Maharashtra Forest Department with the help of Vulture Conservation Breeding Centre (VCBC), Pinjore and Bombay Natural History Society (BNHS) will release 40 White-backed and Long-billed vultures bred in captivity into the wild soon. The Forest Department will get these vultures from VCBC, Pinjore. The 20 pairs of scavengers will be released in Pench Tiger Reserve (PTR), Maharashtra; Tadoba Andhari Tiger Reserve (TATR); and Melghat Tiger Reserve (MTR). “Releasing vultures after breeding is a good initiative of the Government.

 

The first pair of vultures will be released in Pench Tiger Reserve,” Kishor Rithe, Honorary Secretary, BNHS told The Hitavada. Government of India has established four Vulture Conservation and Breeding Centres at West Bengal, Haryana, Madhya Pradesh and Assam. These four VCBCs in the country got success in conservation and breeding 750 vultures of three species -- White-backed, Long-billed and Slender-billed -- from looming extinction. Government of India has started releasing these vultures in wild since 2020. Eight critically endangered Oriental White-backed vultures were released into the wild for the first time in Haryana. Close to three years later, five survived and two have paired and successfully nested in the habitat of the Shivalik range in the foothills of the Himalayas. After the success story of Haryana, government released 31 Oriental white-backed vultures in batches in West Bengal in 2021. “We have initiated this campaign in 2020 where we released 8 in Haryana and then 31 in West Bengal. Except one, all released vultures are doing well and some of them travelled to Bhutan and Nepal also,” said Rithe. “It is the first time when the government has decided to release the highest 20 pairs of vultures in wild and it is going to be happen in Maharashtra itself,” said Rithe.

 

“The PTR management has almost completed the process of keeping the first pare of vulture whereas the preparation is under way in TATR and MTR. After getting permission from the Forest Department the process of releasing the scavengers will start,” he added. “It is a collaborative initiative to save the three species of vultures from looming extinction. The government got tremendous success in this and as a result Maharashtra will also get these critically endangered species soon,” Rithe added. 

 

Forest Deptt to release 2 rescued Indian vultures in PTR on Sept 4 The two juvenile Long-Billed Vultures (Indian Vulture) that were rescued by Transit Treatment Centre (TTC) from different parts of the city a few days ago, will be released in Pench Tiger Reserve (PTR) on September 4. The procedure of releasing the two scavengers will be personally monitored by Mahip Gupta, PCCF (Wildlife) and the Chief Wildlife Warden. Currently, both the vultures are under the supervision of TTC at Seminary Hills. Both the juvenile vultures were found starving. After rescuing the vultures, TTC had started their treatment. Both the scavengers are showing signs of improvement. As a result, the decision of releasing the scavengers has made by the Forest Department.