biodiversity

On June 4th, 2021, a leopard took away a four-year-old girl from the lawns of her house and later mauled her to death in a nearby nursery. The little girl’s body was found after two days in a nursery, barely a few hundred metres away from her house, in Ompora locality of Central Kashmir’s Budgam town. The incident left the entire wildlife department of Kashmir shaken.  Four-year-old victim Adha was playing in the lawns of her home when the leopard took her away. Her family was totally unaware of the incident. Some wildlife officials said that the leopard had in…

For the first time ever, the largest of the flamingo species, the Greater flamingos, one of the most widely recognized waders in the world, were spotted in the newly developed Sabarmati river front in Ahmedabad, much to the delight of citizens, especially the birders’ community. “I was delighted when I spotted a huge flock of about 50 flamingos when I went for a walk on the riverfront,” said hobbyist wildlife photographer Vicky Chauhan, a chartered accountant residing just 200 metres from the riverfront. “While we have seen flamingos in areas near Ahmedabad in the Fatewadi area, this was the first…

In the second week of January, amidst heavy security provided by the local police and the Karnataka State Reserve Police (KSRP), Forest Department officials -- along with the Dakshina Kannada district authorities and personnel from Mangalore Electricity Supply Company Limited (MESCOM) -- began uprooting and chopped nearly 202 trees at Alake village in Padil in Mangalore city in Karnataka. The 10.09-acre area formerly under Karnataka State Forest Industries Corporation (KSFIC) at Padil - is located on National Highway 75. In 2014, the state government transferred 5.89 acres to the Revenue Department. The Alake area with survey No. 23/6A1B2, 23/4B, 23/12B,…

It is a site that has inspired poets like Kuvempu and scores of other artists, a beautiful green cover in the heart of Mysuru city that provides recreation and relaxation for the hundreds of city residents who come here every day for their daily walk, run or merely to enjoy the peace and beauty. Such is Kukkurahalli Lake, a calm, naturally scenic place rich in biodiversity, home to more than 150 species of birds, 85 species of butterflies, 20 species of reptiles, 14 species of mammals, 37 species of spiders and many more documented in the lake, leading it to…

In 2012, Hyderabad became the first Indian city to have a City Biodiversity Index (CBI), at least on paper. As an assessment tool, the Index is an invaluable tool for city authorities to monitor and evaluate biodiversity with a view to aid conservation efforts. Launched amid much fanfare to coincide with Hyderabad hosting the UN Convention on Biodiversity in 2012, the Index is now defunct. It has not been updated or used since its launch by Hyderabad’s civic bodies. Similarly, the Biological Diversity Act (2002) has provisions for establishing Biodiversity Management Committees in all local bodies, whether Panchayats or city…