Over 12 jumbos die in Mudumalai

DC | B. Ravichandran | 06th Apr 2013
Ooty: While more than a dozen wild jumbos were said to have died due to dehydration and shortage of fodder in the Mudumalai Tiger Reserve (MTR) in recent times, the greens here accuse the MTR administration of poor water management and lack of care for animal health, for the jumbos’ death.

These are not happy times for MTR as the dry weather has been prolonging since December. But, it appears that the MTR administration and chief wildlife warden (CWW) in the state failed to take up the challenge posed by the testing weather to protect the jumbos.

While the official sources in MTR put the jumbo toll around 12, in recent times, S. Jaya­chandran, joint secretary of Tamil Nadu Green Movement (TNGM) said more than 20 jumbos, including the two that died on Friday at the buffer zone, have died over the past three months. “Nobody denies that MTR has been experiencing drought. But, wildlife management can be enhanced. Though the state government and the chief minister show keen interest in wildlife conservation, it is the bureaucrats who lack commitment and mess up things and there is no transparency on animal deaths.”

Though officials in MTR attributed natural causes for the jumbos’ death, it is a fact that they died due to dehydration, lack of fodder and infections caused by contaminated water in slushy pools.

It is learnt that the administration does not have sufficient facilities to provide tanker water in all the vulnerable areas. The TNGM would seek the intervention of the judiciary if the forest officials in Chennai failed to act to set right things in MTR for healthy animal life.

Jayachandran said MTR should learn lessons from the adjacent Bandi­pur tiger reserve in Kar­na­taka where water management is good and the animals are taken care of.

As officials in MTR declined to talk to the media, citing instructions from the CWW, sources said the infighting and factions among the top officials and lack of planning were the reasons for the present situation.

A highly-placed forest department official told DC that the CWW would be instructed to look into the issue.

Source: http://www.deccanchronicle.com/130406/news-current-affairs/article/over-12-jumbos-die-mudumalai

Wildlife species skeletons seized from lab

Bengaluru: The sleuths of the forest mobile squad, headed by a Range Forest Officer (RFO), raided a laboratory on Hosur Main Road and recovered skeletons of wildlife species which were kept for research.

The team, led by RFO Thimmarayappa and including RFO K. Rangaswamy, DRFOs Ramanjaneyalu, M. Raghu and H.V. Manjunath along with a few wildlife wardens, raided the premises of Laboratory Traders near Chariot Hotel on Friday last and recovered skeletons of a sea horse and dry coral which are protected under Schedule 1 of the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972, and frogs which come under Schedule 4-A of the Act. The sleuths who enquired with the owner, also found three boxes of beetles, said an officer on the team. The lab owner, however, co-operated with the squad to search the entire laboratory and later recorded his statement.

The laboratory owner, Gill Roysoman (29), a resident of Kaveri Layout on Tavarekere Main Road, confessed to getting dead and alive wildlife species from Royal Biological Products, a supplier of biological materials, slides and species, located at Saidapet in Chennai. The lab owner, however, did not have any relevant documents or licence to store the wildlife species.

The lab owner was booked under Section 55 of the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972. The imprisonment may extend up to three years, a fine of `25,000 or both, the officer said.

It is yet to be ascertained for how long the laboratory has been functioning in the area and why the skeletons  were stored. The owner pleaded ignorance about the need for a licence to keep wildlife species. The Chennai supplier will also be questioned to ascertain if they possess any licence or related documents to supply wildlife species to laboratories, he said.

Source: http://www.deccanchronicle.com/121130/news-current-affairs/article/wildlife-species-skeletons-seized-lab

Many residents leave Valparai hill

Labourer Subramaniam from Thonimudi Estate whose son was eaten by a leopard.

Coimbatore: Over the last one week alone, four families of tea estate workers living and working in the tea estates that abound in the rolling, lush green hills of Valparai, in Coimbatore district, vacated their homes to settle down in the plains. Two more families from Mudis Estates, a few kms from Valparai town, are packing their belongings to relocate out of the scenic hill station known for its cool climate and breathtaking vistas.

Locked homes and fleeing families of Valparai are indicative of a disturbing trend. According to the census of 2011, the population of Valparai municipality, which includes 21 wards, was 70,771. The population during the 2001 census was 95,107, signifying an alarming dip. “If the trend continues, we will hardly have 50,000-odd residents in Valparai by the next census and our municipality might lose its status and be reverted back to a village panchayat,” says a municipality official on condition of anonymity.

