My thoughts on the cheetah reintroduction

Let sleeping cats lie

……..-

The obituary of the cheetah—that lithe, beautiful cat known for its remarkable burst of speed—was written in 1947. Though its demise was authored by a host of causes, the last damning bullets were fired by the Maharaja of the erstwhile state of Korea in Madhya Pradesh. When motoring through the forest at night he came across, and killed, three males, “in perfect condition”. This was the last record of the animal in India, the cheetah would now only be found in the annals of history.

History, it appears, will be rewritten.

And the cheetah will be brought back to India. The first, instinctive reaction is sheer joy. The idea is heady—The Return of the Cheetah. Back from Neverland. Extinction is not forever. I could picture it in my mind’s eye—the beautiful ash-gold cat bounding in powerful rapidity over golden grasslands…closing in on its prey…

Which is about the moment the dream sours…where are the verdant grasslands where the cheetah will live, hunt, mate, breed—the wilds where we plan to reintroduce the cheetahs?

But before we get back to this issue a quick overview: “In the next few months,” according to the Minister of Environment and Forests, Jairam Ramesh, “India hopes to be in a position to re-introduce the cheetah in captivity and, sooner rather than later, into the wild as well.”

This is not the first time that India has considered bringing the cheetah back-the idea has been bandied about for years, since around the time we lost the cat. Initially, the plan was to get them from Iran where the last of the Asiatic cheetahs survive. But Iran dashed India’s hopes of importing a breeding pair—with their cheetahs numbering barely 25, they were simply not willing to take the risk of shipping out two of them to what was a highly ambitious—and admittedly iffy venture. They even declined a sample of tissue to use in a cloning experiment that was proposed to be done by the Hyderabad-based Centre for Cellular & Molecular Biology. That plan had its share of problems—cloning is far from a perfect science, often involving several trials before there is a successful birth. And we have simply not done even basic scientific research on the cat.

All along the question that has plagued the prodigal’s return is the where? Does India, with its booming population, expanding agriculture and race for development have space for another big cat?

Way back in 1960, pioneer conservationist, member of Indian Board for Wildlife and author M Krishnan had asked, “But where are the suitable areas?” and went on to add that, “I do not think the trouble and expense of getting a few cheetahs for liberation into an Indian sanctuary is justified –such an experiment, without such a established territory can only fail. This sentiment was echoed by H S Panwar and Dr Alan Rodgers when preparing India’s Wildlife Protected Area Network, who wrote that there “are no suitable areas to reintroduce cheetah into a "wild" situation in this (semi-arid) zone or elsewhere in India.” A source in the Ministry of Environment and Forests points out that we simply do not have grasslands bigger than 40 sq km.

However, proponents of the project maintain that there are enough potential grassland and scrub forests—and that the cheetah will adjust to its habitat, and that getting the predatpor back will serve to protect crucial grassland habitat. It may well be remembered here that the other feline occupant of the scrub forest, the critically endangered Asiatic Lion is barely clinging on to some 1,400 sq km of habitat. All our big cat areas are man-animal conflict zones. Lack of habitat, and fragmented habitat pushes tigers, leopards and lions into human inhabited areas—leading to bitter, and fatal conflict. Tiger kills livestock-or man, and is killed in retaliation.

Who says the fate of the cheetah will be any different, when it eventually—and hopefully—roams free?

In Namibia, from where we propose to buy our cheetah, conflict, due to livestock loss, is a major issue—and farmers frequently shoot the offending predator.

There is the question of prey base. Though some areas have a fair population of blackbucks, its preferred diet, these are now mainly in agricultural fields (with their habitats encroached), and crop depredation is already a major issue of contention.

It is prudent to remember too that the conditions that made the cheetah extinct in the country have only accentuated. The pressures on its habitat have increased manifold. During the time of independence, the zero hour for cheetah, India’s population was barely 30 crore, today it is over 1.20 billion. Livestock has increased fourfold to nearly 500 hundred million, since independence. Of course, we won’t capture the ‘hunting leopard’, for royal sport—as done in the past; but there is nothing to stop poaching for the lucrative skin trade.

There are other issues. Should we be importing African cheetahs—a different subspecies (Acinonyx jubatus) than the one that lived, and died, in India—the Asiatic Cheetah (Acinonyx jubatus venaticus)?

Frankly, our track record is nothing to be proud of. Our national animal, the tiger is in dire straits today, with an all time low population of about 1,100. Sixteen tiger reserves—our most sacrosanct protected areas are in deep trouble, with none or negligible numbers of cats.

How then do we justify a fancy multi-million dollar project to bring another big cat into a fraught, tattered kingdom? Is the very fact that there is big money involved encouraging organisations and the government to jump on the bandwagon? Good, long term planning is essential, andcritical questions of habitat, prey-base, potential conflicts must be considered lest we make a mess, as currently with tigers. When we sit in September, 2009 to study the feasibility of the reintroduction, one hopes that the voice of caution will be heard. Let’s first ensure the protection and survival, of our existing big cats, before we attempt to bring the dead to life. Let’s first ensure that we can give the cheetah a safe home so that it flourishes in the wild, and not a second extinction.

this is not my story...but i was thrilled to know--and touched that Chandan Mitra told me this--that much of the arguements and the points put forth were based on reports i had done..so glad...
this is what Dr Mitra wrote to me:

Just to tell you we had an excellent debate in the Rajya Sabha today
on the tiger. Although unprepared, I spoke extensively basing myself
mainly on your recent reports in The Pioneer. Minister replied very
well and promised to address the issues. Details of the debate should
be up on the RS website in a day or two. You may like to go through.

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Tiger’s anguished roar finally heard in Parliament

Pioneer News Service | New Delhi

The crying need for tiger conservation echoed in the Rajya Sabha on Tuesday, with the Government saying a proposal was under consideration to set up special courts to fast-track trials against poachers. It also laid emphasis on involving forest dwellers in protecting the big cats.

During discussion on a calling attention motion, the suggestion to create a special tribunal was mooted by nominated member Chandan Mitra, who said the courts were sluggish to resolve cases against poachers. “Many major poachers have been arrested but it did not deter others. Sansar Chand was one of the biggest poachers and responsible for the decimation of Sariska. He was arrested only when Sariska lost all its tigers. Cases are still going on against him,” Mitra said.

He said the Government should consider setting up separate fast-track courts for hearing cases on poaching and provide effective communication equipments to forest guards.

In response, Minister of State (independent charge) for Environment and Forests Jairam Ramesh said a proposal for creating a green tribunal was before the Union Cabinet. “The Environment Ministry has moved the Cabinet for setting up a green tribunal for speedy disposal of wildlife-related cases. The Government will amend the existing law, if required, for stricter punishment against poaching,” he said responding to the motion moved by BJP member Rajiv Pratap Rudy.

Admitting that there was no reliable data on the number of tigers in the country, the Minister said there was rampant killing of the “national animal” due to which the big cats have become extinct in Sariska and Panna reserves. “All previous methods of counting tigers were faulty, but we have now found a new method which can be counted upon,” Ramesh said.

He agreed with Rudy’s observation that tiger killing was rampant in India and smuggling of tiger skin was a flourishing trade, next only to narcotics traffic. The Minister especially asked Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh, where Sariska and Panna reserves are located, to take stern action against poachers.

“Poachers have been arrested in Panna, but no action has been taken against them. I request the Madhya Pradesh Government to prosecute them so that Panna can be a test case for other reserves where tiger population is dwindling,” he said.

He also asked the Bihar Government to at least depute a director in the Valmiki Tiger Reserve to protect the national animal. However, he added that State Governments could not be left alone to conserve the tiger population. Important personalities representing various sectors should be given this responsibility, he said.

