| Sports |
Kashmir wildlife benefits from insurgency
SRINAGAR, India: A 10-year-old
hunting ban and the ongoing insurgency have brought about a boom
in the populations of animals including leopards and bears in
Indian Kashmir, wildlife officials say.
A crack down on gun ownership at the start of the rebellion and
the risk of being caught in the cross-fire between militants and
troops have largely kept poachers out of the forests in the
revolt-hit region.
As a result, “there has been (an) increase in Kashmir’s
wildlife, leopards and black bears in particular,” wildlife
warden Rashid Naqash said.
Naqash said the numbers of rare bird species were also
increasing and a scientific survey would be launched to provide
figures.
“The reason being a strict ban on hunting, besides (which),
poachers no longer dare to go into the forests for fear of
getting caught in the cross-fire between militants and security
forces,” he said.
The latest assessment provides some rare good news for the
Himalayan region, where demand for items such as bear skins and
shawls made from the hair of antelopes had left a number of
mountain species seriously endangered.
The anti-India Islamic insurgency that broke out in Kashmir in
1989 has left more than 42,000 people dead by official count.
Human rights groups put the toll at 70,000 dead and disappeared.
At the start of the rebellion, locals were ordered to hand in
their guns or run the risk of being caught with them and treated
as insurgents.
“It meant there were few weapons left to shoot animals and
birds,” Naqash said.
In 1997, the government banned hunting and the trading of
endangered animal furs.
In May this year fur traders were ordered to hand over rare
hides to be destroyed.
“This step will further protect the wildlife as poachers know
even if they kill an animal they will not be able to sell its
hide,” Naqash said.
Other wildlife officials said there had also been a marked rise
in the numbers of rare musk deer and markhor goats.
They said that although it was difficult to count birds, “rare
and indigenous species like the black partridge and the pheasant
have increased by a minimum of 50% since 1990.”
Last year, a record high of more than 600,000 migratory birds
visited Kashmir.
But the population increase some animals have enjoyed has meant
others, such as the rare Kashmir stag or hangul, face more
predators.
“Leopards are praying on hangul as their (leopard) population
has increased.
“We will not be able to stop these attacks unless some measures
are taken,” A.K. Srivastava, the region’s wildlife chief, said.
He said his department had asked the federal government for
approval to fence protected areas after the hangul population
dropped to just 150 from 200 in the past decade.
A rise in attacks on humans is another negative effect of
Kashmir’s increasing wildlife population.
Srivastava said animals had killed some 36 people over the past
two years and wounded 217, resulting in eight orders to kill
leopards and bears.
“My men could kill only one leopard. They have failed to kill
others as leopards are very fast runners,” he said. – AFP
 
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