Govt. Rethinks Housing Exotic Animals At Mysore Zoo

“Whoever heard of a zoo not having a resident vet on site at all times? Little wonder animals are dying if there is no vet to oversee the daily management of the animals. Check out the deaths that have occurred at this zoo (at the end of this post), something is definitely not right if animals are dying left right & bloody centre…one more reason to close zoo’s; wild animals do not belong behind bars for the benefit of human entertainment!”

MYSORE: The series of animal deaths at the Mysore Zoo has worried the Zoo Authority of Karnataka, which has now decided to take a relook at housing exotic animals at the facility.

Two of the five green anacondas shipped in from Sri Lanka died within a year.

Now, the death of African hunting cheetah Tejas, who helped the Mysore facility in captive breeding of the big cat, has forced the ZAK to sit up and take note. “It is something serious and has to stop. I’ve decided to take it up on priority,” ZAK chairman Maruthi Rao Pawar told The Times of India.

African Hunting Cheetah Dies At Mysore Zoo

Tejas is suspected to have died of heart attack.

The zoo officials have sent the viscera to the Institute of Animal Health and Veterinary Biologicals, Bangalore, for further testing.

According to vets, Tejas could have been killed due to the diet regimen here. Pawar said the big cat had high cholesterol (fat) which could have led to its sudden death. “We feed chicken and beef to the big cats housed in the zoo unlike abroad where horsemeat is fed,” he said.

Change in lifestyle in confinement could be a major contributor, a vet said.

“Given the back-to-back deaths, we are awaiting lab results and taking a re look at housing exotic animals at the Mysore facility,” Pawar said, adding they will consult experts in India and abroad.

“We lack vets to attend to the animals at the Mysore zoo. I’ve taken up the issue with the government,” he said. “WTF…no vet on site, how utterly stupid & incompetent; perhaps had there been a vet on site the cheetah could have been saved!”

News Link:–http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2013-02-11/mysore/37038569_1_mysore-zoo-exotic-animals-govt-rethinks

News Link To Cheetah Death:-http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2013-02-09/flora-fauna/37007471_1_mysore-zoo-b-p-ravi-leipzig-zoo

Information on Mysore Zoo in India

Mysore Zoo (officially the Sri Chamarajendra Zoological Gardens) is a 245-acre (99 ha) zoo located near the palace in Mysore, India. It is one of the oldest and most popular zoos in Southern India, and is home to a wide range of species. Mysore Zoo is one of the city’s most popular

Elephant & Calf at Mysore Zoo

attractions. It was established under royal patronage in 1892, making it one of the oldest zoos in the world.

While mainly depending on entry fees for its financing, an adoption scheme introduced in the early 2000s at Mysore Zoo has been a success, with celebrities, institutions, and animal lovers contributing directly to the welfare of the zoo inmates.

Mysore Zoo Death Incidents:-

The zoo witnessed a series of animal deaths in 2004 and 2005. In August 2004, a lion-tail monkey (macaque) was found mysteriously dead.^[6] An emu and atiger were also reported to have died mysteriously. On September 4, 2004, an elephant died, reportedly of acute haemorrhagic enteritis and respiratory distress. It was reported that the illness in elephants were due to poisoning. As a safety measure, the zoo authority suspended several staff members who were allegedly responsible for the “gruesome killings”. Laboratory tests later confirmed that the two elephants, named Ganesha and Roopa, had been poisoned.^[7] This was followed by another elephant death (Komala) on 7 September despite heightened security. Komala had been scheduled to be transferred to Armenia in about a month.^[8]

On October 24, 2005, another elephant, Rohan along with his mate Ansul, died with suspicions of poisoning. The elephants were supposed to be sent toArmenia as a goodwill gesture. The Chief Minister of Karnataka immediately ordered a probe into the death of Ansul and Rohan.

Link:-http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mysore_Zoo

Illegal slaughter house in Kamptee poses risk – The Times of India

NAGPUR: A state-level committee appointed on the direction of Supreme Court has recommended action against Kamptee Municipal Council (KMC) for allowing an illegal slaughter house, said to be one of the biggest in the state.

The state’s animal husbandry department was requested by the Animal Welfare Board of India (AWBI), under the ministry of environment and forest, to conduct random inspections of at least 10 licensed slaughter houses every six months as per Supreme Court directions under the provisions of Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act 1960.

Accordingly, a six-member committee consisting of Dr S B Baseshankar, Dr D V Kadoo, Dr K S Bhide, Dr N N Zade, and two co-opted members of AWBI S N Kapoor and Abodh Aras inspected two slaughter houses – Bhandewadi and Kamptee.

On the slaughter house at Kamptee operating in Bhaji Mandi, the panel recommended AWBI to issue notice to the district collector and chief officer of KMC to stop the illegal slaughter of large animals. The panels said around 300 animals are slaughtered here daily ostensibly for domestic consumption but the meat is transported outside illegally. It is exported to Middle-East via Mumbai.

