Forest dept gets three tractors for patrolling
HALDWANI:THE forest department will now use tractors, gifted to it by the World Wildlife Fund (WWF), to patrol the dense jungles at night, an official said.
The department currently acquires tractors on contractual basis only at the time of need as there is no separate fund to procure one.
“The employees find it difficult to move inside the forests on foot due to the presence of snakes and wild animals. Tractors will come in handy,” said Parag Madhukar Dhakate, conservator of forests, western circle, Kumaon.
These tractors with their bigger wheels can safely navigate mounds and undulating terrain. Dhakate said the vehicles will be used at Nandhaur Wildlife Sanctuary, Pawalgarh Conservation Reserve and Terai central forest divisions, and will be manned by specialised personnel.
The official also informed that a drive to vaccinate dogs would be carried out in areas adjoining the Nandhaur and Pawalgarh reserve in the wake of the deaths of 23 Asiatic lions within a month at Gujarat’s Gir Forest National Park. Five of these animals had died from canine distemper virus (CDV), an infection primarily transmitted by dogs, and is known t o affect wild carnivores such as wolves, foxes, raccoons, red pandas, ferrets, hyenas, tigers, and lions. The lions at Gir had reportedly eaten contaminated dogs or other animals.
Dhakate said stray dogs would be vaccinated to avert any possible transmission of CDV to the tigers and the leopards.