Editor,
The other day someone on WhatsApp posted a picture of a leopard carrying a village dog it had just killed somewhere in the Umran Area of Ri Bhoi district. The exact village where this happened was not mentioned; simply the general area was described as Umran. Now this is interesting from many aspects but the first question that comes to mind is – where did this animal appear from. Most forested areas of Ri Bhoi, be they private or community land had since long been stripped clean of its trees of any mentionable size. Actually no forest remains except scrub patches here and there, where the largest animal to be found is the common barking deer. So the only forested area in Ri Bhoi where big game is still supposed to exist is in Nongkhyllem Reserve forest. In 2021, Nongkhyllem was declared as the Best Protected area in the NE according to a management effectiveness evaluation (MEE) report of national parks and wildlife sanctuaries.. The situation now is unknown but one hopes it still retains the above standards.
Based on the above one can come to the conclusion that the leopard had probably strayed from Nongkhyllem to Umran for the latter is not far from the former as the crow flies and definitely not far for a large canine like a leopard to cover. The worry is why has the cat left its natural habitat to start preying on village mongrels and perhaps village cattle. A natural conclusion to come to is that a leopard’s natural prey such as pig, barking deer and rabbits have diminished or become scarce. In our case this decrease of natural prey could be within Nongkhyllem and so despite the rosy report of the MEE in 2021 a change for the worst might have taken place in this reserve and protected area. Laxity might have set in and poaching might have taken place on a large scale. Nowadays one hears of the “High Level” in the illegal transport of coal. Some “High Level” poaching by high-ranking officials might also be going on in this particular reserve. One never knows and it’s something the Wildlife Division of the Forest Department ought to be worried about.
Most worrying however is the daring of this leopard to enter a village and start lifting dogs and cattle. Some incident might just happen where people get involved or become victims to the predator. Then we will have a major problem in our hands if the animal turns man eater. I have seen such things happening in the hills and terrai region of Uttrakhand. The cunning of man eaters must never be underestimated and a huge Government effort is usually called for to rid the area of such a scourge. Hopefully our Forest Department has become alert to the problem and that steps are being taken to apprehend this cattle-lifting leopard before it becomes something more dangerous.
Yours etc.,
Toki Blah,
Via email
Impact of air pollution on life expectancy
Editor,
The time has come when there must be strict check on pollution otherwise the future generation will blame us for the complacency towards pollution and will not forgive us as the situation has come to a stage which is totally harmful to the health of all living beings. Just compare the data of states:
Among the states, Delhi saw the maximum plunge — 10 years — in lifespan in the country. The lowest life span fall, however, was recorded in Ladakh, where the life span was shortened by four months. In Haryana, the average life span reduction was seven years and five months. In Punjab, it was five years and 11 months
The average lifespan of an Indian has shortened by four years and 11 months owing to the air pollution, reveals the 2023 State of India’s Environment report. In rural areas, people’s lives are on average cut short by five years and two months, which is nine months more than the average lifespan lost by urban Indians.
Air pollution, in fact, has shortened the lifespan of 43.4 per cent of India’s population by five years. The report was released by the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) on Thursday is revealing. The CSE is a public interest research and advocacy organisation that is based in New Delhi. Eight states and UTs saw the average lifespan shortened by five years or more while nine states saw the average lifespan shortened by three to five years, according to the CSE Report. The lifespan in Haryana is shortened by 7 years and Punjab 6 years and for that pollution is to blame. Over and above that the average age of an Indian had fallen by 5 years
Ujwala yojna had proved very useful in the rural areas and in the same way that the Open Defecation Free (ODF) mission had been successfully implemented. The main source of pollution is from petrol driven vehicles and government is encouraging electrical vehicles and many incentives had been declared to encourage the electric or battery driven vehicles. Goverment had also established many solar plants to minimise pollution. It is to be noted here that finance minister Nirmala Sitaraman ‘s latest budget emphasises on the government commitment to move towards net-zero carbon emission by 2070
Yours etc.,
Yash Pal Ralhan,
Via email
Of legislative language
Editor,
Meghalya Governor Phagu Chauhan presented his address in the State Vidhan Sabha not in English but in Hindi. Now this address is critically under scrutiny not due to its contents but the language in which it was delivered although this address was also circulated in the English language. It is a long held tradition of State Vidhan Sabhas that no legislator speaks in Khasi or Garo language. The majority of Meghalayans speak these two languages. I think if any legislator speaks in Hindi or English in the Vidhan Sabha there should be arrangements within the premises for its translation in Khasi and Garo languages. It is also surprising that no one speaks in the State Assembly in the local languages of the State. A public debate by the stakeholders will be more fruitful as for as the language issue is concerned.
Yours etc.,
Dr Kuldip Chand Agnihotri
Himachal Pradesh