reintroducing the cheetah

I first read the proposals of the cheetah reintroduction scheme in India back in 2009. Today it is in the news that the Central Government has approved of a $65 million plan to bring the cheetah back to India.

Cheetahs became extinct in India in the 1960s as they were excessively hunted. The plan is to import the cats from Africa, Middle-East and Iran. Kuno Palpur and Nauradehi wildlife sanctuaries in MP and Shahgarh area near Jaisalmer in Rajasthan have been selected as the reintroduction site. The program will take about 3 years to complete in various phases and will have IUCN involvement along the way.

Jairam Ramesh the Indian Minister of Environment has been quoted saying that the reintroduction of the cheetah will improve the health of Indian grasslands. Grasslands are one of the most productive terrestrial ecosystems and have been severely exploited by over-grazing and agriculture. Restoring the balance of this ecosystem will mean that other species depending on the grasslands will also flourish. The endangered imperiled great Indian bustard and caracal among others will benefit from the reintroduction of an apex predator whose role is to restore balance to the ecosystem.

One of the most successful reintroduction programs to date is the Yellowstone program to bring back the wolves. It was fraught with complications and almost did not take off, the cheetah program will face similar challenges. Animals that are reintroduced suffer various degrees of stress from transportation to adaptive problems that can affect their reproductive abilities.

If this program is successful, it will be a great boost to Indian wildlife as well as tourism in these areas. The ecosystem of the grass-lands will also benefit greatly due to the introduction of an apex predator. This reintroduction program should also be done without diverting funds away from other conservation programs in the country, most importantly the tiger conservation.

This is something that has been promised by the MoEF and only time will tell if the program can be deemed a success. With only 10,000 cheetahs left in the wild world-over, increasing their range is essential to the species' survival. Cheetahs unlike other cats don't breed well in captivity and are prone to various genetic ailments and diseases due to less diversity and inter-breeding.

Introduction of the cheetah in India will see that the species thrives as a separate sub-species in the years to come. The Asiatic cheetah thrives only in Iran and it is critically endangered - this is the same species that was once abundant in India. With the reintroduction, India can boast that it is the only country in the world that hosts 6 of the 8 big cat species.

I'm skeptical and hopeful at the same time. It seems to me that Indian wildlife authorities are trying to open a new can of worms without figuring out methods to deal with existing wildlife problems. All of the big cats in India are endangered - with this kind of track record, can the cheetah hope to survive?

Photo: Painting of Akbar hunting wiht locally trapped Asiatic Cheetahs c. 1602. He was said to have had 1000 cheetahs assisting in his royal hunts.

eggplant interrupted

I have spent a lot of time ruminating the phenomenal decision taken by Jairam Ramesh, India's Environmental Minister. I have concluded that in the face of corrupt politics and skewed ideas of agricultural progress: it is a monumental affirmation. It is more power to the GM Free India Coalition, to the science of right and indeed, farmers all over the nation.

Today I am slightly stunned because I doubted if this moratorium would actually happen - so clearly resounding its logical voice and based so solidly in scientific fact. This decision has come after public debates, back and forth consultations, news cycle after news cycle, protests and general chaos which is a confirmation to the power of people. The government will listen, it has to listen when what is being demanded is something as basic as safe food.

The hold on the commercial introduction of Bt Brinjal comes after key brinjal growing states announced their own state bans. The states of West Bengal, Orissa and Bihar which account for 60% of brinjal production announced a ban earlier this year. This was followed by bans in Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Uttarakhand etc. The massive public pressure on the Environmental Ministry also has played an important role. Through a Greenpeace campaign alone; 40,000 emails landed up in Jairam Ramesh's personal inbox protesting the introduction of Bt Brinjal. These two important factors have worked together to lead to this triumph. It is a day of celebration for anti-GM campaigners, every sane politician (Sharad Pawar does not qualify), brinjal farmers, consumers and the glorious heritage of Indian agriculture.

Brinjal, eggplant or aubergine is indigenous to the sub-continent and India grows over 2000 varieties of brinjal in over 500,000 hectares of land. It has been doing so for almost 4000 years. I do wish the Indian government will take a cue from the outcome of the campaign and devise methods to change agri-policy by pushing for more organic food, less pesticide/fertilizer use and definitely no GM. The humble brinjal has become India's most talked about vegetable and I predict; the symbol of the country's anti-GM movement and hopefully from here, a desperately needed agricultural revolution. Jairam Ramesh has kept his promise for a "fair outcome", he is indeed the man of the hour and has restored a little faith in Indian bureaucracy.

However celebrations cannot last long and there is much to be done on the GE front. Currently there are several indigenous crops reaching the last stages of testing like rice, okra, tomatoes - all of which are widely cultivated and consumed. These GM 'events' are sitting in line waiting for approval. So the battle may be over, but the war still remains.

safe food now!

The Indian food supply is on the brink. The first GM-crop, Bt Brinjal has been approved by the GEAC for release. The approval by the Genetic Engineering Approval Committee was expected on the basis of test results submitted by seed company Mahyco which is a subsidiary of Monsanto who developed the crop.

After two reports were presented to the GEAC, approval was delayed until April 2009. Mahyco's results were sent to several independent scientists for review and two studies showed several inconsistencies. One study by Dr. Seralini in France showed that Bt Brinjal affected animals like rats, rabbits, goats etc and even induced antibiotic resistance. The Seralini study has been instrumental is putting a delay to the GEAC approval. however the roadblock has disintegrated. Requests for Mahyco's studies to be made public has been refused by the GEAC. The Gene Campaign has filed a PIL to ensure that no GMOs are introduced without proper testing. However now that the GEAC has approved Bt Brinjal it is now time for the Center to decide.

The Environmental Minister has previously said that he does not support the release of GM food, so it is time now to make good on his promise. The release of GM-Brinjal into the mainstream will open the flood-gates for other crops to follow. A previous post talks about the environmental and health hazards of GM crops which are well documented and it is in public health interest to ensure that such crops are not encouraged. Write, fax or email Jairam Ramesh now to let him know your views.

Email Address for Jairam Ramesh: jairam@vsnl.com or jairam@sansad.nic.in or mosef@nic.in

For more information look here.

Photo Courtesy: Down to Earth

thoughts...post-world environment day

June 5th was celebrated as World Environment Day and from a previous post on similar 'events' my sentiments are clearly established. This year for me, there was a lot of excitement around the day. Excitement that made me believe; because sometimes even in the most dire times, another world is possible.

On the eve of World Environment day, one of the things that happened was a large 80-foot banner that was hung off the Mumbai-Thane Bridge which was targetted at bringing attention to the effects of climate change on the Indian monsoon. This action was part of Greenpeace's efforts to bring climate change firmly into the spotlight of national politics and debate. The monsoon which is the lifeline of so many people in India cannot be wagered in the face of development that can be potentially unsustainable. All of the devastating effects of failed monsoons including loss of revenue has been published as a report entitled 'Monsoon Wager' by Greenpeace India.

The second thing that happened which was much quieter but nonetheless important was the stand that the Environmental Minster Mr. Jairam Ramesh took on GM-food crops. The GM-battle within India has been fraught with complications, set-backs and frustrations. The lack of labelling laws, prevalence of mis-information and regulation will eventually lead to a potential mine-field if precautionary methods are not put in place now. Victories are rare and government officials taking a precautionary stand, are even rarer.

Since then obviously, the excitement has died down a little bit and life has gone back to being existence for most part. But what I'd like to take away from productive days like this one, is that even in the most challenging times, change can be demanded and even for the most cynical of us: hope floats.