W/L Mgt. Deptt. Govt. of
Sikkim, Deorali, Gangtok 737102, Sikkim. Email: sik@envis.nic.in
http://www.sikenvis.nic.in/
Field Guide to the plants of the Northern Nilgiri
Biosphere Reserve
The ‘Field Guide to the plants of the Northern Nilgiri Biosphere
Reserve’, the 2nd in the series – Forest Plants of the Nilgiris, was
launched on June 5, World Environment Day. The launch was organized at the
Theppakadu Interpretation Center, Mudumalai Tiger Reserve and was attended by
the Field Directors of both the Mudumalai and the Bandipur Tiger Reserves.
The pictorial guide
includes the dominant plants of the Bandipur, Nagarhole and Mudumalai Tiger
Reserves and has been published by the Kotagiri based Keystone Foundation.
Information on each plant was compiled using
secondary sources and indigenous uses of the plant have been recorded in
consultation with the Irula people of the region. Field staff of the three
tiger reserves were given a copy each of the guide during the program.
The price of the book is Rs. 450.
Contact: Anita Varghese, Keystone Foundation, PB 35, Groves Hill Road, Kotagiri 643 217, Nilgiris
District, Tamil Nadu. Telefax: 04266-272277, Email: anita@keystone-foundation.org
Nature Interpretation Centre in the Sathyamangalam
WLS
A Nature Interpretation Centre was recently inaugurated at Hasanur in
the Sathyamangalam Wildlife Sanctuary (SWLS) in the Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve.
The centre was conceptualised by the DFO, Mr S Ramasubramanian and jointly
implemented by the Kotagiri based Keystone Foundation and local Village Forest
Councils. The center is called the Elephant Valley Nature Interpretation Center
and is located along the main highway that connects Coimbatore and Bangalore.
It has a wide range of
photographs that portray the people, landscape and wildlife of the region. The
center will be managed and run by the Village Forest Councils of the area and
also has a coffee and souvenir shop.
The sanctuary itself
was created in December 2008 and covers an area of a little over 524 sq. kms. It
includes the Thalavady range (Palayam, Belathur, Gettavadi) and Bhavani Sagar
range (Thengumarahada, a part of Thalamalai, Gejalatti, and Peerkadavu, entire
Kothamangalam and a part of Bannari), which are spread over 22, 325.63 ha.
The second part is the
Guthiyalathur and Guthiyalathur extension, which comprises Sathyamangalam range
(Thimbam, Vadavalli, Chickarasampalayam, Kondappanaicken Palayam and
Kembanaiken Palayam) and T.N. Palayam (a part of Kadambur forests, Vilankombai,
Kongarpalayam, a part of Kovilur, entire Bungalow Pudur, Kanackampalayam and a
part of Kundri).
Contact: Anita
Varghese, Keystone Foundation, see above
Rs. 8.5 crore security plan for Corbett TR
The Union Minister for Environment and Forests, Mr. Jairam Ramesh is
reported to have cleared a Rs 8.5-crore Comprehensive Security Plan for the
Corbett Tiger Reserve, which will be implemented over the next six years. The
plan includes purchase of microlight aircraft for surveillance and installation
of sensors all over the reserve for monitoring purposes. Funds are also likely
to be made available for a new museum in Ramnagar.
In another move the
minister has also proposed to include Van Gujjars in the Special Tiger
Protection Force (TPF). The creation of the TPF is the outcome of the budgetary
allocation of Rs. 50 crores made last year for the same (PA Update Vol XV, No. 2). The TPF for Corbett is slated to have 110
people and the Minister has suggested that the Gujjars who have a good
knowledge of the place would be far better suited for the purpose than anyone
thrust from the outside.
The Minister also
suggested that the microlight aircraft like the one to be introduced to Corbett
will also be considered for other tiger reserves like Namdapha in Arunachal Pradesh
where there is a serious problem of connectivity.
Source: ‘Minister spots tiger, clears aircraft and
sensors for Corbett’, The Indian Express,
16/06/09
Contact: Field Director, Corbett Tiger Reserve, Ramnagar –244715, Nainital, Uttaranchal. Tel: 05947 – 285489. Fax: 285376
CWLW, 5, Chandrabani, Mohobewala, Dehradun, Uttaranchal. Tel: 0135- 2644691
Nepal police
fire at elephant herd
In a repeat of incidents that have
occurred over the last couple of years (PA
Update Vol XIV, No. 4) the Nepal police allegedly fired at a herd of
elephants near the Mechi river on the India-Nepal border. A herd of around 60
pachyderms is said to have entered Dhapa and soon reached Bamondangi village
and started raiding homes and fields. The Nepal police opened fire and the
firing went on for around two hours. A team of Indian forest guards from the
Kurseong division was also shot at when it crossed over to Nepal to try and
persuade the police to desist from firing at the animals. The guards had to
take cover on the bank of Mechi and crossed back to India after two hours.
