Lok Sabha Question No. 1920 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2021-07-30
Subject: Great Indian Bustards
Ministry: ENVIRONMENT,  FORESTS AND CLIMATE CHANGE
Asked by: (Dr.) Ram Shankar Katheria

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA

## MINISTRY OF ENVIRONMENT, FOREST AND CLIMATE CHANGE

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 1920

TO BE ANSWERED ON 30.07.2021

## Great Indian Bustards

## 1920.   DR. RAM SHANKAR KATHERIA:

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

- (a) the total number of Great Indian Bustards in the country;
- (b) whether the number of the Great Indian Bustards is reducing rapidly;
- (c) if  so,  the  reduction  recorded  in  their  number  during  the  last  three  years  along  with  the reasons therefor;
- (d) the  measures  being  taken  by  the  Government  for  conservation  of  the  Great  Indian Bustard;
- (e) whether  the  Government  proposes  to  set  up  a  National  Centre  for  breeding  and conservation for the Great Indian Bustard; and
- (f) if so, the locations identified for setting up of such centre, State/UT-wise including Uttar Pradesh?

## ANSWER

## MINISTER  OF  STATE  IN  THE  MINISTRY  OF  ENVIRONMENT,  FOREST  AND CLIMATE CHANGE (SHRI ASHWINI KUMAR CHOUBEY)

- (a) As per the information available with the Ministry, the total number of Great Indian Bustards in India is about 150.
- (b) and (c) There are no reports  in  Ministry  indicating  that  the  number  of  Great  Indian Bustards is reducing rapidly in recent times.
- (d), (e) & (f) Important  steps  taken  by  the  Government  for  conservation  of  Great  Indian Bustards are as given below:
- i. The  Great  Indian  Bustard  is  listed  in  Schedule-I  of  the  Wild  Life (Protection) Act, 1972, thereby, according it highest degree of legal protection from hunting.
- ii. Important habitats of Great Indian Bustards are  designated as National Parks/ Sanctuaries for their better protection.
- iii. The  species  has  been  identified  for  conservation  efforts  under  the component 'Species Recovery Programme' of the Centrally Sponsored Scheme  (CSS)  Development  of Wildlife Habitat. Financial  and  technical  assistance  is  provided  to  the  State/  Union Territory  Governments  under  the  Centrally  Sponsored  Scheme  of Development of Wildlife  Habitat  for  providing  better  protection  to Great Indian Bustard and its habitat.
- iv. Ministry has taken up an initiative on conservation breeding of the Great  Indian  Bustard  in  collaboration  with  Rajasthan,  Gujarat  and Maharashtra Forest Departments and technical support from Wildlife Institute  of  India,  Dehradun.  The  Ministry  with  financial  support from National Authority for Compensatory Afforestation Funds has sanctioned an outlay of Rs. 33.85 crores for the duration of five years for  the  programme  titled  'Habitat  Improvement  and  Conservation Breeding  of  Great  Indian  Bustard-an  integrated  approach'.  The objective  of  this  programme  is  to  build  up  captive  population  of Great  Indian  Bustard  and  to  release  the  chicks  in  the  wild  for increasing the population and also to promote in-situ conservation of the species.
- v. Ministry  has  also  constituted  a  Task  Force  for  suggesting  Ecofriendly  measures  to  mitigate  impacts  of  power  transmission  lines and  other  power  transmission  infrastructures  on  wildlife  including the Great Indian Bustard.
- vi. A site  for  establishment  of  a  Conservation  Breeding  Centre for  the Great Indian Bustard has been identified at Kota District, Rajasthan in  consultations  with  State  Forest  Departments  of  Rajasthan  and Gujarat,  Wildlife  Institute  of  India  and  international  experts,  under the  project  titled  'Habitat  Improvement  and  Conservation  Breeding of Great Indian Bustard-an integrated approach'. Currently, a satellite conservation breeding facility with incubator, hatcher, chick rearing and  housing  for  captive  birds  has  been  set  up  at  Sam,  Jaisalmer, Rajasthan  and  is  managed  by  WII  Scientists,  Rajasthan  Forest Department  with  the  technical  assistance  of  the  International  Fund for Houbara Conservation and Reneco, Abu Dhabi. A total of sixteen (16) GIB chicks, (artificially hatched from eggs collected from wild) are  being  reared  presently  in  the  satellite  conservation  breeding facility at Sam, Jaisalmer Rajasthan.

There is no proposal to establish Conservation Breeding Centre  in the State of Uttar Pradesh.