“The illegal business is thriving with blessings of local police and officials. Electric slicers have been installed to slaughter animals. It is shocking how MSEDCL has issued power meters for slicers in residential area,” asks local Congress leader Narendra Sharma.

Sharma says police express helplessness citing law and order problem. “But is the place above people’s health and environment? Water bodies are being polluted and people’s health is at risk,” Sharma said.

Cattle slaughter is allowed for domestic consumption but over the years meat export has become a lucrative business. The slaughter has no checks or certification from any authorized vet. Till the visit of the committee, municipal council used to issue ante-mortem certificates by a vet appointed by commissioner of animal husbandry.

However, ahead of the committee’s visit in April, the chief officer of KMC wrote to animal husbandry department informing there is no large animal slaughter house in Kamptee. Chief officer Ravindra Pandher says plans are afoot to shift the slaughter house outside the city.

KMC vice-president Shahajan Safahat admits it is a nuisance and not acceptable. “Earlier cattle was slaughtered for livelihood but now stakes are higher as beef is being exported. The number of cattle killed certainly doesn’t match local consumption. The slaughter house needs to be shifted elsewhere as it poses serious hazards,” Safahat says.

BJP MLA from Kamptee Chandrashekhar Bawankule says, “I’ve raised the issue several times in the House but the government is doing nothing. A group of 24 NGOs plan to file a petition against the slaughter house,” he says.

Of late, the traders have installed equipment even in households to bring every body part of the animals to use. “The processes to extract oil and cleaning skins creates stench in the area,” Bawankule said.

The MLA says police do not want to take action. Daily five truckloads of beef is transported from Kamptee but police cannot see it.

via Illegal slaughter house in Kamptee poses risk – The Times of India.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/nagpur/Illegal-slaughter-house-in-Kamptee-poses-risk/articleshow/14279688.cms

Indian Man Single-Handedly Plants 1,360 Acre Forest

Jadav “Molai” Payeng started his project 30 years ago when he was still a teenager. Then, in 1979, flood waters washed a large number of snakes ashore on the local sandbar in Jorhat, some 350 km from Guwahati. When the waters receded, Payneg (who was 16 at the time) noticed the reptiles had died due to a lack of forestry.

“The snakes died in the heat, without any tree cover. I sat down and wept over their lifeless forms. It was carnage. I alerted the forest department and asked them if they could grow trees there. They said nothing would grow there. Instead, they asked me to try growing bamboo. It was painful, but I did it. There was nobody to help me. Nobody was interested,” said Payeng, who is now 47, to The Times of India.

Payeng chose to live on the sandbar, starting a life of isolation as he began work to create a new forest. Planting the seeds by hand, watering the plants in the morning and evening, and pruning them when required, he cultivated a huge natural reserve. After a few years, the sandbar was transformed into a bamboo thicket.

Photo by gozef

“I then decided to grow proper trees. I collected and planted them. I also transported red ants from my village, and was stung many times. Red ants change the soil’s properties . That was an experience,” Payeng recalled.

Over the years, the reserve has seen a huge variety of flora and fauna blossom on the sandbar, including endangered animals like the one-horned rhino and Royal Bengal tiger. “After 12 years, we’ve seen vultures. Migratory birds, too, have started flocking here. Deer and cattle have attracted predators,” claims Payeng .

Unfortunately, locals reportedly killed a rhino which was seen in his forest, something that Payeng clearly disapproves of.  ”Nature has made a food chain; why can’t we stick to it? Who would protect these animals if we, as superior beings, start hunting them?”

Amazingly, the Assam state forest department only learnt about Payeng’s forest  in 2008 when a herd of some 100 wild elephants strayed into it after marauding through villages nearby. It was then that assistant conservator of forests Gunin Saikia met Payeng for the first time.

“We were surprised to find such a dense forest on the sandbar. Locals, whose homes had been destroyed by the pachyderms, wanted to cut down the forest, but Payeng dared them to kill him instead. He treats the trees and animals like his own children. Seeing this, we, too, decided to pitch in,” says Saikia. “We’re amazed at Payeng. He has been at it for 30 years. Had he been in any other country, he would have been made a hero.”

Read more: Indian Man Single-Handedly Plants 1,360 Acre Forest | Inhabitat – Sustainable Design Innovation, Eco Architecture, Green Building

Tiger poached in Jharan forest – Times Of India

CHANDRAPUR: A suspected case of tiger poaching was discovered in compartment No. 121 of Jharan range under FDCM north Chandrapur.

Foresters on Monday evening found a partially decomposed carcass of a full grown tiger with several of its body parts including nails and teeth missing. The carcass is around 48 hours old. Forest officers suspect electrocution as cause of death.

via Tiger poached in Jharan forest – Times Of India.

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