Center approves Puri’s idea to reintroduce the endangered blackbuck

The Forest and Environment department has started laying the foundation for the blackbuck population to recover in Puri’s Balukhand-Konark wildlife sanctuary, where the animal was formerly abundant, in a significant conservation effort.

The magnificent blackbucks will be relocated as part of the species recovery initiative from Ganjam, the present home of the Indian antelope population.

According to reports, the scheme has received approval from the Ministry of Environment, Forests, and Climate Change’s (MoEFCC) Wildlife division and has been shared with the state’s chief wildlife warden (CWW). Eight blackbucks from Ganjam, two males and six females, will be relocated to the Puri sanctuary in accordance with the scheme.

According to PCCF (wildlife) and CWW Susanta Nanda, “it is necessary to preserve such species in different biomes so that their population can be supplemented when the need arises.” The state’s only population of the schedule-I mammal, which favors flat terrain with plenty of water sources, is found in Ganjam’s Bhetnoi environment. The district’s blackbuck population was 7,743 at the time of previous year’s census.

Up until 2012, the Indian antelope was found in the Balukhand-Konark sanctuary. However, it totally disappeared after that, mostly as a result of habitat degradation, natural disasters, and an increase in building activity in the area. 2019’s Cyclone Fani, which struck Odisha and made landfall in the Puri district, severely damaged the greenery of Balukhand.

The Forest Department believed that the moment had arrived to reintroduce blackbucks after starting recovery efforts. The one and only blackbuck population in the state made the species recovery effort vital.

A environmentalist said, “Such single populations are vulnerable from various points of threats and can collapse under pressure.” The administration intends to relocate gaurs from the Debrigarh wildlife sanctuary to Chandaka-Dampara, which is outside the state capital, in addition to blackbucks.

Permission has been granted by the department to relocate fifteen female and five male guards from Debrigarh to Chandaka. In addition to reviving the wild cow species, gaurs will improve the ecosystem of the Chandaka-Dampada and provide visitors with more opportunities to see wildlife since the Forest Department has established a nighttime route in the Bharatpur area of the sanctuary.

In order to prevent problems among animal species after capture, the ministry has requested that the CWW carry out the two translocation programs under the close supervision of the Forest Department and with appropriate prudence.

The MoEFCC has also requested that the CWW and PCCF (Wildlife) make sure that frequent monitoring occurs and that quarterly reports be sent to it after the translocation.