PROTECTED AREA UPDATE News and Information from protected areas in India and South Asia Vol. XIV No. 5 October 2008 (No. 75) LIST OF CONTENTS Jharkhand 8 EDITORIAL 2 DNA fingerprinting to help decide number of tigers Citizen Science for Conservation in Palamau TR NEWS FROM INDIAN STATES State to adopt Karnataka model for tourism Andhra Pradesh 3 promotion in wildlife areas, PAs Area of Kolleru WLS to be reduced No experts to radio-collar Dalma elephants Fears over impact of irrigation project on wildlife Rs Five Lakh Central support for Dalma Bachao in Nagarjunsagar Srisailam TR Abhiyan Arunachal Pradesh 4 Karnataka 10 Conservation Initiative for high altitude wetlands Permission granted for electricfication; erection of in state poles inside Nagarhole NP Assam 4 Garbage dumping near Bannerghata NP Flood parts of KNP; anti-erosion project on the Flood waters threaten Ranganathittu cards Kerala 11 No expansion of NH-37 running through Spurt in animal deaths in Periyar TR; disease, Kaziranga NP pollution of river could be reasons Digital bank for Deepor Beel Madhya Pradesh 11 Rhinos relocated from Pobitara to Manas Land of the Karera Great Indian Bustard Sanctuary ‘straying’ regularly to be sold off Gibbon Conservation Day observed in Jorhat Diamond mining to restart inside Panna TR Workshop on Primate Census Techniques at Gaur spotted near Bandavgarh NP Gibbon WLS Maharashtra 12 Delhi 7 Tiger attacks continue around Tadoba Andhari TR; Wild animals from airport being relocated to six more killed since March 2008 Asola Bhatti WLS Rs 35-lakh plan to end human-tiger conflict in Goa 7 Tadoba Andhari TR Landslide blocks road in Molem WLS Villagers from Pench, Tadoba Andhari and Melghat Gujarat 7 TRs denounce relocation moves Chharidhandh declared a conservation reserve Meghalaya 13 Haryana 7 ‘Caution’ signboards help save elephants in the Elephant rehab and research centre to come up Garo Hills Elephant Reserve near Kalesar WLS Orissa 14 Jammu & Kashmir 8 Crocodiles to protect Bhitarkanika Wildlife training programme in Dachigam NP Rajasthan 14 Indian ‘cold desert’ to be on world biosphere Good rainfall and Planning Commission bring good reserve map news for Keoladeo NP Rs. 2.90 crores for wildlife conservation from Satellites tracking tigers introduced to Sariska Mughal Road Project Sikkim 15 Panang hydel project opposed over fears of impact on people and Khanchendzonga NP Tamil Nadu 16 Rs. 37 cr. sought for Anaimalai Tiger Reserve EDITORIAL Uttarakhand 16 Special train to connect Delhi and Rajaji NP Tigers migrating from Rajaji’s western section Elephant overpass at Rajaji park Citizen Science for Conservation Officers shifted from Corbett NP Increased tourism threat to Corbett TR One of the biggest concerns about scientific West Bengal 18 research over the years has been its Pesticide use in tea estates suspected cause of ‘inaccessibility to common people’ and often, the elephant deaths in Mahananda WLS ivory tower disposition of the scientific Leopard killed by train dead in North Bengal community itself. Debates over the lack of NATIONAL NEWS FROM INDIA 19 accountability in scientific establishments and MigrantWatch enters 2 nd year their general unwillingness to engage with the Regulatory mechanism for wetlands masses have been common. Admittedly, all MoEF committee for Conservation and scientific endeavours don’t lend themselves to Community Reserves and Community easy explanations, but that does not mean that Conserved Areas none do. Drugs firms warned against selling diclofenac A good example of the latter is National peafowl count on the anvil MigrantWatch, a citizen science programme for SOUTH ASIA 21 bird migration that has now entered its second Workshop held on the ‘Himalayan Wetlands year. Over 500 amateurs, serious researchers and Initiative’ weekend enthusiasts from across the length and Afghanistan Foreigners threaten Afghan snow leopards breadth of the country are already part of the UPCOMING 22 program that seeks to document, understand and Lake 2008: Symposium on Conservation and analyse the phenomenon of bird migration to and Management of River and Lake Ecosystem from this country. Bird studies in fact easily lend International Marine Conservation Congress themselves to initiatives of this kind, and such OPPURTUNITIES 23 efforts have shown their worth in different Narendra Babu Ecological Research Initiative countries around the world, particularly in the Grant West. Even in India some of the most significant Convenor – The Academy of Conservation contributions towards understanding birds have Science and Sustainability Studies come from the enthusiastic amateur. What is WTI looking for Trainers for its Van Rakshak significant this time is that the program is well division thought out and structured. That the organizers Protected Area Update are now expanding its scope significantly is Vol. XIV, No. 5, October 2008 (No. 75) perhaps proof that it has been enthusiastically Editor: Pankaj