Camel Fest from December 30 in Bikaner   Bikaner, December 30, 2009: The annual International Camel Festival will begin here in December 30 and continue till January 1, 2010. This time the Department of Tourism made a parking space at the Ladera village in Bikaner, where the event will be held. In this event more than 1000 camels will take part, and 300 young girls dressed in traditional Rajasthani dress will sing and dance.

Two Rhinos Killed in Kaziranga by Poachers    Kaziranga, December 21, 2009: Two one-horned rhinos were found murdered with their horns missing inside India’s Kaziranga National Park - and authorities believe it was the work of poachers posing as park visitors. The officials said the poachers had entered the park posing as visitors and killed the female rhino last night. The park authorities have launched a massive search operation to nab the poachers. PTI reported that a “massive search operation” is now on to apprehend the  poachers - who have raised Kaziranga’s 2009 rhino death toll to 14.

Asiatic Lions in GIR Sanctuary     Rajya Sabha, November 30, 2009 (PIB) : There are no reports about the number of Asiatic Lions in Gir Sanctuary has decreased over the years.On the contrary the number of Asiatic Lions in Gir Sanctuary has increased over the years.The Government of Gujarat has launched several steps including establishing and conserving appropriate habitats including Barda Wildlife  Sanctuary located in Porbandar and Jamnagar Districts for supporting lion population.    This information was given by the Minister of State for Environment and Forests (independent charge) Shri Jairam Ramesh in a written reply to a question by Sh. Mahmood A. Madani and Sh. Santosh Bagrodia in Rajya Sabha today.

Goa tiger among 59 killed this year    PANAJI, November 24, 2009: Goa's much-talked about tiger poaching case has been numbered as one of 59 tigers killed in the country this year. This  though a preliminary report of forensic tests into samples of bones found at Keri carried out by Wildlife Institute of India (WII), Dehra Dun indicated they  did not belong to a big cat. The figures were released by Union environment minister Jairam Ramesh in the Rajya Sabha on Monday. Madhya Pradesh accounted for a maximum of 13 tiger deaths this year.       Elephants don’t belong in zoos: Central Zoo Authority    Kerala KOLLAM, November 17, 2009: As per an order from the Central Zoo Authority (CZA) of India, “elephants have been banned from zoo collection throughout the country with immediate effect”. The order stipulates that all elephants kept at zoos should be immediately relocated to elephant camps and rehabilitation centres of the Forest Department or inside forest areas.   The order has been sent to all in charges of the zoos in the country and the Chief Wildlife Warden of the States. K.P. Ouseph, Chief Conservator of Forests (Wildlife and Chief Wildlife Warden) of Kerala confirmed receiving the order from Rajesh Gopal, Member Secretary of CZA on Tuesday.   The order states that upkeep of large animals like elephants are not only costly but create problems at zoos. When elephants come into musth the problems get aggravated. Moreover the zoo environment confines the animal to a very small  area. The order directs the zoo authorities to carry out the same in consultation with the respective Chief Wildlife Wardens.  Relocating the elephants from the Thiruvananthapuram and Thrissur zoos will take time, it has been reliably understood. This because the controlling authority of these two zoos is the Department of Culture, but in all other States the zoos are under the control of the respective Forest Department.

While 22 tiger deaths were reported in 2006, the number rose to 30 in 2007 and fell marginally to 28 in 2008. The number, however, rose sharply this year with 59 big cats killed up to November 13, 2009.      Elephants don’t belong in zoos

Four poachers arrested in Uttar Pradesh    LUCKNOW, October 28, 2009 (IANS): Four poachers have been arrested in Uttar Pradesh's Badaun district and several tortoises have been seized from their possession, police said on Wednesday.The four were nabbed Tuesday night along with 12 tortoises in Badaun's Bagrain area, some 280-km from Lucknow. Their four aides, however, managed to escape with sacks containing nearly 90 other tortoises, police added. "The four men have admitted that they work for a Kolkata-based team involved in wildlife trade of various animals including leopards and peacocks and other endangered species," police inspector Vijay Singh told reporters. "Though the 12 tortoises we have seized do not belong to any rare species, those arrested have admitted that their aides who managed to escape had some star tortoises that come under the endangered  category," he added.     According to police, some of the tortoises were alive and were handed over to forest officials. India has banned the trade of tortoises under the 1972 Wildlife Protection Act but the huge premium and lax laws are increasingly luring poachers to the trade. Tortoises are killed for their meat and are also used in preparation of some medicines, officials said.

Dolphin hunting banned in Bihar    Patna, October 7, 2009 (PTI) After declaration of dolphin as "national aquatic animal", Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar has directed the state authorities to stop its hunting in the Ganga. "A close watch is being kept on the ghats of river Ganga by the magistrates, police officials and block development officers to stop hunting and fishing of the mammals," senior officials said today.    Gangetic dolphin, a highly endangered species, was declared National Aquatic Animal at the meeting of National Ganga River Basic Authority in New Delhi on Monday.

Wildlife corridor in Uttarakhand faces trouble    NEW DELHI, September 19, 2009 (IANS): A narrow patch of forest, critical for movement of tigers and elephants in Nainital district of Uttarakhand, has been blocked due to an infrastructure project resulting in a serious man-animal conflict, conservation organisations said. The narrow patch of forest across the Gola river near Lalkuan area is the only critical corridor for movement of tigers and elephants between Terai Central and Terai East forest divisions. With the destruction of this vital corridor the entire Terai Arc Landscape stretching from the Yamuna river near Saharanpur in the west to the Bagmati river near the Chitwan National Park in Nepal in the East has been divided into two zones.    The destruction of this corridor has affected free movement of wild elephants, thereby increasing crop damage and human killing on both sides of the corridor, said a joint statement issued by the Corbett  Foundation, Wildlife Protection Society of India, Wildlife Trust of India (WTI) and Worldwide Fund for Nature (WWF)-India.     Marmoset mastermind arrested    Kolkata, Sept.7, 2009: The alleged mastermind behind the marmoset theft from Alipore zoo on August 8 was arrested in Rajasthan’s Ajmer on Saturday night.Rajesh Singh, 30, was flown to the city on Sunday evening.Sleuths said Rajesh, alias Sher, was an old hand at stealing rare animals, including marmosets, from government and private zoos and had links with wildlife rackets in India and abroad.“We have learnt that he had poached on several private zoos in Lonavala and Pune in  Maharashtra,” said Jawed Shamim, the joint commissioner of police (headquarters). Shamim said Rajesh and Raj Saikia, another key accused who was arrested recently in Durg, had entered Alipore zoo during the foiled attempt to steal marmosets in March.

66 tigers dead in 8 months    NEW DELHI, August 22, 2009: Tiger deaths continue at an alarming rate. Statistics collated from different parts of India by a prominent wildlife NGO show that between January 1 and August 19 this year, at least 66 tigers lost their lives. Of these, 23 died due to poaching. The list includes seizures of skins, bones, claws, skeletons, canines and paws by police and  wildlife authorities during this period. The remaining 43 died of a  variety of reasons such as infighting, old age, tiger-human  conflict, accidents and disease, according to statistics provided by  Wildlife  Protection Society of India.

Cheetah would be reintroduced in India    NEW DELHI, August 2, 2009: Union minister of state for environment and forests Jairam Ramesh's announcement in Parliament that the cheetah would be reintroduced in India should have had every wildlife lover leaping with joy. Just imagine the sight of the sleek ash-gold cat — the world's fastest land animal — racing on grasslands here. But marring this picture-perfect sight is the country's poor record of big cat conservation.    Tigers, which numbered 40,000 a century ago, are down to 1,400 and conservationists point out that resources could be better spent on saving the tiger and other endangered species instead of importing cheetahs from Africa. "The meagre resources available should be spent on the protection of severely threatened wildlife," says Brig (retd) Ranjit Talwar, formerly with the tiger conservation cell of the World Wildlife Fund-India..

