The vulture population in India that has declined by 99 per cent, may soon get a boost. The environment Minister Prakash Javadekar recently launched the Gyps Vulture Reintroduction Programme in Haryana, the first of its kind in Asia. The programme, according to him will restore the country’s vulture population to 40 million in the next decade.
As part of the program, two Himalayan griffon vultures were released into the wild from the Jatayu Captive Breeding Centre in Pinjore. The Minister then handed over 10 captive bred vultures from the centre in Pinjore to field director, Van Vihar National Park, Madhya Pradesh, as a part of the genetic management of captive vulture population.
“Diclofenac is a wonder drug for cattle and humans, but is toxic for vultures. So we told the Government and found an alternative for it. But the threat still exists,” says Dr. Vibhu Prakash, principal scientist at Bombay Natural History Programme and who is involved in the programme. According to him, diclofenac is still being given to cattle in small quantities.
He also pointed to the other natural challenges. Vultures have a slow breeding time. They start breeding by the age of five or six, but can give only one egg per year. Worse, still 50 per cent of the newborns die once they leave the nest.