Guj opposes shifting of lions from Gir

Manas Dasgupta

Ahmedabad, January 16

Despite the Supreme Court order, Gujarat continues to oppose the move to shift Asiatic Lions from the Gir forests to the Kuno-Palpur forests in Madhya Pradesh.

In April, 2013, the SC had permitted shifting of a few Asiatic Lions from Gir to Kuno-Palpur forests, but Forest Minister Ganpat Vasava said Gujarat was not happy with the proposal.

Gujarat has demanded that shifting of the lions should be taken up only after completing all mandated studies of conditions and facilities available in Kuno-Palpur. The studies which included prey bas, habitat, vegetation and other ancillary issues are need to be conducted under the guidelines of the International Union of Conservation of Nature (IUCN) before translocation of the Asiatic Lions.