Lion tailed macaques are moving to roads thanks to Deforestation

In view of the shrinking forest cover and absence of native trees, lion-tailed macaques (LTM), an endangered species residing in rainforests of Western Ghats, come up to the hairpin curve of Agumbe ghat in Shivamogga to get food thrown by travellers.

Ajay Kumar Sharma, an environmentalist, lamented the condition of these species and said that though the sight seems beautiful to the travellers, it is sad to see these LTMs like this.

The Deputy Conservator of Forest of Someshwara Wildlife Sanctuary has passed an order for the travellers to not stop at Agumbe ghat.
With stopping the travellers, the authorities should also make sure that these animals get enough food in the forest so that they do not have to depend on anyone.

👉Webindia123

Lone battle against illegal mining in Beas continues

Jagvir Singh Suryabanshi, a resident of Choli village of Rakkar tehsil of Deharagopipur, has been fighting a single-handed battle against the mining mafia for the past 14 years.

Suryabanshi along with local residents has written numerous postcards to PM Narendra Modi and Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur highlighting reckless and unscientific mining in Beas resulting in loss of crores of rupees to the state exchequer. He had also approached the Himachal High Court when even after the court order no action was taken against the mining mafia. Even illegal roads constructed by the mafia were not dismantled.

Living in a temple on the bed of Beas Jagvir Singh Suryabanshi has been fighting the Mining mafia tirelessly for the past 14 years

However, in the present political scenario, Jagvir finds himself helpless before the mafia which has links with local leaders. He said as per orders of the Himachal Pradesh High Court, no permission was given for mining and boring well in the Beas in the 500-metre radius of Kaleshwar Mahadev Temple. However, mining mafia is flouting the ban openly under the noose of local authorities.

👉The Tribune

Maharashtra’s first endemic tree rediscovered after 180 years at Harishchandragad hill

While working on a project to document Maharashtra’s endemic species, researchers from the Naoroji Godrej Centre for Plant Research (NGCPR) came across a unique tree that they had never seen before.

In 1887, in a mistake in labelling herbarium sheets, plant species from the northern Western Ghats were misidentified. Recently a team of researchers set out to investigate the 180-year-old puzzle.
This investigation led the team to discover an entirely new species, Croton chakrabartyi, and rediscover Croton gibsonianus, a previously misidentified plant species that occurs only in Maharashtra.

As per the current study, Croton gibsonianus is the only tree exclusively endemic and restricted to Maharashtra. A population of around 50 trees of Croton gibsonianus survives on the Harishchandragad hill in Maharashtra.

👉Mongabay India

Odisha’s Kendrapara now India’s only district to have all 3 species of crocodilians

Odisha’s Kendrapara became the only district in India August 29, 2021 to be home to all three species of crocodilians found in the country. This was after forest officials found a baby gharial (Gavialis gangeticus) in a river system of the district.

The live baby gharial was caught in the fishing net of a fisherman in the Paika river, JD Pati, the divisional forest officer of the Bhitarkanika National Park, located in the district, said.
Pati said the carcass of a nine-feet-long gharial had been found on August 22, 2018, in the Luna, near Jamapada village in Kendrapara district. But a live gharial had never been sighted in the river systems of the district before. It’s a highly endangered species, he added.

The forest officer said Odisha was also the only state in India to have all three species of crocodilians. “We are delighted that Kendrapara is now the abode of all the three species,” he said. All three species of crocodilians in the river systems of Odisha were on the verge of extinction by the 1970s. Piecemeal efforts were being made from the 1960s onwards to save them.

👉DTE

Over 20,000 water bodies freed from encroachment in Bihar for rainwater harvesting

The restoration of these aquifers will help recharge groundwater and tackle climate change, Rajiv Roushan, director of the state’s Jal Jeevan Hariyali Mission under which the work was carried out.

The state lost over 100,000 ponds in three decades, mostly to development projects
The government had identified 18,126 encroached public water bodies and 13,099 encroached wells, according to the latest Jal Jeevan Hariyali Mission data. Of them, 16,786 public water bodies and 3,577 wells have been freed of encroachment.

Rejuvenation of thousands of waterbodies, including those freed from encroachment, is underway, according to Roushan. About 590 ponds, 10,594 wells and 13,646 ahar pynes (traditional floodwater harvesting structures) have been reclaimed and work is in progress in 697 ponds, 16,342 wells and 15,218 pynes, the official added.