Over 100 arrested for poaching 46 rhinos in Assam    NEW DELHI, July 22,2009 (PTI): At least 132 persons were arrested for poaching 46 rhinos in Assam since 2006, the government informed Lok Sabha on July 22. Replying to a written question,  environment minister Jairam Ramesh said nine rhinos were poached in 2006 while 21 and 16 in 2007 and 2008 respectively.    He said the estimated population of rhinos in the four different protected areas of Assam was 2,021 of which 2,048 rhinos were found in Kaziranga National Park, followed by Orang National Park (64 rhinos), Pobitra Wildlife Sanctuary (84) and five in Manas national Park. "Various committees constituted by the state government have suggested certain measures for the protection of rhinos such as intensification of patrolling, strengthening intelligence network, seeking cooperation of the fringe villagers," the minister added. The government on its part has been providing financial support under the Centrally sponsored schemes for the conservation and development of wildlife and its habitats including those of rhinos, Ramesh added.

Rhinos in Kaziranga National Park

13 peacocks found dead   Bhilwara, June 22, 2009: In 3 days 13 peacocks found dead in a village named Haler near Bhilwara. Maize and wheat grains found in the dead peacocks abdomen are suspect to poisons.   More than five hundred birds were recently poisoned by some villagers in Parbatsar in Nagaur district.     Source: Hindustan Times

Poachers go high tech    NEW DELHI, June 16, 2009: With high-tech peddlers increasingly turning to cyberspace an easy route to carry wildlife trade, it's time the enforcement agencies in India wake up to this threat and initiate web patrolling to curb the menace, experts say. After parkeet, peacocks and turtles, endangered species of owls are the latest in the series being sold online as was exposed with the arrest of a wildlife trader and two of his associates last week from Thrissur in Kerala.    The poachers had put advertisement of owl sale on the internet, communicating through masked phone numbers, international network to confuse the enforcement officials, said Ashok Kumar, vice-chairman of Wildlife Trust of India which assisted the Wildlife Crime Control Bureau (WCCB) and Kerala Forest Department's Intelligence Cell in busting the racket.    The online advertisement displayed the photograph of the owls labelled as 'silver owl' with a note describing it as "a very rare species". Experts say that an owl could fetch between Rs 3 lakhs to 5 lakhs in  the international market where their demand is on increase. "Barn owl is a common species; nevertheless, its trade is illegal in India. The owls are used by black magic practitioners or kept as pets. Traders extract a hefty amount on these birds from gullible buyers," Kumar said. "Several endangered species are under threat from wildlife criminals who are turning high-tech. But there has little or no initiative from the authorities so far to track the wildlife trade happening in the cyber world."    Environmentalists worry about wildlife in Sunderbans    Kolkata  June 10, 2009(PTI): Environmentalists are worried of the devastation caused by Cyclone Aila to wildlife, particularly tigers, in the Sunderbans, which stretches over a vast area in South and North 24  Parganas districts. Forest officials, though, have not confirmed how many animals persished due to it.  "Some animals might have lost their lives in the cyclone. But we don't know how many were killed," West Bengal Forest minister Ananta Roy said.     Three wildlife reserves from India added to UNESCO's list    New York, May 28, 2009 (PTI): Three wildlife reserves from India are among the 22 new sites from 17 countries added by United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) to its Worldwide Network of Biosphere Reserves.    The reserves at Simplipal in Orissa, Norkek in Meghalaya and Panchmarhi in Madhya Pradesh are added to the list on Wednesday bringing the total number of sites to 553. UNESCO, whose International Coordinating Council of the Man and the Biosphere Programme (MAB-ICC) is meeting on the Island of Jeju in South Korea, now has its Biosphere Reserves in 107 countries.    Similipal, 320 kilometre from Bhuvneshwar, which used to be the hunting ground of the Maharajah of Mayurbhanj is now a home to three animal species--Tiger, Asian Elephant and gaur.   Nokrek is a famous biological hot spot, harbouring elephants,tigers, leopards and gibbons. Panchmarhi, which has tiger and other wildlife resorts, is considered a botanists paradise.    Biosphere reserves are areas designated to serve as places to test different approaches to integrated management of terrestrial, freshwater, coastal and marine resources and biodiversity. As a result, they are sites for experimenting with and learning about sustainable development.    India's Wildlife biologist wins Green Oscar   LONDON, May 14, 2009: A noted Indian wildlife biologist has won the Whitley Award, considered the 'Green Oscar', in recognition of his work to reduce human-wildlife conflict in the Western Ghats in Karnataka. Dr MD Madhusudan, Director of Nature Conservation Foundation -- a young NGO that has grown quickly to become one of the most respected in India -- received a trophy and a cash prize of 30,000 pounds from Princess Anne at a glittering ceremony held at the Royal Geographical Society here last night . Two other Indian conservationists received Associate Awards. Sudipto Chatterjee received 10,000 pounds to develop an action plan to conserve wild rhododendrons in the Eastern Himalayas while Supraja Dharini received an equal amount for a community based initiative to protect sea turtles and dolphins in Kancheepuram in Tamil Nadu.

