COIMBATORE: Tamil Nadu government, with active participation of Arulagam, an NGO working in vulture conservation for two decades, is setting an example for other states in vulture conservation by restricting the use of ketoprofen and flunixin, drugs that are harmful to vultures, and banning the use of diclofenac on cattle, said Chris Bowden, Programme Manager of SAVE (Saving Asia’s Vultures from Extinction).
Bowden, who is also the co-chair of the IUCN Vulture Specialist Group (VSG), said this while speaking in a meeting on vulture conservation in the Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve (NBR) organised by Arulagam in the city on Monday.
Further he said there are 23 vulture species across the globe, of which 9 are critically endangered, 3 are endangered, and 4 are near threatened.
“Since 2011, SAVE programme is implemented in six countries in Asia with the help of 32 partners, including Arulgam. The number of white rumped vultures has increased in the last decade in Nepal due to the continuous efforts. The country has to take more proactive steps to increase the numbers. I appreciate the central government for withdrawing ketoprofen and flunixin, which are harmful to cattle,” he said.
S. Bharathidasan, Secretary of Arulgam, said the central government action plan for vulture conservation, was discussed in the meeting.
A draft release of the vulture conservation action plan was released by the former Nilgiris DFO Badrasamy, and it was received by Osai founder K Kalidass.
Speaking in the meeting, former joint director of the Animal Husbandry Department, NS Manokaran, said food scarcity is one of the major concerns of vulture survival, and in the last two decades, vulture and tiger population have increased. WWF Landscape Coordinator D Boominathan spoke about the protection plan of vultures.
Vulture researchers Rajkumar of Karnataka and Vishnudass of Kerala explained how they are carrying out progressive steps to protect vultures in their states.