Despite antipoaching row, Kaziranga shines in world conservation body report
The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) assessment of Assam’s Kaziranga National Park, which attained notoriety earlier this year for allegedly adopting overly aggressive anti-poaching measures, has improved from “serious concerns” to “good with some concerns”.
A BBC documentary released this year suggested that anti-poaching measures put in place to protect rhino species in the park were causing hardships to local villagers. The news agency alleged that its park rangers killed an average of two poaching suspects every month, and over 20 a year.
The IUCN report, however, branded the park as one of the “better-managed protected areas” in the country. “The park has a long history of protection, which reflected in the dramatic recovery of the rhino population and celebration of 100 years of conservation in 2005,” the assessment said, adding that it enjoys the “highest legal protection”.
The IUCN Assessment-2017 is the second instance of the International Union for Conservation of Nature classifying UNESCO-recognised natural world heritage sites on the basis of protection status.
The Sunderbans also improved its ranking from being a site with “serious concerns” to “good with some concerns” this year. The ecologically sensitive region, which accommodates the largest stretch of mangrove forests in the world, covers about 10,000 sq km of water and land in the Ganga delta.
The Sunderbans, the abode of the Royal Bengal Tiger, faces significant risk from the various effects of climate change, such as rising sea level and coastal erosion.
Factors such as the success of conservation programmes for threatened species; better checks on illegal activities; involvement of communities in forest management; and curbing instances of humanwildlife conflict prompted the IUCN to look at Kaziranga and Sunderbans favourably in its latest report.
NEWDELHI: