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CONTENT
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LESSON PLAN

LESSON PLAN : E 5
WILDLIFE CONSERVATION PROJECTS IN INDIA
Period - One
Type - Lecture
Code - E 6
Term - III (SD/SW)
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Training Aids
1. Computer, Projector, Charts, Pointer. Black Board & Chalk.

Time Plan
2. (a) Introduction - 05 Mins
(b) Wildlife Conservation - 15 Mins
(c) Wild Life Projects - 15 Mins
(d) Conclusion - 05 Mins

INTRODUCTION
3. The Indian subcontinent is blessed with a natural habitat of a large and varied wildlife. We can
find some of the most magnificent as well as the rarest wildlife species of the world in the country.
The beauty and variety we see in the jungles of India is difficult to be expressed in words. However,
the past few decades have seen the greed and negligence of human beings leading to large-scale
poaching, habitat destruction, resulting in animal - human conflict with rapid decline in the
population of most of the wild animals and birds.

4. Conservation of Wildlife in India has slowly and gradually been understood by all. Today, efforts
are being made towards wildlife conservation to preserve this natural wealth. Numerous wildlife
conservation projects have been undertaken in India, both, at the government, as well as the
individual level, to protect the wildlife of the subcontinent.

AIM
5. To acquaint the cadets about Wildlife Conservation and Projects in India.

PREVIEW
6. The lecture will be conducted in following parts:-

(a) Part I - Wildlife Conservation.

(b) Part II - Wildlife Projects in India.

(a) PART I : WILDLIFE CONSERVATION
Need for Conservation
7. Threats to Wildlife. The major threats being faced by the wildlife in India are:-
(a) Decreasing Capacity. The wildlife sanctuaries of India have become overcrowded and their
capacity has decreased to quite an extent. This is one of the major reasons for the depleting
population of wild animals in India.

(b) Increasing Fatalities. Tourism in the national parks of the country is increasing day by day.
One of the reasons for this is a rise in the popularity of eco-tourism and adventure tourism. This has
led to a growth in vehicle pollution increasing wildlife road fatalities, apart from leading to a damage
of the natural habitat of birds and animals.

(c) Increasing Forest Fires. Increase in forest fires due to campfires by visitors or deliberate fires
by poachers / villagers has had a damaging effect. These fires not only kill animals, but also destroy
their natural habitat.

(d) Increased Motor Boat Activity. The wildlife of coastal areas is constantly disturbed by
personal watercrafts, like jet skis or wave runners. These personal watercrafts enter shallow waters
and expel nesting birds from their roosts. Such activities are disturbing the mating pattern of birds.

(e) Release of Chemicals/Toxins. Releasing of chemicals and other toxic effluents into the water
bodies has led to poisoning of the water. The animals and birds drinking such water face a fatal
threat. Even the population of fish, living in such water bodies, is declining at a fast pace.

(f) Climate Changes. The climate changes taking place in the world today, are affecting not only
humans, but also the wildlife. The natural habitat as well as migration patterns of the animals and
birds is experiencing disturb patterns.

(g) Increase in Poaching. The threat of poaching has been haunting the wildlife of India since
ages. Even after the establishment of wildlife sanctuaries and national parks, the threat of poaching
has not been totally eliminated.

8. Maintenance of Food-Chain. Conservation of wildlife is extremely important for sustaining the

natural ecosystem. All living organisms of the biosphere are connected to each other by a common
factor of food. Animals form a very important part of this food chain and there is a need to maintain
equilibrium. Any disruption to this food chain can have major effects. Herbivores and carnivores are
required to maintain the appropriate balance of nature. If all lions, tigers and other big cats vanish
from the earth, the deer population would increase manifold thus bringing a disastrous effect on the
 plants and grass. Therefore it is essential that the population of carnivores is maintained through
wildlife conservation.

Wildlife Conservation Measures

9. Wildlife Projects. Measures to conserve Indian Wildlife include various Projects such as Project
Tiger, Jungle Lodges and Nature Camps. These are the measures taken towards the conservation
of Indian wildlife. It also includes reduced cutting of trees, since it is clear that when forests are cut
down, wildlife is naturally threatened. Some beautiful and interesting species have already become
extinct. Further, measures for conservation of Indian wildlife have been taken for curbing secret
poaching and shooting that can lead to the complete extinction of rhinoceros, the famous Royal
Bengal tiger and the elephant.

10. Expansion of Sanctuary System. Habitat creation was another important measure, like for
instance, various National Parks, Zoological Parks, Botanical Gardens, Sanctuaries and Biosphere
Reserves have been constructed that serve as protected areas for the wildlife. They help in
conserving the wild life in their state.

11. Breeding in captivity has also helped in the survival of many wild life species.

12. Mass Awareness and Education. Another important significant measure of conservation of
Indian wildlife is mass awareness and education. Awareness about the endangered species and
wildlife is considered essential for protecting them. People are educated and encouraged to
participate in preservation processes of wildlife.