While
the herd moved back to the Kalibari forest in Darjeeling district, it was not clear if any elephant was killed in Nepal
or if those which returned had suffered bullet injuries. Officials on the
Indian side of the border suspect that a number of animals may have been hit by
the bullets as distressed trumpeting calls had been heard from the forest.
Mechi
lies on the traditional elephant corridor in north Bengal that stretches for
400 km till Sankosh on the Assam border. Every year elephants enter Nepal and
then move back to India after having crossed the Mechi river. In 2007, the
Nepal police had opened fire on the herd killing a tusker. Several animals had
also received bullet injuries
Efforts
had been made then by Indian authorities to initiate a dialogue with their
Nepalese counterparts and also to put up an electric fence to prevent elephants
from crossing over. Senior forest officials in India say that the Nepalese had
assured them that they would not fire at the animals but that the latest
developments indicate that they were not willing to keep their promise.
Source: Pinal Priya Bhattacharya. ‘Nepal police fire at
elephant herd’, The Times of India,
11/06/09
Community based
tourism project in North Bengal
The West Bengal Forest Development
Corporation (WBFDC) and Help Tourism (HT) have launched a new Community based
tourism project in North Bengal in a region contiguous with the Neora Valley
and Gorumara National Parks and the Mahananda Wildlife Sanctuary.
Called
the Naom Chel Teesta Tourism Peace Park, the project is based in the
Naom-Chel-Teesta area located east of the River Teesta. It was initiated
following a meeting in December 2008 that was attended by representatives of
Oodlabari Tourism Development Association, WBFDC and HT.
Contact: Raj Basu, Email:
actraj@gmail.com
Web: www.helptourism.com; www.easternhimalaya.org
Chief Wildlife
Warden, Vikas Bhawan, North Block, Salt Lake, Calcutta - 700091, West
Bengal. Tel: 033-3346900/3583208. Fax: 3345946. Email: wildlife@cal.vsnl.net.in
SC to CAMPA: Provide Rs. 1000 crore per year to states in next five years
The Supreme
Court has recently directed an Ad-Hoc body working on behalf of the
Compensatory Afforestation Fund Management and Planning Authority (CAMPA) to
release Rs 1,000 crore per year in the next five years to state governments for
compensatory afforestation.
A Special forest Bench headed by
Chief Justice KG Balakrishnan passed the direction after taking note of the
report of the apex court-appointed Central Empowered Committee (CEC) which
agreed with the recommendation made by the adhoc CAMPA in the first week of
July. The court also directed the Accountant General to audit the account every
year and also accepted other recommendations for the
notification/implementation of the guidelines and structure of state CAMPAs as
prepared by the Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF).
(Also see PA Updates Vol XIV, Nos. 6 & 2).
Source:
‘Provide Rs. 1K to states for forests: SC to Campa’, Financial Express, 11/07/09
Interactive
database on threatened lakes
The Centre for Science and Environment
(CSE) has created an interactive database on threatened lakes of India.
Presently it has information on a number of lakes from around the country
including details of those that are under litigations of various kinds. Lakes
on the database include many that are protected areas or Important Bird Areas
like the Pulicat Lake, Kolleru Lake, the Vembanad Lake, the East Kolkata
wetlands and the Dal lake in Kashmir.
Readers
have been invited to add their own information about threatened lakes with
related articles, photographs or news of lakes. Information has also been
sought from other countries in South Asia. The site is
http://www.rainwaterharvesting.org/public_interest.htm
Contact: Sushmita,
Water Unit, CSE. Email: susm4@yahoo.com
Proposal for a
National Green Tribunal
The Union Ministry for Environment and
Forests (MoEF) has proposed the creation of a National Green Tribunal (NGT) in
a move to reduce the burden on the judiciary as well as address the increasing
number of environment-related litigations. A Cabinet note for inter-ministerial
discussions has already been moved to discuss the same.