Locals point out that this reversal in population began only a few years ago and attribute two factors to the dwindling numbers. “Wild animal population has significantly increased and the public fear that this land might be converted into a forest area following the declaration of the Anamalai Tiger Reserve a few years ago. Besides, the wages of casual labourers is approximately Rs 150, which is lesser than the wages earned by even a construction worker in the plains below,” says Mr Subramaniam (57), a resident of Thonimudi estate.

Mr Subramaniam, one of those few persons who has first-hand experience of the perils of Valparai. On January 10, 2010, he was playing with his grandson Mukesh (4) in the portico of his home at Third Division, Thonimudi estate, when a leopard snatched the child away from him. “When the leopard attacked, it was 5.30 pm and I was right there. The leopard grabbed my grandson by his neck and dragged him around 200 metres into the plantations where he is body was recovered,” Mr Subra­maniam recalls.

He still gets shivers when he thinks of the incident. “All  residents here are afraid to let their children play outside.” Over the past few years, at least six children have been killed in leopard attacks while an adult was killed by a wild bear recently. “Elephant and leopard attacks are common and quite frequent here,” says a forest official in Valparai.

According to forest range officer Mohammed Ali, there are at least 5-6 tigers in the Valparai region that approximately spans 22,000 acres. “As for leopards, there are plenty and have been breeding like wild cats out here,” says Mr Ali.

However, he points out that the number of animals has not increased of late. “It is just that more and more people have started coming out at night as many own two- and four-wheelers now and there is electricity everywhere. Hence, the attacks and animal sightings have increased,” he explains.

Wage differential drives TEA labourers Down to plains

While the increase in animal attacks and the threat of the region surrounding Valparai being declared as a forest reserve is apparent, municipality officials point out that one of the main causes for the migration was the wage limit of the casual labourers.

“Valparai is full of tea estates and a vast majority of our residents are estate workers or their progeny. Even now, an estate worker earns anywhere between Rs 145 and Rs 160 for a full day’s work while their contemporaries in the plains earn anywhere between Rs 300 and Rs 500 even doing construction work,” says V. Sathyavani Muthu, chairman of the Valparai municipality.

This wage difference between estate labour and other work is the main driving force behind the migrations, she says. “Also, most youngsters here are now educated and do no prefer estate labour. Instead, they find jobs and settle down in the plains causing the decline in population at Valparai,” she said.

The municipality officials lament that there is not much they could do to arrest the declining population. “Apart from the town centre that stretches approximately 1.5km, all the remaining lands here have either been leased out to the tea estate owners or belong to the forest department. We are unable to take up any developmental activity or bring about new industry,” said a senior municipality official.

He pointed out that the Government Arts Coll­ege that had recently come up had played a big role in retaining the youngsters from moving out for higher studies. “Employment needs to be generated for locals to revive the population here,” says the official.

But wilderness lovers and nature buffs feel happy that while there as been a general worry of overcrowding across the globe, at least isolated spots like Valparai are returning to the wild.

Source: http://www.deccanchronicle.com/130217/news-current-affairs/article/many-residents-leave-valparai-hill

1,000 snakes released into Palar

Chennai: Panic gripped the villagers of Ayambakkam, near mad­ura­nthakam in Kanche­epuram district on Satu­rday as the morning walkers and farmers were greeted by hundreds of snakes that were released by some unknown people in the area the previous night.

The villagers claimed that there were more than 100 snakes released into Palar river basin and suspect that the miscreant had come in a Pondicherry-registered bolero car. “What we saw was a large number of snakes near the river bank, an unusual sight and a twenty year old was bitten”, said T.S. Bhaskar, Ayambakkam villaghe panchayat president, who rus­hed to the place after the villagers ran helter skelter. The scared villagers on seeing the reptiles started killing them and at least half a dozen reptiles were found dead. Cobra, rat snake and kraits were there and we alerted the forest department, added the local body president.

