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Mrudul Godbole
09-09-2009, 08:06 PM
Plan to cull cormorants draws flak
Ignatius Pereira
The little cormorant is protected under the Wildlife Protection Act.

KOLLAM: A scheme under the Integrated District Development Plan (IDDP) for Kollam to cull and reduce the population of the little cormorant (Phalacrocorax niger) by 70 per cent is facing strong resistance from environmental activists and organisations. The IDDP is a government document prepared by the District Planning Committee.

Cormorants are protected under the Wildlife Protection Act.

The IDDP scheme states that these fish-eating birds are a major cause for the depletion of fish wealth in inland waterbodies. Fishermen depending on inland water fishing for their livelihood have expressed concern over this for long.

The IDDP report states that the time has come for controlling the little cormorant population. The birds are gregarious in nature and are voracious fish-eaters, the report says. “Anyone observing the birds in inland waterbodies will certainly endorse the concern of the fishermen.”

Gunning them down -

The scheme aims at culling 70 per cent of these birds from its present population of about 1,00,000 in the district. Under the scheme, an incentive of Rs.5 a bird will be given to a trained person for shooting down the bird with an air gun. The scheme has an outlay of Rs.4 lakh.

The outlay is for the cost of the air gun, pellets and training. The scheme will be implemented during 2009-10 by the Fisheries Department in coordination with the Forest Department and local self-government institutions. Selected traditional inland fishermen will be trained for the purpose.

The scheme states that the birds will be hunted only during evening when they return to roost.

Grama panchayats in the district to be covered by the scheme are Alapad, Chavara, Neendakara, Thekkumbhagam, Thevalakara, Thrikkaruva, Panayam, Munro Thuruthu, Mayyanad, Thrikadavur, West Kallada, Perayam, Karunagapally, Clapana, K.S. Puram, East Kallada, Poothakulam, Adichanallur, Panmana, Paravur municipality and Kollam Corporation.

‘Foolish plan’ -
K.K. Sivakumar, State Education Officer of the World Wildlife Fund, told The Hindu that the scheme would be opposed. Terming the scheme “foolish and a violation of the law,” he said that since the birds are covered by the Wildlife Protection Act it is the duty of the government to protect them.

Inland waterbodies are the natural habitat of the birds. If they are a threat to fish farms, the owners can only strive to keep the birds at bay. They cannot be eliminated.

He reiterated that the scheme would be opposed and the WWF would create awareness against it if the government decided to go ahead with it.

Link - http://www.hindu.com/2009/09/07/stories/2009090753550400.htm

Sabyasachi Patra
09-09-2009, 08:43 PM
I am reminded of Albert Einstein's words:

"Only two things are infinite: The universe and human stupidity. And I am not so sure about the former."

It is well known that our planners have an absolutely narrow vision and have no idea about wildlife and environment and its impact on our lives. However, I am amazed that the forest department is also involved in this muddle headed idea. Once Tigers, dholes etc were termed as "vermin" during the british rule and were hunted down. We had later realised the foolishness. Unfortunately, it seems history is going to repeat itself.

Please write a letter or email to the Hon'ble Chief Minister of Kerala Shri V S Achutanandan.
Email:chiefminister@keralacm.gov.in
Postal address:
Chief minister of Kerala,
Room No.141, Third Floor, North Block,
Govt. Secretariat,
Thiruvananthapuram 1
Tel:0471-2333812
Fax: +91 - 471-2333489

In a democracy public opinion matters. So please write emails, letters, faxes requesting the Hon'ble Chief Minister to intervene. I am sure wise counsel will prevail.

Regards,
Sabyasachi

Rajeev Mathew
15-09-2009, 04:52 PM
Culls after studying the carrying capacities have been calculated are understandable. But, 70% of the population! Crazy!! To top it Air guns of Indian origin are not powerful enough to kill instantaneously. And again fisher-folk would shoot more edible birds - doves - and other animals - squirrels for instance. The pellets are lead. So who will address lead poisoning? The saline / brackish water would convert metal lead into soluble lead salts to the detriment of everything. A very feather-brained idea. If a population is removed, some other species will occupy its niche - may be to the detriment of the ecosystem, and the livelihood based on biological diversity.

Cheers,
Rajeev M.

Bibhav Behera
16-09-2009, 09:11 AM
Its a really stupid move exemplifying the myopic vision of our 'leaders' ... Outrageous decisions taken at the flick of a finger dont make them good decision makers... Strange, how could they even come up with such a decision... 70%????????

Sabyasachi Patra
16-09-2009, 12:45 PM
Our member Mohammed Dilawar has suggested that we should also file a petition with the Hon'ble President of India. The link to the site is as follows:

http://helpline.rb.nic.in/Home.aspx

Also, there is a grievance redressal site

http://pgportal.gov.in/index.html

He has mentioned that petitions in these two sites are helpful. So I have already done so. You can register your complaint as well.

Regards,
Sabyasachi

T R Janardanan
27-06-2011, 09:58 PM
I am reminded of Albert Einstein's words:

"Only two things are infinite: The universe and human stupidity. And I am not so sure about the former."

It is well known that our planners have an absolutely narrow vision and have no idea about wildlife and environment and its impact on our lives. However, I am amazed that the forest department is also involved in this muddle headed idea. Once Tigers, dholes etc were termed as "vermin" during the british rule and were hunted down. We had later realised the foolishness. Unfortunately, it seems history is going to repeat itself.

Please write a letter or email to the Hon'ble Chief Minister of Kerala Shri V S Achutanandan.
Email:chiefminister@keralacm.gov.in
Postal address:
Chief minister of Kerala,
Room No.141, Third Floor, North Block,
Govt. Secretariat,
Thiruvananthapuram 1
Tel:0471-2333812
Fax: +91 - 471-2333489

In a democracy public opinion matters. So please write emails, letters, faxes requesting the Hon'ble Chief Minister to intervene. I am sure wise counsel will prevail.

Regards,
Sabyasachi

PLEASE CORRECT THE NAME OF C.M. OF KERALA.Shri.OOmmen Chandi is the present C.M of Kerala

Mrudul Godbole
28-06-2011, 10:56 AM
PLEASE CORRECT THE NAME OF C.M. OF KERALA.Shri.OOmmen Chandi is the present C.M of Kerala

The discussion you are referring to was in 2009, now the CM is changed and the cormorant issue is resolved. So please mail to Mr. Oomen Chandy for stopping the wild boar killing. For more details you can check the link below -

Kerala farmers can kill wild boars - Indiawilds: Land of the Tiger. Conservation, Wildlife Photography, Communities (http://www.indiawilds.com/forums/showthread.php?t=6991)

Thanks for posting.