If
established, the tribunal will become the only forum where civil cases
pertaining to the entire set of central environment related laws including
public interest litigation would be entertained. The tribunal will also address
all substantial questions relating to the environment. Appeals against the
decisions of the tribunal would go to the Supreme Court.
Keeping
in mind that the environment is an evolving subject in jurisprudence, the
tribunal shall not be bound to follow the procedure laid down in the Code of
Civil Procedure, 1908 but would be guided by the principles of natural justice.
However, it will have the regular powers that other judicial institutions carry.
The NGT shall also not be bound by the rules of evidence contained in the
Indian Evidence Act, 1872.
The
tribunal shall have a full-time judicial member as its chairperson along with
three full-time technical members - one an expert in physical, life sciences or
engineering, one an expert in law and another with administrative experience in
environmental policy. All members will have a fixed tenure of five-years.
If
the tribunal is set up, the National Environment Tribunal Act of 1995 and the
National Environmental Appellate Authority Act of 1997 would be repealed.
Source: ‘Govt plans green tribunal to hear environment
cases’, The Times of India, 27/06/09
Tripartite MoUs to be signed between Centre, State and Project Tiger
Reserves
The Union Ministry
of Environment and Forests (MoEF) will soon be signing tripartite agreements
with the State Governments and Directors of Tiger Reserves as a part of a new
initiative to ensure tiger conservation. Earlier there were bi-partite
agreements between the Centre and States under which funds were received. In
some cases like Bihar, however, even this agreement had not been signed and
though funds had been allocated for the state they had not been released last
year.
The new tri-partite MoUs, which
would be a refinement over the existing ones, are aimed at fixing
responsibility and accountability for tiger conservation and utilisation of
funds.
As things stand, based on the funds
utilisation certificates of just 16 of the 37 tiger reserves in the country, it
turns out that an amount of over Rs 21 crore remained unspent in 2008-09. Rs.
93 crores had been released to these reserves but only Rs. 72 crores were
actually utilized.
Source:
‘Union Govt to take up Bihar tiger conservation issue with Nitish’, The Pioneer, 17/06/09
Simlipal TR,
Pachmari and Nokrek NP added to UNESCO’s Global Biosphere Reserve Network
The Simlipal Tiger Reserve in Orissa and
the Nokrek Biosphere Reserve in Meghalaya have been added by UNESCO to its
Global Biosphere Reserve Network. These are three of a new list of 22 sites
from across 17 countries. Ten of these sites are in Asia with Europe getting
six and the rest divided among Australia, the Middle East, Africa and the
Americas. These additions brings the total number to such sites to 553 in 107
countries.
The
new additions were announced by UNESCO during the International Coordinating
Council of the Man and the Biosphere Programme (MAB-ICC) meeting held recently
on the Island of Jeju in Korea.
Other
sites added to the list this year include Great Sandy, a terrestrial, coastal,
marine area in Australia which is home to the largest rainforest stand on sand
in the world; the Swabian Alb, in Germany which is covered by beech forests and
orchards and housed a military training area that was closed to the public for
over 100 years until recently; Giam Siak Kecil – Bukit Batu, Indonesia, a peat
land area in Sumatra featuring sustainable timber production and two wildlife
reserves which are home to the Sumatran tiger, elephant, tapir, and sun bear;
and Tasik Chini, the first site in Malaysia to be designated as a UNESCO
biosphere reserve, which is a sanctuary for many freshwater species.
The
other new sites are: Lagunas de Montebello (Mexico), Flores Island (Portugal),
Geres-Xures (Portugal and Spain), Shinan Dadohae (ROK), Altaisky (Russia),
Vhembe (South Africa), Fuerteventura (Spain), Lajat Biosphere Reserve (Syria),
Desnianskyi (Ukraine), Delta del Orinoco (Venezuela), Cu Lao Cham – Hoi An
(Viet Nam), Mui Ca Mau (Vietnam), Mount Myohyang (Democratic People’s Republic
of Korea), Biosphare Bliesgau (Germany), and Jabal Moussa Biosphere Reserve
(Lebanon).
Source: ‘UNESCO names 22 new sites to Global Biosphere
Reserve Network’, Travel Impact Newswire,
Edition 31 (2009) – Wednesday, 03 June 2009
Forest
Administration to be ‘modernised’ to deal with naxal threat
The Union Government will soon launch a
new scheme, 'Modernisation of Forest Administration', to improve the forest
administration and simultaneously tackle the growing threat from Naxalites. The
Centrally-sponsored scheme would be launched in Orissa, Jharkhand, Chattisgarh,
Madhya Pradesh and Bihar. The information was provided in Hyderabad recently by
the Union Minister for Environment and Forests, Mr. Jairam Ramesh.