When contacted Tiru­porur forest ranger Siva­ram confirmed the incident. Based on the information forest guards were deployed to the scene and Irulas were also brought to catch the snakes. More than twenty snakes were caught.  Preliminary investigations have confirmed that the snakes were released on purpose and a few villagers noticed a bolero car with Pondic­herry registration station­ed near the river bank the previous night. The rescued reptiles have been sent to for herpetology at the Madras Crocodile bank at ECR. The issue has been taken to the higher officials who will co ordinate with the Pondicherry forest depa­rt­ment, he said.

Source: http://www.deccanchronicle.com/130210/news-current-affairs/article/1000-snakes-released-palar

Winged wonders spotted in Kaiga skies

DC | Gururaj paniyadi

Bird watchers observing the winged beauties near Kaiga.

Karwar: Twenty species of birds which were not seen earlier in this part of the Western Ghats have been spotted near Kaiga by bird watchers and birding enthusiasts.

This observation was made during the recently held ‘Kaiga Bird Marathon- 2013.’ Kaiga Generating Station (KGS) has been organizing “Kaiga Bird Marathon,” an annual birding event since 2011 under the aegis of the Nuclear Power Corporation of India Limited with the aim of identifying bird species around Kaiga Generating Stations and Kaiga town.

One hundred and twenty four bird watchers including Professional Birders from NKBN (North Karnataka Birders Network) lead by President Prof Samad Kottur and students from Forestry College, Sirsi took part in the “Kaiga Bird Marathon-2013” organised last week.

The area in and around Kaiga was divided into six transects. Each team had to travel through their allotted transect of about 6-7 km and record all sightings of aquatic, wetland, grassland, raptor and land birds. A total distance of about 42 kms was covered during the event around Kaiga.

This year’s bird marathon alone identified 162 species of birds of which 20 species are those not spotted so far in this part of Western Ghats. “These 20 species might have been living in this forest earlier too. They were not seen during the last two Marathons but were spotted this year,” Prof. Samad told Deccan Chronicle.

The 20 new varieties  include Nilgiri Flowerpecker, Crested Goshawk, Rufous-bellied Eagle, Brown Fish Owl, Blyth's Starling, Crested Treeswift, Clamorous Reed Warbler, Peregrine Falcon, Besra and Oriental Honey Buzzard.

Source: http://www.deccanchronicle.com/130123/news-current-affairs/article/winged-wonders-spotted-kaiga-skies

Wildlife Memoirs: Traffic or Tigers? Versus in Deccan Chronicle

Let forest officials escort vehicles at night

I.C.Balakrishnan, MLA, Sulthan Bathery, Kerala

It has been four years since night traffic was banned in Bandipur. Initially, Karnataka agreed to lift the bank during the talks with Kerala government, but then some environmentalists went to court and had the ban enforced again. But it is affecting tourism as people have trouble planning their schedules to avoid going through Bandipur at night. Many, who want to start their journey to Bandipur Friday night and return Monday morning, cannot do so on account of the ban. Students and businessmen from areas on the Karnataka-Kerala border, who study or do business in Bengaluru are also inconvenienced as they need to plan their trips a day in advance now. 

The alternate route suggested through Gundalpet, Hunsur, Kutta and Mananthavadi, is a lot longer and unpleasant as the roads are not in good condition. The government should instead increase the number of forest officials and use them to escort convoys of vehicles through the forest at night.

There have been no proper studies to support the ban on night traffic through Bandipur. In fact, when it was allowed, there were only a few cases of animal road-kills. The issue needs to be studied in depth by a combined team of Kerala and Karnataka.

Wild animals do not understand convoy system

Sanjay Gubbi

The welcome benefits of economic development have come with serious costs to wildlife through loss and fragmentation of habitats, especially for rare and endangered animals. The backbone of country’s infrastructure growth has necessitated the expansion of road network. Coupled with high speed vehicles, roads have turned out to be an important linear fragmentation threat to wildlife. Mortality due to speeding vehicles and acting as barriers for animal movement are the two important impacts of highways.

The closure of highways for night traffic through Bandipur Tiger Reserve is one vital step to minimise the impacts of highways on tigers and other species. An alternate road that is 35 km longer acts as a mode of transport for night travel and the state has recently taken up repairs of this road. This rare 48 crore investment for infrastructure to save tigers, is a unique highly laudable gesture.

