NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court has ordered an independent and scientific audit of the translocation of 261 deer from Delhi’s Hauz Khas deer park, noting that crucial safeguards had not been followed during the shifting of deer to two wildlife reserves in Rajasthan.
A bench of Justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta observed that that the material before it prima facie revealed continuing mismanagement and repeated regulatory warnings at the deer park, along with the allegations that many of the animals were transported or released in violation of scientific norms governing wildlife translocation.
The bench observed that deer were being crammed into trucks, transported without veterinary care, and released in predator-heavy tiger reserves without food or water.
It said that of the 261 deer said to be sent, far fewer were visible on site, and no tracking tags were used to monitor their survival. The court ordered the Central Empowered Committee (CEC), a statutory expert panel, to conduct a detailed inspection of both the Deer Park and the Rajasthan reserves.
It directed the CEC to submit two separate reports within eight weeks - one assessing the current deer population, carrying capacity and welfare conditions at Hauz Khas, and another evaluating habitat suitability and survival at the relocation sites. It further directed the CEC to draft a roadmap for any future translocation, including tagging, transport, veterinary care and post-release monitoring.
The court said that until the reports are received, no additional deer can be moved from Hauz Khas, barring the DDA from using the park for private or commercial events, directing it instead to run educational and nature outreach programmes. The bench said the case highlighted a larger failure in urban ecological governance. “Wildlife management cannot be approached as a matter of administrative convenience. It must be anchored in scientific assessment, ecological prudence, and fidelity to constitutional values,” the Court said in its order.