Lok Sabha Question No. 3473 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2018-03-16
Subject: Population of Vultures
Ministry: ENVIRONMENT,  FORESTS AND CLIMATE CHANGE
Asked by: HEENA VIJAYKUMAR GAVIT, RAJEEV SHANKARRAO SATAV, SUPRIYA SADANAND SULE, VIJAYSINH MOHITE PATIL, P.R. SUNDARAM

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA

## MINISTRY OF ENVIRONMENT, FOREST AND CLIMATE CHANGE

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO.3473

TO BE ANSWERED ON  16.03.2018

## Population of Vultures

## 3473. DR. HEENA VIJAYKUMAR GAVIT:

SHRI SATAV RAJEEV:

SHRIMATI SUPRIYA SULE:

SHRI MOHITE PATIL

VIJAYSINH SHANKARRAO:

SHRI P.R. SUNDARAM:

Will the Minister of ENVIRONMENT, FOREST AND CLIMATE CHANGE be pleased to state:

- (a) the number of vultures in the country at present, State-wise;
- (b) whether there has been a sharp decline in the population of vultures in the country and if so, the details thereof during the last three years;
- (c) whether any Nation-wide survey has been undertaken by the Wildlife department of his Ministry to find out the reasons for the decline in the number of species of vultures in the country, and if so, the details thereof;
- (d) whether any Vulture Breeding Centres have been set up by Government in collaboration with State Governments and Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) who are working for its conservation in the country;
- (e) if so, the details thereof along with the Central financial assistance sanctioned/ proposed to be sanctioned to some of the NGOs working for breeding of vultures; and
- (f) the details of the steps taken by the Government for conservation of vultures?

## ANSWER

## MINISTER  OF  STATE  IN  THE  MINISTRY  OF  ENVIRONMENT,  FOREST  AND CLIMATE CHANGE (DR. MAHESH SHARMA)

- (a) and (b) State-wise  population  of  vultures  is  not  estimated  and  collated  in  this Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change. However, based on the  surveys  on    three  species  of  critically  endangered  resident Gyps Vultures,  namely,    White  backed  Vulture,  Long  billed  Vulture  and Slender billed Vulture carried out in 2015 and published in 2017 by the Bombay Natural  History  Society,  there  were  about  6000  White  backed Vultures, 12000 Long billed Vultures and 1000 Slender billed Vultures. These three species of Vultures were very common in the country in early eighties, however, a decline in population was noticed in mid nineties and by 2007, there was a 99% decline in population of three Gyps species of

Vultures.  The  population  of  the  vultures  appeared  to  have  stabilized  by the year 2011 as the rate of decline of population has improved over the period. State-wise population of vultures is not estimated and collated in the Ministry.

- (c) Surveys  carried  out  by  State  Governments  with  the  help  of  Scientific organizations like Bombay Natural History Society in the country during the last decade indicate that the major cause of mortality of vultures was the use of veterinary non-steroidal anti-inflamatory drug diclofenac, given to cattle in pain and inflammation. The Government of India has banned the veterinary use of the drug  since 2008.
- (d) and (e) Presently, there are eight Vulture breeding centres in India. The Bombay Natural History Society in collaboration with the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change manages  four centres at Pinjore (Haryana),  Rajabhatkhawa  (West  Bengal),  Rani  (Assam)  and  Bhopal (Madhya  Pradesh).  The  other  four  centres  at  Hyderabad  (Telangana), Bhubaneshwar (Odisha), Muta, Ranchi (Jharkhand) and Junagarh (Gujarat) are established in Zoos and are managed by the respective State Forest Departments.

The Ministry has released an amount of Rs. 396.822 lakhs and Rs. 79.44 lakhs  to  the  State  of  Haryana  and  West  Bengal  respectively, for vulture conservation,  wherein  Bombay  Natural  History  Society  is  managing Vulture Conservation Breeding Centres..

- (f) The important steps taken for conservation of Vultures include:
- (i) Protection status of White backed, Long billed and Slender billed Vultures have been upgraded from Schedule-IV to Schedule-I of the Wild Life (Protection) Act, 1972.
- (ii) Government  of  India  has  formulated  a  National  Action  Plan (2006)  on  Vulture  Conservation.  The  Action  Plan  provides  for strategies, actions for containing the decline of vulture population through ex-situ, in-situ, vulture conservation.
- (iii) The  Government  of  India  has  banned  the  veterinary  use  of  the drug  diclofenac    which  was  found  to  be  the  cause  of  vulture mortality and crash in vulture population.
- (iv) The Government of India has also restricted the packaging size of human formulation of the drug to 3ml in July 2015, to prevent the misuse  of    multi-dose  vials  available  in  30  ml  presentation  in treating cattle.
- (v) Department of forests of all States/UT's have been requested to constitute a Monitoring committee for vulture conservation with a view  to  implement  the  Action  Plan  2006  and  for  recovery  of existing vulture sites.