The state of Kerala has proposed alternatives such as allowing vehicles in convoy system under close supervision, building flyover and barriers along the highways. Wild animals clearly do not understand convoy system and their movements are based on their biological and ecological needs. Any supervision cannot dictate the movement patterns of wild animals. The other civil engineering solutions are neither economically or ecologically viable.  A flyover through Bandipur would cost a horrendous 4,000 crore not to forget the enormous disturbance during the construction phase, and barriers such as walls will wholly stop the movement of wildlife.

As the country moves forward with its ambition of 8% economic growth, more land is taken for the rapid expansion of its infrastructure. Places like Bandipur are one of the last strongholds for tigers and we need to support alternatives rather than continue to pursue ecologically destructive options that are largely driven by deceitful economic interests.

Source: Wildlife Memoirs: Traffic or Tigers? Versus in Deccan Chronicle

Trekkers provoke bees, get stung

Bengaluru: Throwing a stone at a bee hive had painful consequences for a group of trekkers from Bengaluru, six of whom are from Banaswadi in city, after they became the target of a severe bee attack in Kolar district on Sunday.

The incident occurred atop Bheemana Garadi in Malur after the group of eight trekkers reached the hilltop. Two of the trekkers were critically injured in the bee attack and are currently being treated at Jalappsa Hospital in Bangarapet.

It all began when the group started their trek up the Tekal hill in Kolar district at 10 am on Sunday. After they reached the top, some of the group members took a breather while one of them threw a stone at a bee hive. The disturbed bees poured out in large numbers and attacked them, inflicting innumerable stings.

Shocked at the unexpected onslaught, the group scattered in different directions and some ran into the forest to escape. But Ravi and Girish who could not flee, bore the brunt of the stings and are fighting for their lives now, police said.

The police learned about the bee attack in the afternoon and rushed to the hill station accompanied by about 30 locals. They had to use fogging devices to control the aggressive bees. After almost two-and-a-half hours, the cops managed to rescue the trekkers. Three of the eight escaped injuries while five were seriously injured.

“Even though there were 10 policemen, aided by 30 locals, we found it difficult to get them out from the swarm of bees since they were attacking us too,” the Tekal police said.

Tekal is located 60 km from Bengaluru and is a popular trekking destination. Many tourists visit the picturesque Tekal hills every year and this was the first such incident reported till now. Tekal is open to all trekkers as it is on gomala land.

Source: http://www.deccanchronicle.com/130114/news-current-affairs/article/trekkers-provoke-bees-get-stung

Khurshid sojourn in jumbo corridor resort irks greens

B. RAVICHANDRAN | DC

Ooty: It looks like the dawn of 2013 may not have been on a happy note for Union external affairs minister Salman Khurshid with greens here venting their anger against him for choosing to stay in a private tourist resort said to be declared illegal and directed to be closed down by the Madras high court as it is located in the elephant corridor.

K. Mohan Raj, coordinator of the Tamil Nadu Green Movement (TNGM), said that Khurshid, on a visit to the Nilgiris since Monday, had stayed in a private tourist resort in Bokkapuram, adjoining the Mudumalai Tiger Reserve (MTR), though the state government had allotted a VIP guesthouse at Mudumalai Tiger Reserve for him, as a protocol.

But the minister chose to stay in the tourist resort which has been declared illegal and directed to be shut by the high court.

His relatives reportedly own tourist resorts in Sigur plateau in the Nilgiris, which has been notified as elephant corridor based on the orders of the Madras high court. The matter is pending now before the Supreme Court, he added.

“We find this to be an unfortunate development and extremely discouraging to see the Union minister patronising a disputed resort at a controversial location. These resorts dismember a vital corridor that connects Eastern and Western Ghats’ elephant population. Had the minister opted to stay in the MTR guesthouse, he would have sent a right and encouraging signal,” he added.

Officials at Mudumalai Tiger Reserve were tight-lipped and only said the minister visited the jungles on Monday afternoon and left for Bokkapuram. However, police sources said the minister was scheduled to stay in the jungle guesthouse in the Upper Kargudi area in Mudumalai Tiger Reserve but chose to move to the Bokkapuram private resort.

The minister would leave the Nilgiris on Wednesday, the police said.

Source: http://www.deccanchronicle.com/130102/news-current-affairs/article/khurshid-sojourn-jumbo-corridor-resort-irks-greens