13. Wildlife Protection Act 1972. Hunting has been made punishable by law in many countries
including India. In 1972, Wildlife protection Act was passed which provides legal protection to
wildlife and endangered species in particular.

(b) PART II : WILDLIFE PROJECTS IN INDIA

14. General. The need to create wild life projects is to preserve the endangered species. It must be
understood that some animal species are more endangered than others, because their numbers
have fallen to alarming levels due to poaching, reduction of habitat, pollution of water bodies and
other man made disturbances like electromagnetic waves from mobile towers. Some of these
projects are funded by the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) while, others are funded by the Government.

15. Project Tiger. In order to save the Tiger, the Indian government started the 'Project Tiger' in
1973-74, with the objective of restraining, as well as augmenting the declining population of tigers
in the country. Under the project, nine wildlife sanctuaries were taken over and developed into tiger
reserves. These reserves were developed as exact replicas of the varied terrains of the country,
with their core area being free of any human movement. With time, the number of sanctuaries
under the ambit of 'Project Tiger' was increased and by 2003, it had been increased to 27. Project
Tiger helped increase the population of these tigers from 1,200 in the 1970s to 1700 in 2011.

16. Project Elephant. Project Elephant (PE), is a centrally sponsored scheme, launched in
February 1992, to provide financial and technical support to major elephant bearing States in the
country, for protection of elephants, their habitats and corridors. It also seeks to address the issues
of human-elephant conflict and welfare of domesticated elephants. The Project is being
implemented in 13 States / UTs , viz. Andhra Pradesh , Arunachal Pradesh , Assam , Jharkhand ,
Karnataka , Kerala , Meghalaya , Nagaland , Orissa , Tamil Nadu , Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh and
West Bengal. 25 Elephant Reserves (ERs) extending over about 58,000 sq km have been formally
notified by various State Governments till now. The estimated population of wild elephants is in
excess of 25000.

17. Project Hangul. The Kashmiri stag also called Hangul is a subspecies of Central Asian Red
Deer native to Northern India. This deer lives in groups of two to 18 individuals in dense riverine
forests, high valleys and mountains of the Kashmir Valley and Northern Chamba, in Himachal
Pradesh. In Kashmir, it is found in the Dachigam National Park, at elevations of 3,035 meters. The
population of these deers has fallen from 5,000 animals in the beginning of the 20th century to about
only about 150 animals by 1970. However, the state of Jammu & Kashmir, along with the IUCN and
the WWF prepared a project for the protection of these animals, named as Project Hangul. This
brought great results and the population of this species has now increased to over 340 by 1980.

18. Crocodile Conservation Project. The Indian Crocodile Conservation Project is considered
among the more successful of conservation initiatives in the world. It has pulled back the once
threatened crocodilians from the brink of extinction and placed them on a good path of recovery.
The Project has not just produced a large number of crocodiles, but has contributed towards
conservation in a number of related fields as well.

19. Project Sea Turtle. A significant proportion of world‘s Olive Ridley Turtle population migrates
every winter to Indian coastal waters, for nesting mainly at Eastern Coast I Orissa. The Ministry of
Environment & Forests in 1999 has initiated the Sea Turtle Conservation Project in collaboration
with UNDP, with the objective of conservation of Olive Ridley Turtles and other endangered marine
turtles. The Wildlife Institute of India, Dehradun has been designated as the Implementing Agency.
The project is being implemented in 10 coastal States of the country with special emphasis in the
State of Orissa.
20. Vulture Conservation in India. India has nine species of vultures in the world. The population
of three species i.e. White-backed Vulture, Slender-billed Vulture and Long- billed Vulture in the
wild has declined drastically over the past decade. The decline of Gyps genus in India has been put
at 97% by 2005.Due to this evidence, all three vulture species were listed by IUCN, the World
Conservation Union, in 2000 as ‗Critically Endangered‘. The workshop to prepare an Asian Vulture
Recovery Plan held at Parwanoo in Himachal Pradesh, India in February 2004 recommended the
establishment of captive holding and captive breeding facilities for three species of Gyps vultures at
six different places in South Asia, besides implementing a ban on veterinary use of Diclofenac.
These centres would serve as source for reintroduction of the birds after removal of the cause of
mortality from the environment.

21. Indo-Russian Cooperation on Migratory Birds. MoEF has also signed a protocol with
Russian counterpart, for conservation of migratory bird species between the two countries. It has
been agreed to develop joint projects of mutual interest on migration and nesting behaviour of
Siberian Cranes and common cranes and also to exchange scientific and official information on
issues relating to wetland management, conservation of avi-fauna etc.

22. Other Projects. After the success of animal projects, the government has now initiated several
new projects for conservation of other endangered animals like, The Himalayan Musk Deer Ecology
and Conservation Project, Project Lion, Project Snow Leopard and endangered Birds / Pheasant
Projects.

CONCLUSION
23. The Indian subcontinent is blessed with a natural habitat of a large and varied wildlife. We can
find some of the most magnificent as well as the rarest wildlife species of the world in the country.