Protecting wild animals is our religion: High Court
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Raipur. The PIL filed regarding the conservation of leopard in the forests of Chhattisgarh was heard in the division bench of Chief Justice Ramesh Sinha and Justice Ravindra Aggarwal. The bench said that the first concern should be about the safety and conservation of the wild animals roaming in the forest areas of the state. It is our duty to protect them. The Forest Department officer admitted before the Division Bench that whenever such a problem arises, the department catches the leopard and releases it in the dense forest area. They don’t even wear radio collars. The Division Bench has issued a notice to the Forest Department and directed it to submit its reply along with an affidavit.
Apart from leopard, Nitin Singhvi has filed a public interest litigation in Chhattisgarh High Court regarding the safety and conservation of wild animals. The central government’s guidelines have been cited in the petition. According to the guidelines, first of all the forest department officers have to identify the leopard which may cause problems to the residents. He has to be caught, fitted with a radio collar and left in such forest areas which are suitable for habitation. Leopards are very fond of forest areas where they live. If they are released away from their habitat, they return back to their forest area of residence. Apart from this, leaving them away from their habitat area also causes mental trauma. While returning, there is a possibility of conflict between him and the villagers living in the village situated in the middle of the forest. Information about the negligence of the Forest Department has also been given in the petition. According to the petition, when leopard problem arose in Kanker, three leopards were caught together without marking them. One was left in the forest, two were brought to Raipur. One of them died of septicemia. The other was taken back to Kanker and released into the forest. Forest Department officials know that the leopard is injected with anesthetic and while coming out of unconsciousness, due to its struggle and panic, it gets injured after hitting the cage. Internal injuries lead to septicemia.