The Minister said that the details were
being worked out and the Centre will extend full financial assistance to the
state governments in implementing it. Andhra Pradesh has not been included in
the scheme as it has been relatively successful in tackling the Maoist menace
on its own.
A
number of protected areas including tiger reserves in these states have also
been affected and in many cases even reported to be substantially under naxal
control.
Source: ‘Centre to tackle Naxal menace by launching new
scheme’ http://www.zeenews.com:80/news537312.html
NTCA directives
on tourism in tiger reserves
In a new set of directives, the National
Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) has instructed tiger reserves across the
country to put a stop to all “disturbances” in critical tiger areas. It is also
proposed to stop tourism for good in core areas. A ban is to be imposed on
signboards, foundation stones and other landmarks in these sensitive zones. A
ban on entry of tourist jeeps, trucks and lorries in these areas has also been proposed.
In
addition, the NTCA has also ordered that no individual can prescribe field
activities in tiger reserves and the forest staff intervention in these areas
too is to be brought down to a minimum. It has also been decided that no
outside agency will be allowed any field activity in the core area without
prior permission from the Supreme Court.
Explaining
the logic of the decision, the NTCA has said it would be an anomaly to move
villages out of the core areas (as part of a new rehabilitation plan) but allow
tourism to continue there.
Tourism
would however continue in buffer zones of the tiger reserves.
Source: Neha Sinha. ‘Save tiger: Govt. to erase tourism
footprint’, Indian Express, 02/0609
Whitley Award for Dr. MD
Madhusudan
Dr. MD Madhusudan
of the Mysore based Nature Conservation Foundation (NCF) was recently presented
the Whitley Award for Conservation for his work to balance the needs of people
and wildlife, including elephant and tigers, in the world’s most
densely-populated biodiversity hotspot, the Western Ghats.
He received the award from Britain’s
Princess Anne. The prize includes a Whitley Award project grant of £30,000 -
donated by HSBC Private Bank - an engraved trophy, membership of an influential
network of Whitley Award winners and opportunities to apply for WFN
Continuation Funding.
Five other Whitley Awards, including
the Whitley Gold (£60,000) went to conservation leaders from Uganda, Bulgaria,
Kenya, Sri Lanka and Thailand.
Two other Indian conservationists
have also received Associate Awards this year. Sudipto Chatterjee got a £10,000
award to develop an action plan to conserve wild rhododendrons in the Eastern
Himalayas, while Supraja Dharini received the same support for a community
based initiative to protect sea turtles and dolphins in Kancheepuram.
Contact:
Dr. MD Madhusudan, NCF, 3076/5 IV
Cross, Gokulam Park, Mysore 570002. Tel: 0821-2515601. Email: web@conservation.in Web:
http://www.conservation.in
Prem Bhatia
Award for Environmental Journalism to Gargi
Parsai
The Prem Bhatia Memorial Award for
Excellence in Environmental Journalism was recently awarded to Gargi Parsai,
Deputy Editor, The Hindu and member
of the Executive Committee of the Indian Women’s Press Corps.
A
number of NGOs working on social and environmental issues have welcomed the
award. A press release issued by the Narmada Bachao Andolan reads as follows:
‘She has been one of the pioneers in investigative journalism in the print
media and has made a deep imprint on the ongoing development discourse in the
country by covering perspectives of different actors across the board including
the 'development-affected', as in Narmada or Polavaram as well as closely
following the policies and positions of bureaucrats and Ministers in critical
areas such as water, environment and agriculture for almost three decades.’
Source: Press Release by the Narmada Bachao Andolan,
08/06/09
Tiger relocation
protocol approved
The Union Ministry for Environment and
Forests (MoEF) has approved a blueprint for tiger relocation prepared by
National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA).
The
protocol has been prepared by the NTCA in association with wildlife experts and
the Dehradun based Wildlife Institute of India (WII) and is based on
international guidelines. It has details related to which type of animal of
what age can be translocated on what conditions. It also deals in detail with
the pre and post-release strategy and seeks a long-term plan for the survival
of the tiger before any attempt is made to relocate it from one habitat to
another. Binding on every state, the tiger relocation will take place under the
monitoring of the Wildlife Institute of India (WII), forest departments and
experts. The protocol also gives absolute power to the NTCA oversight committee
to monitor the shifting process whenever it feels like.
