DEHRADUN: The Kedarnath Wildlife Division is preparing to restrict human activity in high-altitude meadows and clear rubbish from parts of its sanctuary after a survey found that visitors and local residents were feeding Himalayan tahrs.
The measures aim to protect the mountain animal as its habitat faces pressure from human activity and climate change. According to the division, food offered by people and waste left in the sanctuary are drawing tahrs away from their natural habitat towards roads and settlements.
Spread across about 975 sq km in Chamoli and Rudraprayag districts, the Kedarnath Wildlife Sanctuary includes alpine meadows, locally known as bugyals, and steep mountain terrain where tahrs roam.
“Special emphasis is being placed on conserving the Himalayan tahr,” divisional forest officer Rajat Suman said. “In search of food, tahrs have started leaving their natural habitat and coming to roads and inhabited areas.”
Suman said increased rubbish accumulation had coincided with more sightings of tahrs in lower areas, including Chopta, Sari, Kanchulakharak, Saukhark and Mandal. He said the animals’ changing movements were affecting their behaviour and way of life.
The division has prepared an action plan for a cleanliness drive in the sanctuary. It will also discourage people from feeding wildlife and organise awareness programmes on the protection of animals and plants.
“Human interference in natural habitats is changing wildlife behaviour. That is why it is necessary to keep these habitats secure,” Suman said. Activities in the meadows would be controlled, although the division has not specified what restrictions would be introduced or when they would take effect.
Speaking to TNIE, wildlife expert Rangnath Pandey, a former deputy director in the Uttarakhand Forest Department, said the Himalayan tahr is also known locally as ‘karth’. Males can weigh between 90 and 180 kg, while females weigh around 60 kg, he said.
The animal has a small head, large eyes, short pointed ears and horns that curve backwards and can grow up to 46 cm long. Pandey said its thick, reddish-brown coat has two layers that help it withstand extreme cold, while males develop a dense mane in winter. He described the species as "Near Threatened" on the IUCN Red List.
Population estimates cited by officials differ sharply. The wildlife division said the Kedarnath sanctuary was home to thousands of tahrs, while forest department sources put the number across the Indian Himalayan regions of Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand at around 750. Neither figure could be independently verified, leaving the scale of the local population unclear.