Sekhsaria received so far. Rest assured, we could be getting Editorial Assistance: Wrutuja Pardeshi some exciting results. Illustrations: Madhuvanti Anantharajan What is further promising is that Produced by: Kalpavriksh MigrantWatch is not an isolated effort of its kind. Ideas, comments, news and information may please There are a few more such endeavors, though be sent to the editorial address: perhaps more low key. One of them in Project KALPAVRIKSH , Apartment 5, Shri Dutta Krupa, 908 PteroCount, a South Asian Bat Monitoring Deccan Gymkhana, Pune 411004, Maharashtra, Project that seeks to form a wide network of India. Tel/Fax: 020 – 25654239. Email : [email protected] volunteers to create a comprehensive database of Website: www.kalpavriksh.org the roosting sites of the Indian Flying Fox. Another one that has yielded some Production of PA Update 75 has been supported noteworthy results is a little initiative tucked by Foundation for Ecological Security (FES), away in Meghalaya in the North Eastern corner of Anand. the country. This is a project of the Samrakshan Trust to involve local people in monitoring Protected Area Update Vol XIV, No. 5 2 October 2008 (No. 75) elephant movement in the South Garo Hills, Wildlife (NBWL) and the Central Empowered which is part of the Garo Hills Elephant Committee of the Supreme Court to reduce the Reserve. It is considered to be one of the most area of the Kolleru Wildlife Sanctuary (KWS) significant elephant bearing areas in the from the present 84,000 acres to about 30,000 country but little is known of elephant acres. The proposal is to change the boundary of behaviour here. In a situation where the the sanctuary from the +5 feet contour to the +3 landscape is large, where human and financial contour. The move comes in light of the recent resources are seriously limited, and the area ‘Mee Kosum’ yatra of the former Chief Minister, extremely difficult to access, it makes perfect Mr. Chandrababu Naidu and his promise that the sense to involve the local community. The area of the sanctuary would be reduced if his elephant monitoring project here has done just party, the Telugu Desam (TD), was returned to that. For about three years now, a network of power in the upcoming state elections. local individuals situated in remote and It has been argued that the suggested dispersed villages has been trained to collect denotification would benefit the livelihood data on elephant presence and movement in a prospects of at least three lakh farmers, as simple and structured manner. The data has just presently nearly 15,000 acres of ‘zeroythi’ patta been put together and it has created for the first land had been included within the boundaries of time a good overview picture of the elephants the sanctuary. The resolution to reduce the area here; including aspects like herd size and the was initiated in the assembly by the ruling general direction and period of their Congress Party to prevent their political rivals movements. Additionally, the study has from gaining mileage from the statements made provided some important insights into other by Mr. Naidu. dimensions like crop raiding by the elephants. The issue is linked to the 1999 It is, perhaps the first crucial step in Government Order (GO) 120 for preventing understanding and perhaps solving the misuse of the lake bed. Ironically, the order had escalating problem of human-elephant conflict, been issued when the Telugu Desam was in and for ensuring a better future for both, the power, but had not been implemented for various local communities and the elephant. reasons. Large scale removal of encroachments These examples provide the proof that like the illegal fish tanks was finally undertaken science need not be distant, that it can be made in 2006. (see PA Updates Vol XII, No. 4, and meaningful with and for people and it can still Nos. 55 & 49). be just as exciting. Needless to say, the There was considerable opposition to the involvement of the local communities should removal of the encroachments. The latest not be restricted to only those situations where developments are linked to the continued the going is tough or where getting data is demands for reduction of the sanctuary area difficult. We must recognize also that is this is because of the impediments to agriculture and only a start, a good one and hopefully we’ll be other economic activities. The denotification now seeing a lot more of such citizen science needs to be approved by the Central Government initiatives for conservation in the days to come. and the Supreme Court. The Communist Party of India (CPI) has meanwhile said that they would oppose the move to change the boundaries as this was being done NEWS FROM INDIAN STATES to woo the fish tank lobbies. Source: ‘Unanimity on reduction of Kolleru ANDHRA PRADESH Wildlife Sanctuary boundary’, The Hindu , 05/09/08. Area of Kolleru WLS to be reduced ‘CPI to fight against Kolleru move’, The Times of India, 07/09/08.