Nod awaited for management committee for rare softshell turtles

Deepender Deswal

Hisar, November 18

Kajlaheri village of Fatehabad, which is home to about 400 Indian softshell turtles, has been waiting for the Community Reserve Management Committee’s approval for the past three years. A village pond, abode of rare species of turtles, is protected under Schedule 1 of the Wildlife Protection Act.

Fatehabad village home to 400 Indian softshell turtles

• Kajlaheri village of Fatehabad district is home to about 400 Indian softshell turtles (Nilssonia gangetica)
• A village pond, abode of rare species of turtles, is protected under the Wildlife Protection Act
• Villagers, mostly belonging to the environment-friendly Bishnoi community, have been conserving the pond for 100 years
• The species had been tagged endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN)

Villagers, mostly belonging to the environment-friendly Bishnoi community, have been conserving this pond to protect these turtles for nearly 100 years. However, amid the threat of its hunting and smuggling by unscrupulous elements, environment activists and villagers took it upon themselves to ensure that the rare species of the turtles remains alive in the village pond.

Vinod Karwasra, a wildlife activist in the region who had made efforts along with the villagers to get the pond notified as a community reserve, said an area of 63 kanal and 2 marla had been notified as the community reserve under Section 36-C of the Wildlife Protection Act-1972 and which was named as Guru Gorakhnath Community Reserve in May 2019.

“There is a need for a management committee for framing and execution of conservation plans for the reserve. Somehow, it has not been getting approval from the state government for the past three years. We have written to the concerned officials multiple times but there is no response from the officials,” said Karwasra, adding that the village had sent a proposal to the Wildlife Department twice but to no avail.

Rameshwar Dass, a wildlife official, said: “The Wildlife Department has done some work for the conservation of the pond to ensure safety and breeding of this rare species of turtles. The entry of animals and people has been banned in the pond and a separate pond has been developed in the vicinity for animals,” he said.

Karwasra said the villagers were so passionate about turtles that they would not let any unknown person get close to it without their permission. “I accompanied a French woman, who is doing work on wildlife in India, two days ago and a group of villagers immediately arrived at the spot. Though they cooperate with the tourists and wildlife experts, we are always cautious about unscrupulous elements,” he said.

Satpal Kajal, a villager, said these turtles were a part of their village and heritage. “It is their natural habitat. We have developed a special bond with them and whenever a villager claps near the pond, these turtles gather on a dune,” he said.

“Though we appreciate the work done by the previous village sarpanch, villagers want that the new sarpanch should get the Community Reserve Management Committee approved as soon as possible,” he said.