India needs a new wildlife governance system

There is much to be appreciated this World Wildlife Day for the work and dedication our forest officers, scientists and frontline staff are doing for India's wildlife and their habitats. Unfortunately, they are being directed by ministers (and industrialists) who have little to no knowledge and concern for our wildlife.  The large-scale destruction of wildlife habitats and the dictatorial governance system that currently runs the National Board for Wildlife and the Ministry of Environment, Forest & Climate Change is hurting wildlife and damaging precious ecosystems that we depend upon. Although much responsibility lies with the central BJP government, states and other political parties are also to be held accountable. 

Mr. Modi will be in Gir (Gujarat) to celebrate World Wildlife Day, where he will announce Rs. 3,000 crores to conserve the Asiatic Lion. On the surface this sounds great, but if one knows the history of Mr. Modi and the Asiatic Lion, you will know the injustice he has done to this iconic species by violating the laws of the Supreme Court and dishonoring the scientists and forest officers who have dedicated their lives to this keystone species. He has even neglected thousands of tribals who were removed from the forests of Kuno National Park in Madhya Pradesh, more than 25 years ago for the reintroduction of the Asiatic Lion. This translates to a Rs. 100 crore + loss for the local communities and wildlife tourism industry in a location that is a few hours from the Taj Mahal and the golden triangle tourism circuit. Almost 700 lions have died in Gujarat over the past 5 years, that's 6 times more than the death rate of our tigers! - simply because there are insufficient protected areas for these big cats, thanks to a dictatorial style of governance for these animals that ironically our culture considers sacred. 

Dr. Ravi Chellam did his PhD on Asiatic Lions and has been studying these animals since 1985. In 1993, as part of the Wildlife Institute of India, his findings revealed that lions in Gujarat were running out of space and proposed to relocate some lions from Gir National Park to Kuno National Park in Madhya Pradesh. The then central and state government accepted the proposal based on which 24 villages were relocated from Kuno, and sufficient prey base was introduced for a pride of lions in 2007. Unfortunately, as Chief Minister of Gujarat and Prime Minister of India, Mr. Modi refused to adhere to the science and even a Supreme Court order (2013) that directed Gujarat to translocate a pride of lions to Madhya Pradesh. 

While the BJP and Gujarat consider the Asiatic Lion 'Gujarati', they went ahead and introduced wild cheetahs from Africa into Kuno National Park. Only a few cheetahs have been released in the wild, while the rest have either died or are still in captivity. Most of the top forest officials and scientists of Project Cheetah have been removed and the advice of the South African experts were largely ignored, prompting them to express their grievances to the Supreme Court. Even after 2 years, the local communities of Kuno haven't seen the benefits of tourism as only two resorts exist in the area with little to no chances of seeing cheetahs on safari. 

Qualified, passionate people like Dr. Ravi Chellum have no place in the BJP's style of wildlife governance. Similarly, Dr. YV Jhala was fired as the Dean of Wildlife Insitute of India and lead scientist of Project Cheetah along with JS Chauhan, an IFS officer who was head of the Madhya Pradesh Wildlife division and known as the architect of Kuno National Park. Another IFS officer, PK Varma who spent considerable time in Kuno and was sent to South Africa to learn about cheetah's, was transferred just a year after they were brought to Kuno. The BJP's government's dictatorial style of governance isn't good for wildlife or the qualified people who have dedicated their lives to protecting our animals and their habitats.  

India lost almost 4,000 Elephants in just the past 5 years where 40% of this decline occurred in the central - eastern landscape that includes Jharkhand, Chattisgarh, Odisha and West Bengal (all four states were non-BJP governments during this period). Our national animal the Tiger is also not doing well in this landscape that is plagued with excessive mining, power and infrastructure projects. It is in the nearby vicinity of this region that the BJP government has sanctioned mega dam, power and mining projects. 

The Ken-Betwa River Interlinking project has been in the news recently at the Global Investors Summit held in Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh. This Rs. 45,000 crore project includes a mega dam on the Ken River that will submerge 60 sq.km of Panna Tiger Reserve - that's around 2 million trees! The mainstream narrative will tell you this dam will provide electricity, irrigation and drinking water for the villagers of the drought prone Bundelkhand region. At the summit, it was further revealed that "water-intensive industries such as textiles" will benefit from the project. 

The Panna Biosphere Reserve is a 3,000 sq.km area recognized by UNESCO and includes Panna Tiger Reserve, Gangau Wildlife Sanctuary and Ken Gharial Sanctuary, home to the critically endangered gharial crocodile. Panna is located in Madhya Pradesh and borders Uttar Pradesh, Jharkhand and Chattisgarh - the same central-eastern landscape where our Elephants and Tigers are in trouble. In fact, mining and other disturbances have forced a herd of over 40 elephants into the famous Bandhavgarh National Park located just a few hours south of Panna Tiger Reserve. A safe haven for these elephants initially, even Bandhavgarh turned deadly as 15 elephants of the herd died as a result of man-animal conflict. 

The Supreme Courts Central Empowered Committee (CEC) and the central government's Forest Advisory Commitee (FAC) have strongly advised against building the dam in Panna, which will destroy critical forest, river, biodiversity and displace local communities from 25 villages. However, the dam was given wildlife clearance by Mr. Modi who is chairman of the National Board of Wildlife, even though it violates the Wildlife Protection Act. 

There are several more examples that can highlight the plight of wildlife in India as a result of a compromised governance system that is driven by profit and the need to provide resources to the world's most populous and fastest growing economy. But today is World Wildlife Day and we need to acknowledge that wildlife habitats provide us with fresh air, water, medicines and ecotourism benefits. Recent research reveals that wildlife habitats regulate the carbon cycle and influence global climate change patterns. 

Even though Hinduism is based on nature-worship, its current status in Indian society isn't strong enough to hold a spine to the status quo. We will need a separate 'Ministry' of Wildlife not run by politicians but IFS officers, scientists and local communities that are given more power and decision-making abilities.  India will need assistance from the international community and learn from countries like New Zealand and Columbia that have given their rivers 'legal rights' allowing indigenous communities more power to protect their lands, wildlife and freshwater sources.