JAIPUR: The grasslands that shelter the Great Indian Bustard in Sorsan in Baran, and the winter home of Demoiselle Cranes in Khichan in Jodhpur were among three new wildlife conservation areas, the third being Hamirgarh in Bhilwara, declared by the forest department in Rajasthan on the occasion of Earth Day, April 22.
The number of conservation reserves in the state has now reached 26. Additional chief secretary Shikhar Agarwal tweeted on Saturday, “On the Earth Day 2023, the Rajasthan Forest department has decided to declare three new conservation reserves-Sorsan in Baran, Hamirgarh in Bhilwara and Khichan in Jodhpur.”
Conservationists and wildlife activists were demanding to protect the Great Indian Bustard (GIB) habitat in Sorsan and the home of migratory birds and demoiselle cranes in Khichan for long, as these areas face several threats. Ravi Prakash Singh, a wildlife enthusiast and regular visitor to Sorsan, said it is is a wildlife lover’s delight with its grasslands measuring 19.38sq km, host to 1,100 blackbucks, foxes and migratory birds. The area is an example of how blackbuck, the state animal, can prosper even outside reserves and protected areas, he said.
“It is also ideal in every aspect for GIB breeding. We welcomed the move as many industrialists and miners were eyeing the land in absence of protected status,” he said.
Locals in Khichan are elated at the protection given to an area that hosts thousands of Demoiselle Cranes, locally known as Kurjan, in the winter months. “Kheechan will be the country’s first conservation reserve for Demoiselle Cranes. Earlier, a team of forest and tourism department visited the village to observe the proposed additional land for the reserve along with the previously allotted land. The team was sent on the instructions of the divisional commissioner of Jodhpur. As per the proposal, the conservation reserve has been declared on 1,200 bighas of land,” said an environmentalist.
An official said after the forest areas become conservation reserves, it will be mandatory to get clearance under the Forest Conservation Act, 1990, and approvals of State Board of Wildlife (SBWL) and of National Board for Wildlife (NBWL) to carry out any development project within the area. Experts said the CR category was first introduced in the amendment in 2002.
The number of conservation reserves in the state has now reached 26. Additional chief secretary Shikhar Agarwal tweeted on Saturday, “On the Earth Day 2023, the Rajasthan Forest department has decided to declare three new conservation reserves-Sorsan in Baran, Hamirgarh in Bhilwara and Khichan in Jodhpur.”
Conservationists and wildlife activists were demanding to protect the Great Indian Bustard (GIB) habitat in Sorsan and the home of migratory birds and demoiselle cranes in Khichan for long, as these areas face several threats. Ravi Prakash Singh, a wildlife enthusiast and regular visitor to Sorsan, said it is is a wildlife lover’s delight with its grasslands measuring 19.38sq km, host to 1,100 blackbucks, foxes and migratory birds. The area is an example of how blackbuck, the state animal, can prosper even outside reserves and protected areas, he said.
“It is also ideal in every aspect for GIB breeding. We welcomed the move as many industrialists and miners were eyeing the land in absence of protected status,” he said.
Locals in Khichan are elated at the protection given to an area that hosts thousands of Demoiselle Cranes, locally known as Kurjan, in the winter months. “Kheechan will be the country’s first conservation reserve for Demoiselle Cranes. Earlier, a team of forest and tourism department visited the village to observe the proposed additional land for the reserve along with the previously allotted land. The team was sent on the instructions of the divisional commissioner of Jodhpur. As per the proposal, the conservation reserve has been declared on 1,200 bighas of land,” said an environmentalist.
An official said after the forest areas become conservation reserves, it will be mandatory to get clearance under the Forest Conservation Act, 1990, and approvals of State Board of Wildlife (SBWL) and of National Board for Wildlife (NBWL) to carry out any development project within the area. Experts said the CR category was first introduced in the amendment in 2002.
