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This is an archive article published on November 12, 2015

A new sport in Rajasthan: Shoot and save the nilgai

The “sport” will require marksmen to sneak up on nilgais, aim for the rump and shoot a marker dart.

nilgai, nilgai population, nilgai protection, nilgai conservation, nilgai in india, nilgai in rajasthan, nilgais, india news, latest news Nilgai population in the state is 55,000. (Photo courtesy Tigerwatch)

Aspiring marksmen will soon be able to stalk, chase and shoot big game in the wild — all for conservation. As a desperate population control measure, Rajasthan has decided to “develop a sport” to sterilise nilgais using contraceptive darts. The state now plans to welcome enthusiasts to try their hand.

As reported by The Indian Express on December 20, 2014, the Vasundhara Raje government has been wary of culling nilgais to prevent destruction of crops. Instead, it has chosen to inject the animals with immuno-contraceptive vaccines using non-lethal darts. A pilot project will be launched soon and legal clearance for public participation will be sought thereafter.

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The “sport” will require marksmen to sneak up on nilgais, aim for the rump and shoot a marker dart. Every bull’s eye will inject the vaccine and leave a splotch of colour on the coat, marking the animal as sterilised. It will be a long shot to cover the state’s 55,000-strong nilgai population.

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“These are shy animals that scoot at the sight of people from as far as 50 metres. So it will be difficult to get them within range and aim accurately. Given the number of nilgais, a decision was taken in the last state wildlife board meeting (on October 17) to involve the public and promote it as a sport,” said a senior forest official present at the meeting.

The state is considering two options — GonaCon or Porcine Zona Pellucida (PZP) — for the immuno-contraceptive. GonaCon stimulates production of antibodies that bind to gonadotropin and reduce the release of sex hormones (estrogen, progesterone, and testosterone). PZP, on the other hand, produces antibodies that attach to the sperm receptors on eggs in the female, blocking fertilisation.

While PZP has to be injected every year, GonaCon is a multi-year vaccine and has been used on white-tailed deer, California ground squirrels, prairie dogs, wild horses and elk. Rajasthan is in talks with the US Department of Agriculture to make the vaccine available. GonaCon works on both sexes but only females are darted to check the population more effectively.

As for managing the existing population, the government seems to have thrown in the towel. “If this drive works, we’ll count on natural mortality to bring the numbers down,” said an official in the forest department headquarters in Jaipur.

Jay Mazoomdaar is an investigative reporter focused on offshore finance, equitable growth, natural resources management and biodiversity conservation. Over two decades, his work has been recognised by the International Press Institute, the Ramnath Goenka Foundation, the Commonwealth Press Union, the Prem Bhatia Memorial Trust, the Asian College of Journalism etc. Mazoomdaar’s major investigations include the extirpation of tigers in Sariska, global offshore probes such as Panama Papers, Robert Vadra’s land deals in Rajasthan, India’s dubious forest cover data, Vyapam deaths in Madhya Pradesh, mega projects flouting clearance conditions, Nitin Gadkari’s link to e-rickshaws, India shifting stand on ivory ban to fly in African cheetahs, the loss of indigenous cow breeds, the hydel rush in Arunachal Pradesh, land mafias inside Corbett, the JDY financial inclusion scheme, an iron ore heist in Odisha, highways expansion through the Kanha-Pench landscape etc. ... Read More

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