The Centre has initiated a programme to involve local communities in protecting tiger population and the first project, which started in Corbett Park in Uttarakhand, will be replicated in other reserves if successful, he said.

Ramesh was hopeful that the project will be completed in the next 5-6 months, in which the local ‘Van Gujjar’ tribes will be recruited as para-police force. Of the 37 tiger reserves, 16 are in danger zone and if steps are not taken now, the tiger population would be extinct there, Ramesh warned. He also said that a Tiger Protection Force would be created and a buffer zone would be made outside the reserve areas and Rs 10 lakh would be given to all those who would be replaced from their original home in that zone.

Mitra asked the Minister for progress on the proposal to create a co-reserve in forests for tigers. “There was a plan for the critical tiger habitat. What is the progress on that?” he asked. He also emphasised the need to formulate a strategy on how to tackle tigers if they left their natural habitat. He cautioned that when they stray out of their reserves, they are most of the time killed by people.

“We had this big incident in Uttar Pradesh where the tiger strolled out of Dudhwa, moved around in Faizabad and Barabanki and, unfortunately, was finally eliminated because it was threatening the population,” he cited.

Mitra also asked for the Government opinion on in situ breeding as it contained problems and also pointed to increasing tourist traffic and VIP movements in tiger reserves. “In Kanha, during a VIP visit, the park director took out his jeep for a night safari and knocked down and killed a tiger cub,” he said, asking whether the director was punished for his act. “If those entrusted with the responsibility of protecting the tiger indulge in this kind of activity, how can you expect the tiger to survive?” he asked.

Responding to a member’s suggestion, the Minister ruled out emulating the US or Chinese models in conservation of tigers. The Centre has set up a wildlife crime control bureau in the Environment Ministry to check poaching, he added.

Rudy had in the beginning requested the Minister to involve interested people from all walks of life in wildlife protection. “There is the need to create a motivational force … to start a mass campaign for creating awareness among the people to save tigers to save civilisation,” he said. Stressing that the tigers are killed in India and sent to China via Nepal, the BJP member apprehended that if the situation continued, there would be no tigers even in the zoo to show the children.

Karan Singh (Congress), who was associated with the inception of Project Tiger in 1973, said that though the project was a success initially and the tiger population reached 4,000 in the 1980s, it gradually started failing due to the lack of political will. “Even though more than 3,000 tigers have been killed in the country, not a single poacher has been convicted. There is massive connivance between poachers and forest officials. Unless there is no political will, no tiger can be saved,” he said.

Singh also narrated how the National Animal was changed from lion to tiger.

“When I joined Mrs Gandhi’s Cabinet in 1967, she asked me to become the chairman of the Indian Board for Wildlife. During our first meeting, I discovered to my surprise that our National Animal was the lion. Now, the lion is found only in one part of Western India, whereas the tiger is found all the way from Uttarakhand to Kerala and from the Sunderbans to Rajasthan,” he said.

“So, in that Board for Wildlife, we passed a resolution requesting the Government to change the National Animal from lion to tiger and the decision was taken by the Cabinet in 1977. That is how the tiger became the National Animal,” he added.

He said that after the change, ‘Project Tiger’ was launched by him in Corbett National Park in 1973 with HS Shankla, “an excellent officer from Rajasthan”, as its first director.

Congress member Kapila Vatsyayan, CPI(M) member Moinul Hassan, RC Khuntia (Cong), Sharad Joshi (SBP), Kanjibhai Patel (BJP), Tiruchi Siva (DMK) and Najma Heptulla (BJP) also participated in the discussion

Witness to extinction

i hope i never get the occasion to write such a book, but i wish that i have the courage and the senstivity to do so...


