THE JHARKHAND STORY NETWORK
Daltonganj, February 15: The issue of Nilgai (Blue bulls) came up at the remote outreach of the Palamu administration led by its DC Shashi Ranjan on Friday.
People, mostly the Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Group (PVTG) narrated how the herds of the Nilgais are ruining their agriculture and economy.
The Nilgais come, eat, destroy and walk off the field. There is no way to stop them.
DC Shashi Ranjan told this correspondent today Saturday “People brought to our notice the menace of Nilgais. It’s harassing and ruining the cultivators.”
Nilgai collisions pose safety threats
Nilgais have gained enormous centre stage. They come on the four lanes and hit any car. Recently it hit a car and died causing a lakh worth of damage to the car.
One life was lost in the Hussainabad subdivision when a biker’s heart was pierced by the horn of a frenzied Nilgai desperate to cross the road.
Divisional Forest Officer, Medininagar, Satyam Kumar said an adult Nilgai runs @ 29 kmph. It’s collision with a human or machine both is dangerous.
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Attempts to address issue face challenges
Satyam Kumar said a rough calculation is that there are 500 Nilgais in Palamu district.
They have come from Bihar. Satyam Kumar said it’s all a futile exercise to push these Nilgais back to Bihar. It’s not a solution but it’s like a problem left untreated.
Reminded that elephants are shooed like it, pushing them to the state they have come to which Satyam Kumar said “It’s a flawed exercise.”
Last year the state Forest, Environment and Climate Change Department had taken a decision to translocate 500 Nilgais into the Mahuadanr range of the Palamu Tiger Reserve (PTR).
Satyam Kumar agreed this plan to translocate Nilgais couldn’t take off. If the Nilgais are translocated, it will augment the prey base of the PTR.
There is a strong need to raise vegetative habitat, adequate forage and water bodies to contain the Nilgais from venturing into the farmers’ crop and vegetable cultivation, suggested Satyam Kumar.
Need for long-term solutions
Nilgais are in the length and breadth of Palamu district but it has a high concentration in blocks like Chainpur, Mohammadganj and Paton.
Additional Collector Kundan Kumar who was there in the outreach programme said the issue of the Nilgais has to be handled with care and precision as public anger and frustration arising from the destruction of the crops and vegetables by the Nilgais is something not to be ignored or overlooked.
