E-Paper
Forest dept to cull blue bulls, wild boars at Darbhanga airport
The burgeoning number of the antelope has frustrated forest department’s efforts to trap and relocate them within a specified time frame, officials said.
Forest department is working on a comprehensive plan to rope in professional shooters to cull blue bulls, also known as nilgai or ghorparas, and wild pigs inhabiting the extensive thick bushes at Darbhanga airport, said a senior forest department official on Saturday.
The burgeoning number of the antelope has frustrated forest department’s efforts to trap and relocate them within a specified time frame, officials said.
“Getting blue bulls and wild boars off the airfield is critical for the safety of flight operations. The blue bull population at Darbhanga airport is estimated to be more than 200,” said an official familiar with the matter.
“Efforts to address the situation by tranquillising and relocating blue bulls have limited success. A trapping team, comprising 40-50 members, including doctors, to tranquillise the wild creatures ended up catching only four blue bulls in 10-12 days. It is easier said than done to nab and relocate them in a specified time period,” said divisional forest officer (Mithila) Subodh Gupta.
Large tracts of land in three pockets having dense plantations around the aerodrome, which act like safety buffers, have become abode of these nilgai and wild pigs. At present, a census process is on to count the number of blue bulls and wild boars on airport premises.
“We had earlier tried to catch them for rehabilitation to forest in Bagha, but it’s not working. Blue bulls have been seen running towards the runway at very high speed, which could be dangerous to flights either taking off or landing. At time they hide in thick woods during taming exercises,” the DFO said. “That’s why we have decided to get rid of wild creatures by culling,” he said.
Gupta said the matter was raised in the meeting with additional chief conservator of forest (ACCOF) Prabhat Kumar Gupta, who had granted permission to execute the shooting of blue bulls and wild pigs as per government guidelines.
When contacted, ACCOF Gupta said the DFO was a competent authority to take a call in this regard.
The blue bull comes under schedule 3 of Wildlife Protection Act, 1972. As of now, state government has also empowered head of village panchayats to shoot nilgai and wild pigs in adherence to guidelines. The state forest department had also empanelled 13 shooters for the purpose.