Sangai safe in sanctuary on Loktak lake     Imphal, April 27,:2009: The recent counter-insurgency operation in  Manipur’s Keibul Lamjao National Park, the last home of the threatened sangai, has not affected the antlered deer population or its habitat, a six-day wildlife survey has revealed.    The army, Assam Rifles and police jointly launched a massive operation, inside the 40 square km sanctuary on Loktak lake on April 11 to flush out militants who had made the floating national park in Bishnupur district  their hideout. They busted five rebel camps, killed a dozen militants and seized 10 weapons.  A census carried out in 2003 by officials of the Wildlife Institute of India recorded 180 sangai in Keibul Lamjao sanctuary.

Elephants kill 5 in Assam village   Assam, April 24, 2009 : Two wild elephants charged into Bangsali village in Assam on Friday, demolishing homes and killing five members of a family, officials said. The elephants entered Bangsali village at dawn and tore apart a mud- thatched hut  and killed a mother and her two children before destroying an adjacent home, local official Ishfaqur Rahman told the Indo-Asian News Service.   Two other people, who belonged to the same family, were injured in that home and later died, Rahman said. It is believed the Asiatic elephants were looking for food when they entered the village in the northeastern Assam state.

Ghariyals into Hastinapur sanctuary   LUCKNOW, April 17, 2009:: The Makdumpur stretch has emerged as the most favoured habitat for ghariyals that were introduced into Hastinapur sanctuary of Meerut division along river Ganga in January this year. The WWF report based on monitoring and observations of four weeks after the release has shown that all reptiles have taken well to their new habitat. Ghariyal Rehabilitation Centre of Kukrail had released 131 young reptiles in the river in two batches on January 29 and February 28 this year. It was after a long period of 17 years that ghariyals were released in Ganga. It was way back in 1993 that rescued reptiles were released here before this.

Donkeys fetch record prices due to labour shortage  MUMBAI, March 18, 2009: The economic meltdown may be the monkey on our back, but the donkey market is alive and kicking. A record number of donkeys - 2,000 to be precise - was sold on the opening day of the nine-day donkey bazaar in Ahmednagar district, and that too at record prices. "The response this year was the biggest ever. It was for the first time that prices ranged between Rs 7,000 and Rs 15,000 -nearly 50% higher than last year,'' a senior revenue official said.   The donkey bazaar,attracts traders from not only Maharashtra but also Gujarat and Rajasthan. It's also a major attraction for local villagers. But what organisers and revenue department officials got a kick out of was participation by leading builders and their agents. "Most donkeys were purchased by builders from neighbouring areas,'' the official said. The official attributed the unprecedented demand for donkeys to the acute shortage of power and labour.The official claimed the output of a donkey was equivalent to that of seven to ten human labourers.

Now demand for donkeys...

