Congress leader Jairam Ramesh on Sunday shared a throwback post, recalling the then-Prime Minister Indira Gandhi's flight to Rajasthan's Udaipur, a journey which included a Hindustan Times report that led to a conservation programme for the Great Indian Bustard, locally known as Godawan.
The Great Indian Bustard, scientifically called Ardeotis nigriceps, is a critically endangered bird. It is often considered an indicator of the health of our grasslands.
In a post on X, Ramesh said that Indira Gandhi visited Haldighati 50 years ago, on June 21, 1976, to mark the 400th anniversary of the famed battle in the region that made Maharana Pratap inspirational and immortal.
"On the morning flight to Udaipur she happened to come across the day’s edition of the Hindustan Times. The front page carried an unusual picture—that of the Great Indian Bustard that was facing near-extinction. There was a news report on page 4 that she also read," Ramesh added.
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The Congress leader further said that, having read the report, Gandhi reached Udaipur and met with some bird enthusiasts led by Harsh Vardhan, who was a member of the Rajasthan Wildlife Board at the time.
{{/usCountry}}The Congress leader further said that, having read the report, Gandhi reached Udaipur and met with some bird enthusiasts led by Harsh Vardhan, who was a member of the Rajasthan Wildlife Board at the time.
{{/usCountry}}"This sequence of events triggered the conservation programme for the Great Indian Bustard as well as steps to establish the sprawling Desert National Park near Jaisalmer and Barmer," Ramesh said.
Noting that the critically endangered Great Indian Bustard continues to face several threats, the Congress leader said that hopes for its conservation have been kept alive since Indira Gandhi's flight to Udaipur on June 21, 1976.
Ramesh further said that the Great Indian Bustard was also proposed as the national bird by the famed ornithologist Salim Ali in 1961.
"However, two years later the Indian Board for Wild Life chaired by the erstwhile Maharaja of Mysore Jayachamarajendra Wadiyar had selected the peacock as the national bird for compelling historical, mythological, cultural, and religious reasons," he added.
Great Indian Bustard and its conservation
The Great Indian Bustard was brought under the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972, but it did not receive sufficient attention and remained BPL (below protection line).
The main reason for the rapid decline in its population was habitat loss due to the conversion of grasslands to other uses, anthropogenic and related biotic disturbances during its breeding season, and frequent poaching of the species as game, according to the Rajasthan government's Forest Department.
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The Great Indian Bustard is a grassland species and is often considered an indicator of grassland health, which is mostly neglected and often considered wasteland.
On June 5, 2013, the Rajasthan government launched a conservation programme called Project Great Indian Bustard.
In 2023, the union environment ministry said in a press release that the Centre is taking various measures for the conservation and protection of the Great Indian Bustard in the country, including in Rajasthan.
The measures listed by the ministry were:
1. Since the Great Indian Bustard is listed in Schedule-I of the Wild Life (Protection) Act, 1971, it is accorded the highest degree of legal protection from hunting.
2. Important habitats of Great Indian Bustards are designated as National Parks/sanctuaries for their better protection.
3. The species has been identified for conservation under the 'Species Recovery Programme' category of the Centrally Sponsored Scheme - Development of Wildlife Habitats.
4. Conservation breeding of the bird undertaken in collaboration with Rajasthan, Gujarat and Maharashtra Forest Departments and technical support of Wildlife Institute of India, Dehradun.
5. Sites for the establishment of conservation breeding centres for the Great Indian Bustard and Lesser Florican birds have been identified in consultation with the Forest Departments of Rajasthan and Gujarat, Wildlife Institute of India and international experts.
6. The ministry provides financial assistance to the States/Union Territories under the Centrally Sponsored Scheme: Development of Wildlife Habitats for conservation of wildlife, including for Great Indian Bustard.