What
USED to be the second greatest place to hunt next to Africa may be opening hunting again!!!
Punjab may allow hunting of blue bull, wild boar Claims their population needs to be culled
Aditi Tandon
Tribune News Service
Chandigarh, August 19
The Punjab Wildlife Department is in the process of finalizing a proposal to permit hunting of blue bulls and wild boars in the state. It claims the population of the two animals is in excess of the required number and therefore needs to be culled in the interest of the farming community.
The move is however not backed by a scientific survey as to the number of these animals. In might thus be unable to scientifically determine the numbers that need to be culled. It is a smokescreen for legalizing hunting in a state where a large number of animal species are already endangered, says Dr Sandeep Jain, a wildlife conservationist and head, People for Animals, Ludhiana.
According to the plan for proposed culling, Punjab is likely to authorize SDMs to issue permits to hunters identified by panchayats of villages where the crop is being affected. The Chief Wildlife Warden, Punjab, when contacted, said, We are still considering the proposal of issuing shooting permits. We may also provide compensation to the farmers. Moreover, Punjab will not be the first state to allow culling. UP, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan have standing orders on shooting of blue bulls. We will determine the exact number that needs to be killed. Recently, we had asked our filed staff to conduct a census. We have found that the blue bulls are in excess in Mansa, Muktsar, patiala, sangrur, bathinda districts.
As per the official estimates, there are about 7,000 blue bulls in Punjab. Their number needs to be culled in the interest of economic activity. However, conservationists feel that this figure is inflated. Many Wildlife experts favour compensation schemes for farmers, rather than culling by shooting. They feel that in the absence of a proper census, it would be difficult to determine the number of animals to be killed. Also there are fears that if shooting permits are issued to individuals, it would be difficult to ascertain that the same is used to kill the animal for which it has been issued.
Says Lt-Gen baljit sangh, who has been following this issue for long now, When there is no census how will they determine how many need to be killed ? Also, how will they maintain the required male-female ratio ? Issuing permits to all and sundry would open the floodgates for hunting.
The Chief Wildlife Warden, however, allays these fears, saying that the laws would be very strict. The killed animal will be handed over to the Wildlife Department. Our staff will check that rules are not flouted. Sources in the Wildlife Department meanwhile say the Department lacks the infrastructure required to ensure such things. It also does not have enough vehicles.
Hunting was banned by an Act of Parliament in 1991. Only certain animals could be hunted after a provincial government followed some procedures to allow the same once they become excess in number and caused damage to crops. Later, some states allowed shooting of animals to save farmlands.
And for those that don't know what a blue bull is heres the rundown. Blue bulls, despite their constant conflict with villagers across almost every part of India, are still present in large numbers. Even though they might be quite commonly seen, a good size male presents quite an awesome picture. They can grow upto a height of 130 - 140 cms at the shoulders and can weigh the same as a decent size horse. They have a life expectancy of 20 -30 years, most of which they prefer to spend in open jungles and scrubby grasslands. They tend to keep away from dense jungles to avoid the obvious danger of lurking predators. Their diet is quite varied and covers almost anything that falls under the term "vegetation".
Nilgai are quite commonly seen all across the central and north India. A decent size male can present quite an awesome sight. The male members of this species have horns that grow to a length of 20cm. Adult males are of an excellent dark grey colouration, whereas the females are a lighter fawn. The males also have a coarse dark tuft of hair on the underside of the neck. Another interesting marking is a white patch above each hoof. There is no specific breeding period and they have a gestation period of around 8 - 9 months. Another reason for their growing numbers is that man finds no part of it useful for trade or consumption. It is considered a sacred animal.
Although the Blue bull, which is the largest asiatic antelope, can be seen across many areas of India, there are some reserves where sightings are very abundant. These are Sariska, Sultanpur, Ranthambore and Panna.
