Measures to mitigate roadkills not yet taken despite several reminders: Wildlife officials

A day after a two-year-old female leopard was killed in a road accident, wildlife officials said that mitigation measures for wildlife have not been taken up on the Gurugram-Faridabad Road, despite several reminders

A day after a two-year-old female leopard was killed in a road accident, wildlife officials said that mitigation measures for wildlife have not been taken up on the Gurugram-Faridabad Road, despite several reminders.

Leopards often come in contact with human settlements in Gurugram due to its close proximity to the Aravallis. (Representative image/HT Archive)

“In the past two years, around 10 reminders must have been sent to senior wildlife officials and Public Works Department to construct underpasses for wildlife or increase the number of rumble strips on stretches where there is wildlife movement, but we did not get any response,” a district wildlife official, who did not wish to be named, said.

On Monday, a two-year-old female leopard was found dead on Pali-Surajkund Road near Gurugram with autopsy reports suggesting it could have been hit by a vehicle. This is the seventh such death of a leopard to be reported from this region since 2015. The stretch from where the leopard’s carcass was recovered is an ecologically sensitive area, as it is flanked by the Asola Bhati wildlife sanctuary on both sides.

The official cited above said that on-ground signage has been installed, giving details about the movement of wildlife in the region. “Leopard is a big animal which is easily visible and its death becomes known. But smaller animals, such as monkeys, monitor lizards and snakes, also get killed in road accidents, which do not get noticed,” the official said.

In 2017, the Wildlife Institute of India, in a study titled Mapping land use/landcover Patterns in Aravallis Haryana, with reference to the status of key wildlife species, states, “There is a need to identify road crossing zones for key wildlife species especially leopards to suggest mitigation measures. Radio-telemetry study will help in identifying critical leopard crossing zones.”

The report states, “Highways passing through the wildlife habitats have adversely affected the fauna in these forests. Fast-moving vehicles kill these animals when they move across these road stretches. The Gurugram-Faridabad expressway is one such road in Aravallis.”

Senior wildlife officials said that meetings are being held with departments concerned to construct underpasses for animals to reduce such incidents.

“Signage asking motorists to slow down and informing of wildlife movement have been put up on the Faridabad road and near Manesar. Rumble strips have also been installed at different places to reduce the speed of vehicles. We have regularly been in touch with the Public Works Department and have asked them to prepare an estimate for the construction of an underpass in Faridabad. If we get an estimate, we can plan how to proceed with it, depending on funds available with us as part of a conservation plan or from other sources,” said MS Malik, the chief conservator of forest for Gurugram circle.

He said that on National Highway-48 near Manesar, there are a few culverts that are choked with boulders and rocks, and that the area is being cleared and levelled for an animal underpass. A proposal regarding the same has been sent to the state forest department and the process is likely to take one year.

Meanwhile, officials of the Public Works Department (PWD) in Gurugram said that they have not received any clear instructions from the wildlife officials on areas where an underpass can be constructed.

Sandeep Singh, the executive engineer with the PWD who looks after the Gurugram-Faridabad Road, said, “So far, neither locations are identified where underpass can be made nor there is any clarity on the funding. We were requested to set up rumble strips, which have been set up at spots identified by the forest department.”

Environmentalists from Gurugram have been demanding the construction of wildlife underpasses on the busy Gurugram-Faridabad highway, which passes through the ecologically sensitive Aravalli forest.

Vivek Kamboj, a city-based environmentalist, said, “We have to understand that these roads pass through the wildlife habitat. So, measures need to be taken to ensure their safety. Rumble strips have been installed, but they do not necessarily reduce the speed of the vehicle. The number of speed breakers needs to be increased. Passages need to be made along with the installation of wires or other forms of barricading over the walls so that animals do not jump off on roads and get accustomed to using the passages.”

“This is not the first such incident that has been reported from the region. These highways have been there for years and officials have still not taken any concrete action that reduces roadkill incidents,” he said.