Students stage drama to highlight human-leopard conflict in Guwahati

GUWAHATI: In a bid to raise awareness about the consequences of human-wildlife conflict (HWC), students of Natun Fatasil Town High School in Guwahati performed a drama as part of Wildlife Week, highlighting the plight of the Indian leopards in Gotanagar and Fatasil Reserve Forest in the city as well as the consequences of human-leopard conflict (HLC) faced by the local people. The Indian Leopard is found in 2 Wildlife Sanctuaries (WLS) and 7 Reserve Forests (RF) and its peripheral areas of Kamrup (M) District. In the last few years, there has been an increase in human-leopard conflict (HLC) in several populous localities in Guwahati. Such increasing conflicts can be attributed to the increasing human population in the city, which has decreased traditional habitat for the large carnivores. The density of large carnivores in an area is also dependent on their prey base.

The HLC in Guwahati arises from urban settlements on the fringes of the forests as well as the presence of stray leopards in human habitations in search of livestock as easy prey. However, studies suggest that leopards can live near human-inhabited areas with low levels of conflict depending on the goodwill of the people and communities (Source: Bharali et al., 2021: Nowhere to Live: Squeezing Habitat and Human-Leopard Conflicts in Maligaon, Guwahati, and Assam in Applied Ecology and Environmental Sciences).

The Wildlife Week conceptualized in 1952 is observed annually from October 2–8 with the objective of raising awareness to serve the long-term goal of safeguarding the lives of wildlife through critical action. This year, the observance is based on the theme “Partnerships for Wildlife Conservation”. As compared to wildlife in the Protected Areas (PA), the wildlife habitat outside the PAs is prone to anthropogenic activities due to the tussle for space, leading to encroachment in the forest areas and degradation of wildlife habitat due to human intervention. Such is the plight of Panthera pardus fusca (Indian Leopard), a Scheduled I species under the Indian Wildlife (Protection) Act 1972, in Assam and particularly in Guwahati city, stated a press release.

Also Read:   Assam's First Leopard Census Starts in North Guwahati

Also Watch: