Himalayan tahrs may return home, thanks to S.Africa’s eco-cleansing
PRERNA BINDRA

MUMBAI, MARCH 2: Himalayan tahrs which are being eradicated in South Africa under a plan to remove alien fauna from national parks in the region, may soon find refuge in India if the minister for social justice and empowerment Maneka Gandhi and the external affairs ministry has its way.

The Himalayan tahrs are an endangered species of mountain goat, which take their name from the region they originate from. Five of these animals were taken about 70 years ago by Cecil John Rhodes from India to South Africa where they were released in the wild in a place known as Table Mountain located within a wildlife park.

The current policy of the South African National Parks authority (SANPARKS) to eradicate alien fauna has proved fatal for these tahrs, whose number had risen to about 90 since their relocation.

Last year, as part of their policy to eradicate alien species and make the Cape Peninsula park’s eco-system totally indigenous, SANPARKS took an extreme decision to kill the Himalayan tahrs. Consequently, 57 of them were shot.

According to Jeame Wadee of the Friends of Himalayan Tahr, an organisaion based in Cape Town, a drug called Scoline that paralyses muscles was injected using darts aimed from helicopters before the tahrs were shot. Shockingly, park authorities had invited the media for the “event,” but the plan backfired and there was public outcry against the killings.

When SANPARKS recently announced their decision to eliminate the rest of the herd, Friends of the Tahr sent an urgent appeal to Ms Gandhi in a last-bid attempt to save the mountain goats. “I immediately spoke to the Minister of Environment and Tourism for South Africa, Mr Valli Moosa and also appealed to Mr Jaswant Singh for help,” says Ms Gandhi. “Mr Singh was extremely helpful and personally looked into the matter. I have offered that the tahrs be brought to India. The Himalayan tahr is an extremely endangered animal. Only about 200 exist in the wild in India, though there is no census,” Ms Gandhi said.

Speaking to The Indian Express, Mr Pavan K Verma, joint secretary dealing with South Africa in the ministry of External Affairs, said the government had written to Mr Valli Moosa requesting them to stay the killing and expressing India’s willingness to relocate the tahrs in India.

“The solution lies in working with their government and we have every reason to believe that they will cooperate with us,” he said. Ms Gandhi added that the killings had been temporarily stayed though India was still waiting for a response to its offer. She said the modalities of their transportation and rehabilitation are yet to be worked out.

Friends of The Tahrs maintain that they had suggested other alternatives such as contraception to control population growth. Relocating within South Africa is ruled out. The rationale of SANPARKS to eradicate the species is that they disturb the delicate and unique eco-system of Cape Peninsula. But the disturbance, point out conservationists, is caused more by tourists, who number upto 5 million annually, than the 50 tahrs.

Fact File

Scientific Name: Hemitragus jemlahicus Himalayan Tahr: Also called Mountain Goat
Habitat: Throughout the Himalayas. They live in extremely inaccessible habitat and live on heights from 2,500 to 4,500 mts.
Status: Under Schedule I of the Wildlife Protection Act, 1972 and listed as “vulnerable” in the red list of the IUCN. The animals are poached locally for their meat, which is considered a delicacy, and their skin.

Copyright © 2001 Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd.