To think about co-existence of man and animals, particularly wild animals may sound untenable, but new initiatives taken by the Government for conservation of the Askot musk deer landscape in Pithoragarh at a time when hundreds of families have been rendered homeless by disasters this rainy season, are aimed at providing livelihood options for these families who have been opponents of wildlife sanctuary in the region.
To minimise growing human interventions in Askot wildlife sanctuary and more importantly, to minimise dependence of the locals on the forests for green fodder, firewood and other requirements, the Government is going to explore livelihood options for residents of this region by starting Biodiversity Conservation and Rural livelihood Improvement Project (BCRlIP) for development and conservation of the entire Askot landscape in Pithoragarh soon in association with the local people.
The ambitious project will primarily focus on bio-diversity conservation and how to find rural livelihood options around this wildlife sanctuary which is located at an elevation of about 6,000 ft. This is about a
Rs27 crore project and both the Central and State Governments will work jointly on this project involving local people. Efforts on part of the Government had been taken much earlier in this direction, but execution of this project could not take place for certain reasons like Assembly polls last year. Hopefully, according to department officials now work would start on this project soon.
It is worth mention here that on account of certain external factors like presence of human habitations close to the musk deer habitat, a much needed push has not been given to the wildlife conservation efforts in this region of late. The wildlife experts believe this project would not only help the people of this area reduce their dependence on natural resources from protected areas by exploring livelihood options, but also improve the bio-diversity of the region.
The 600 sq km Askot wildlife sanctuary near Indo-Nepal border in Pithroragarh is home to rare wildlife species like musk deer and a rich bio-diversity. A wide variety of herbs, shrubs, trees and climbers only gives that impression. Among others teak, gravelia and eucalyptus also add to its rich bio-diversity. Apart from the endangered species like musk deer, there are also different types of birds, reptiles and many other kinds of animals in this park. Recently the government ordered exclusion of 111 villages from the sanctuary. “Keeping these villages out of the wildlife sanctuary won’t disturb our plan to conserve bio-diversity and explore livelihood options for people as this project is for the development of the entire Askot landscape,” said Pithoragarh Divisional Forest Officer (DFO) AK Upadhyay while talking to The Pioneer.
Side by side conserving flora and fauna of this musk deer sanctuary, the primary focus of this project would be exploring livelihood options for the local villagers by promoting horticulture, agriculture, animal husbandry sectors to name a few, added the DFO.
Since the said project is part of a long term plan for development of the Askot landscape, therefore, such initiatives on part of the Government may go a long in maintaining the livelihood options for people without disturbing the wildlife in this Himalayan zone.