Petition to protect Okhla bird sanctuary  NEW DELHI, March 12, 2009: Area residents, bird-watchers and environmentalists have  together filed a petition with the Central Empowered Committee on Environment constituted by the Supreme Court to protect the Okhla Bird Park and Wildlife Sanctuary due to a construction project by the Uttar Pradesh government.   Home to over 400 species of birds and several thousand migratory birds, the Okhla Bird Sanctuary is an internationally recognized important bird area. It is situated at the point where the Yamuna river enters the state of Uttar Pradesh, leaving the capital. This portion of the barrage is under the control of the Uttar Pradesh irrigation department. Around 3.5 sqkm of the sanctuary fall in Gautam Budh Nagar district of Uttar Pradesh and have been protected since 1990, under the Wild Life (Protection) Act, 1972.  Source: The Times of India

Project Snow Leopard   The snow leopard is a very well adapted apex predator of its ecosystem, but destruction of its habitat, poaching for its beautiful fur coat and retaliatory killings by shepherds who lose their cattle to it are rapidly pushing it to the edge. Though the habitat of the snow leopard is spread over about two million sq. km in Central Asia and the Himalayan region, their total numbers worldwide are estimated to be only between 5000 and 7000 animals.    India is one of the important countries for the snow leopard and it is estimated that we have between 200 to 600 animals that are found in the five range states of Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Sikkim and Arunachal Pradesh. There have been a number of researchers and organisations that have been working in India to ensure the well-being of these threatened animals. Interesting work has been on to study its behaviour, to understand the major threats and importantly to engage with local communities to make them partners in snow leopard conservation efforts through environment education, ecotourism initiatives and methods to reduce livestock loss.    In January 2009, the Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF) announced the launching of Project Snow Leopard, an initiative for strengthening wildlife conservation in the Himalayan high altitude regions in general and for the `grey ghost' in particular. It will be treated on a par with other flagship programmes like the Project Tiger and Project Elephant and executed in collaboration with two of India's premier wildlife research organisations, the Dehradun based Wildlife Institute of India and Mysore based Nature Conservation Foundation.

India is one of the important countries for the snow leopard and it is estimated that we have between 200 to 600 animals that are found in the five range states of Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Sikkim and Arunachal Pradesh.

Tiger poaching in Uttarakhand    RAMNAGAR (Uttarakhand), January 31, 2009: Wildlife authorities in a joint operation with the State Police arrested five poachers and seized tiger skin and bones from their possession at Ramnagar in Uttarakhand.  "One tiger skin, tiger bones, ...cat, trap, which was used for poaching and also the weapons by which the tiger was killed have been recovered," said P C Arya, Sub-Divisional Officer of Ramnagar, Uttarakhand.   "We're investigating five persons and we are also gathering information of the involvement of four to five more persons," said P K Patro, Divisional Forest Officer, Ramnagar, Uttarakhand.    The tiger is facing the threat of extinction with early results from a 2007 census suggesting there could be as few as 1,500 tigers left in India, compared to a century ago when there were around 40,000.   The winged landlords of Rajasthan  Jaipur, January 4, 2009 (PTI):  The people in two villages of Rajasthan, Asop and Naadsar in Jodhpur have donated pieces of land in the names of pigeons. Bank accounts too are run in the name of pigeons. Pigeons in these villages with 472 'Bighas'  and a healthy bank balance of Rs 22 lakhs may well qualify to make it to the books of records.   "These pieces of land in government record are in the name of pigeons (Doli banam Kabutaran -means- land of pigeons). The land was donated years back for the sake of pigeons," Sitaram Choudhary, Patwari, a village government official told PTI. In Asop (around 90 KMs away from Jodhpur city), 360.4 Bigha lands in 20 pieces and in Naadsar (around 15 KMs away from Asop) 112 Bigha land in six pieces is in the name of pigeon.  The pigeons and the land looked after local committees.The amount is used for the feeding of pigeons in Asop, Naadsar and nearby villages. "Kabutaram (pigeons) committee which looks after the lands,gives it on lease for one year to farmers for agricultural purpose. Three shops are also there in the name of pigeon which are also generating rent," Nand Kishore Kasat, son of a former president of the committee says. PTI

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