MP govt’s plan to roundup Blue Bulls put on hold
The Madhya Pradesh forest department has put on hold a plan to use Pardi tribals to catch and sterilise Blue Bulls, commonly known as Nilgais, to control their population, a senior official said on Wednesday.
Rising numbers of Nilgais were reportedly causing damage to crops in vast tracts of the Malwa region which prompted the government to devise the plan that was implemented in April.
The authorities had roped in the Pardis who are reportedly renowned for tracking and trapping animals in the wild. A workshop was held in Ujjain for them in the last week of March and 40 members were included in the team that planned to capture over 1,000 Nilgai deers.
But over the past month, several attempts by the team to trap the deers with nets failed.
In one instance, the team trapped three Nilgai males, but they tore through the net and escaped before the team could reach the site.
Chief conservator of forests (CCF) BS Annigeri conceded that their attempts had failed. “The nets that we used were not strong enough and they managed to escape,” he said referring to the three animals which escaped.
He added that the timing of the plan’s implementation was off. “Most of the crop has been cut and it is open fields and the Nilgais who prefer to stay on top of hillocks were able to spot the team and run away. So we have put the project on hold and we may re-launch it when there is more cover in the open,” he said.
However a wildlife expert, who did not want to be named, said the project was flawed from the beginning. “The Pardis might be experts in tracking and trapping birds and animals in the wild, but in most cases they are small animals like hare, small deer etc. They don’t have experience in handling big animals.”
BHOPAL: