Ahmedabad:
The Gujarat government on Thursday issued a notice to a senior forest official over his “irresponsible” and “undesirable” statements about the Asiatic lions and their conservation. The notice was issued to Chief Wildlife Warden of the state Shyamal Tikadar, the government said in a statement.
The government said it “does not agree with such personal views, which are far from truth and facts”. “For his irresponsible statements against the government policies, the Gujarat government has decided to seek his explanation and issue a notice as per All India Service (Conduct) Rules,” the statement said.
On the eve of the World Lion Day on August 10, a webinar was organised by the Central Zoo Authority, in which the Chief Wildlife Warden and Principal Chief Conservator of Forests (Wildlife) was one of the panelists, it added. “During this webinar, he spoke about the conservation of Asiatic lions in Gujarat. He presented certain objectionable views and made undesirable comments on various issues,” it said without elaborating.
In a video of the webinar, Tikadar, a 1986-batch IFS officer, can be heard suggesting that people should look at lions or wildlife more as “a resource than an asset”. He termed the Asiatic lions of Gir forest as a “commodity which we have branded, but can not sell”.
Giving example of African countries, Tikadar had broadly suggested to earn revenue from lions, which according to him should be treated like a resource. He even suggested that lions can be managed in a better way if they are “less” in numbers.
“How many lions society can tolerate? We are sitting on a time bomb,” he said, adding that lions in Gujarat are no more wild as “70 to 80 per cent are microchipped”. He even termed the conservation efforts of forest department merely as a “stop-gap arrangement”.
However, the state government said on Thursday that Asiatic lion is the pride not only of Gujarat, but of the entire country. “The government of Gujarat is fully committed to the conservation of Asiatic lions. Gir in Gujarat is the last abode of Asiatic lions and the conservation efforts of the state government have been a great success,” it said in the statement.
The population of lions has grown steadily over the years due to the intensive management practices and support of the local communities, it added..