Witness to Extinction: How We Failed to Save the Yangtze River Dolphin
Oxford University Press
By Samuel Turvey


‘So long and thanks for all the fish’ is the cryptic message by the dolphins as they depart planet earth in a book of the same name by Douglas Adams, who, incidentally, also wrote about the doomed fate of the Yangtze river dolphin in his book Last Chance to See.
What, I wondered, would the last Yangtze river dolphin have said as he bid farewell to the earth: So long…and thanks for nothing.
After all, what would the dolphin have to be thankful for?
That we allowed the tragedy, nay, the travesty of letting it, and the whole mammalian family, the Lipotidae—on this planet for over two million years to go extinct?
That we stood by silently, indifferent to its plight and imminent extinction?
That we reduced its habitat to a toxic, cacophonous superhighway? That, even in its last years, we thrust on it continual indignity, and a horrifying end--hit by boats, trapped in nets, mangled in fishermen’s murderous hooks, blown by dynamite?
Till none remained.
This to a dolphin, the most beloved among all wild creatures, an animal we claim to love, and hold sacred. The baiji is, sorry was, after all the reincarnation of a beautiful princess, a symbol of peace and prosperity, and was known as the Goddess of the Yangtze.
Did I say indifferent? My apologies, that’s way too kind. It would perhaps be more apt to say that we exploited the doomed fate of the Yangtze river dolphin. We allowed it to die. We knew it’s precarious situation for years. As the author says it was “atleast the subject of ineffectual debate and hot air for thirty years.” There were enough conferences and meetings, over and again, enough fund for safe support in surveys and workshops, but so little determination and commitment to make the changes, to take the steps so vital to save the dolphin.
We failed.
And the author minces no words to point at our collective failures.
Who is to blame? The Chinese government, which simply “had no determination to make things happen.” To rise up to the challenge that involves sacrifices, compromises and tough decisions.
But we cannot rest easy by simply pointing the accusatory finger at China. The international community failed to meet this conservation challange. All the big-fancy organisations—even those which professed to save the dolphin as part of its programmes. Funders who did not want to donate to “a lost cause.” Imminent experts and organizations who refused to ascribe to reality but stuck to impractical ideologies. So, we waited till it was too late. Then, the baiji became too high risk a preposition, it would simply reflect too badly on the organsation when the battle was lost. The politics of extinction won the day—the dolphin lost, and went the way of the dodo.
The book that chronicles this sad saga of extinction and our shameful failures stays with you much after the last chapter is over. Sample this: All that’s left on stage are the commemorative baiji statues. As for the baiji itself…it looks like it is the only thing not made in China anymore. (a caustic commentary on the unfortunate side-effects of China’s Great Leap forward, and the race to economic supremacy). Poor old Baiji. You deserved better.”
Yes it certainly did.
As for the culprits—us, Homo sapiens—the horror and the shame and the guilt…how does one live with it?
We not only paved the way for the speedy, undignified extinction of the dolphin—we actually made a circus of it, played out in glitzy press meets, meaningless conferences.
The clock cannot be turned back, the baiji is lost forever, but says Turvey, let its epitaph be that it may help other species to be saved from the manifold mistakes that were made time and again in this pathetic tale.
And therein lies the value of the book. Undoubtedly, Witness to Extinction is a beautifully crafted poignant tale of the doomed dolphin; that makes no apologies and minces no words, spares no feelings. It is tale that needed to be said, a catastrophe that had to be recorded and hats off to the author to have done the job. It certainly wouldn’t have been easy, and hardly self-serving—unlike the attempts-or otherwise-to ‘save’ the baiji.
This isn’t first time we have lost a species to our apathy, and self-serving games. And I fear, it isn’t the last time, either. It all sounds horribly familiar—huge funds in defunct, apathetic hands, games played for the benefit of the gallery. We continue the macabre dance of death, only the central player, the species that occupies centre stage may be different.
There is a lesson in the book for all of us, citizens of Planet Earth, whether we connected to conservation or not.
Read the book—so that such a tragedy is never repeated again.