GIB specialist and coordinator Suthirtha Dutta confirmed that they received the order and information from the senior officers to shift these birds to the breeding centre in Ramdevra.
“It was a big challenge but was done successfully. A special plan was made jointly by the forest department and Wildlife institute of India (WII) to make this mission successful and other necessary preparations were done,” he said.
The authorities took preventive measures to avoid any kind of shock or injury to the GIB chicks in transporting them.
The chicks were blind folded and their wings were also wrapped to prevent reactions to external stimuli.
Two soft-padded and well ventilated boxes filled with sand inside air-conditioned vehicles with comfortable suspension were built to shift the five chicks including two 7-day-old chicks and others were 2 to 2.5-month-old.
Now Sudasari has 16 chicks and 14 at the Ramdevra enclosure.
Dutta said that the lids of the special boxes, with a dimension of 60cm long, 40cm wide and 42cm high, were made up of mesh wire and foam was put on the walls of the boxes so that these chicks could easily roam in it and adapt to the shifting atmosphere.
The entire shifting process was completed in three trips in 12 days. A mock drill of the shifting process was also done for 5-6 days, wherein the chicks were put in boxes and moved from one place to another within the Sudasari breeding centre in a car.
He said that before being shifted, the GIB chicks underwent complete medical checkups by a medical team of WII and after reaching Ramdevra again the checkup was done, said Dutta.
