BY: MEHRAJ UD DIN MALIK (Regional Director, Social Forestry, Kashmir)
“Education is the ability of an individual to feel pain and pleasure at the right time” (PLATO)
Every natural system exists in a balanced and perfect manner wherein every creation has been provided with all requirement and needs in a balanced manner. This natural balance is lost, if any of the natural rules or laws is altered or violated which sometimes leads to serious global issues and creates Chaos & disturbance in the entire ecosystem. Addition or deletion of any component in a natural and balanced ecosystem has adverse effects in an entire food chain and sometimes the whole ecosystem is disturbed.
According to Webester’s Dictionaray, Wild life can be defined as plants and animals living in their natural habitat without any human intervention. In a simpler way Wild life can be defined as plants and animals which are neither humans not domesticated. Wild life has been existing in nature since the human origin and has never posed any threat to human existence as nature has provided them all needs and requirements. This relation has deteriorated only due to human intervention and human greed as humans have always tried to encroach upon the rights and basic needs of wild life. One of the consequences of such human intervention is increasing incidents of Man-animal conflicts.
During last 2-3 decades, the incidents of man-animal conflicts have abruptly increased and as a result lot of people either lost their lives or got seriously injured. Not only human, the livestock also became easy prey to wild animals. A lot of children especially children below the age of 08 years became prey of leopard attacks in many parts of Kashmir. Despite lot of public awareness through print and electronic media and multidimensional efforts of wild life department, the incidents are increasing on daily basis especially during summer and autumn. Wild animals like black deer, leopard, porcupine etc. have even been found roaming even in urban areas.
Man-animal conflicts in Kashmir valley are increasing as we all are witnessing rapid increase in the number of bear attacks on humans, live-stock etc. whenever, any such incident takes place in any part of valley, the locals instead of providing cooperation to wild life department and other agencies in tranquilizing the animal or trapping him, start chasing the animal and pelt stones, beat him with sticks and sometimes the wild animal is beaten to death. Same people later on start criticizing the wild life department and local administration and hold them responsible for attack from the wild animal. The reason behind the increase in wild-animal attacks on humans and their livestock is clear as it is the humans and their greed which forced these animals to migrate from their natural habitats and enter human habitation in search of food, shelter etc. These animals have been living in wild since ages and were living in harmony with nature, without any disturbance to humans and the ecosystem.
For all these increasing cases of man and animal conflict, we as humans being the superior creation of God, are responsible for this because of following reasons:-
- Habitat loss is one of the main reasons behind wild animals found roaming in human habitation and their migration to urban areas etc. resulting in man-animal conflict is habitat loss. The natural habitat of such animals has shrinked and fragmented due to encroachment on their natural habitat by humans for the purpose of construction, establishment of orchards and other developmental activities. This not only deprives off an animal from its natural habitat but also reduced his food resources, fawning ground and the animals find it difficult to live at its original place. The animals are forced to migrate to nearby areas in search of food and shelter. During this, the wild animals also enter into agriculture field, apple orchards etc. and damage the crops, kill livestock and sometimes encounter with humans and in reaction the people attack the animal or kill the same to take a revenge for the loss suffered.
- Upon the encroached habitat of wild animal, some people grow maize, apple etc. which is palatable food of bear etc and when an animal in search of food visit his earlier habitat, he has to face the human brunt and cruelity.
- Disturbance to wild animals by locals especially nomads who frequently go inside forests for collection of firewood, fodder and other forest produce etc has increased to a greater extent. Nomadic people even send their minor children, ladies in deeper parts of forest for same which has increased incidence of such incidents.
- Decrease in prey species upon which leopard and other carnivorous wild animals feed has forced them to migrate towards human habitation and attack live stock etc to satiate their hunger.