The
need for the protocol was raised a few months ago by leading wildlife and tiger
experts following the move of two tigresses from Kanha and Bandavgarh Tiger Reserves
to Panna (PA Updates Vol. XV, Nos. 3,
2, & 1). It was alleged by many that the translocations had happened by
over looking basic norms.
It
is now hoped that the second phase of the tiger revival plan for Sariska TR in
Rajasthan (PA Updates Vol. XV, Nos. 2
& 1 and Vol. XIV, No. 5) that had also been put no hold will take off.
Source: ‘Environment Ministry approves tiger relocation
protocol’, The Hindu, 21/06/09
Environment in
the Indian Parliament: An Analysis 2007
The ENVIS Centre located in the World
Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) – India has recently released the 3rd
edition of ‘Environment in the Indian parliament: An analysis 2007.
The
report is a compendium of the discussions held in both the houses of parliament
on various sectors of the environment. The ENVIS centre in consultation with
the Ministry of Environment and Forests has divided the field of the
environment into 18 subject areas. Information has been analyzed subject-wise,
ministry wise and state wise. It is hoped that the publication would provide an
insight into the trends of parliamentary discussion related to the field of
environment amongst India’s legislators and policy makers.
Contact: Dr. G.
Areendran, Director-ENVIS Programme, WWF-India, 172-B, Lodi Estate, New
Delhi - 110 003. Tel: 011-41504791/ 93 / 9968061056
E-mail:
gareendran@wwfindia.net
Consultation on
Landscape Approach to Biodiversity Conservation and Management in the Eastern
Himalayas
A ‘Regional Experience Sharing
Consultation on Landscape Approach to Biodiversity Conservation and Management
in the Eastern Himalayas was held in the last week of May in Tengchong, Yunnan
Province, China. The consultation was organized by the International Centre for
Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD) and the Kunming Institute of Botany
(KIB), Chinese Academy of Sciences .
The
meeting was attended by representatives from Bhutan, China, India, Myanmar and
discussed a range of issues including the possibility of developing a
transboundary landscape around the watersheds of the Brahmaputra and Salween
rivers (covering parts of China, India and Myanmar) and strengthening
transboundary landscape approaches in the eastern Himalayas.
The four days consultation shared the
biodiversity values and services provided by three key protected areas: the
Gaoligongshan National Nature Reserve in China, the Namdapha Tiger Reserve in
India, and the Hkakaborazi National Park in Myanmar. Although in different
countries, all are within the Bramhaputra-Salween landscape and also very rich
in biological diversity.
During
the consultation, experiences were shared on landscape approaches used in other
areas, including the Kangchenjunga Landscape, the Bhutan Biological
Conservation Complex, and the Sacred Himalayan Landscape-Nepal, and on the
proposed initiatives for the Karakoram Complex and the Kailash Sacred
Landscape. The consultation identified areas where more information was needed,
especially in biodiversity, socioeconomics, and cultural understanding, and
follow up actions in each of the countries. The workshop also identified
potential for regional cooperation in thematic areas, capacity building needs,
and transboundary issues and initiatives, and steps to be considered in
developing a regional cooperation framework (RCF) for the landscape.
A
field visit was organised to the Gaoligongshan National Nature Reserve by the
Tengchong County Office of the Baoshan Administration Bureau of the
Gaoligongshan National Nature Reserve.
Contact: Dr. Eklabya
Sharma, ICIMOD, GPO Box 3226, Kathmandu, Nepal. Email: info@icimod.org;
website: www.icimod.org
International
Conference on Wildlife Conservation, Health and Disease Management
The Department of Wildlife Science,
Madras Veterinary College under the auspices of Tamilnadu Veterinary and Animal
Sciences University is organizing an ‘International Conference on Wildlife
Conservation, Health and Disease Management – A Post Millenium Approach’ from
February 3 to 5, 2010 in Chennai.
A
number of technical sessions have been planned for the Conference including
Status of Wildlife Health Management; International Collaboration in Wildlife
Research; Capture, Restraint and Immobilisation of Wildlife; Avian, Aquatic and
Reptile Medicine; Emerging and Zoonotic diseases in Wildlife and
Wildlife-Human-Livestock conflict and issues.
Contact: Dr. MG
Jayathangaraj, Dept. of Wildlife Science, Madras Veterinary College,
Chennai-7. Tel: 044-25360700. Email: mgjayathangaraj@yahoo.com
