Dinosaur eggs continue being openly sold in Dahod district

Despite the lax security in the area being brought to the notice of the authorities, little has been done to protect the area from paleontologists, research students, curious foreigners and businessmen on the make who come here in droves.

After a story was carried in this paper last year, police had cracked down on the trade, imposing Section 144 in the district and picking up some suspects. But the move also had an adverse effect. Some tribals, who not too long ago would flee at thesight of a car, have now realised the potential of the `dino nu inde’ and become local agents for traders.

Others play it safe, denying any such activity or knowledge of it. “Who are you and what have you come for,” a villager retorts. “This is not the village you are looking for,” is a more blunt denial. When pressed, they say, “Inde mate? Badha layee gaya chhe” (For eggs, isn’t it? They have taken all the eggs).

Village elder Dhanjibhai Bilwal admits, “Much has changed in our lives since the news of dinosaur eggs was made public.”

The tribals have every reason to feel angry or upset. To them the eggs are religious icons, once gracing the many roadside temples all over the tribal belt. Over the past year, they’ve been disappearing with increasing frequency, and there’s little they can do. “There were two foreigners last month who visited these villages and reportedly bought some eggs for a large amount,” says another villager, too scared to mention details.

The confusion andfear is largely due to governmental inaction. Villagers say that not a single officer has come to their villages or visited the sites in the past year. “The police had come only to wield canes,” says one.

A prime cause of government inertia could be the lack of staff. The two districts — Dahod and Panchmahals — have only one class-I official and a geologist between them. And to add to the problems, the person is also designated as scientist in the Remote Sensing wing at Gandhinagar. With a staff strength of less than 10, no official vehicle, and a budget just enough for the salaries, it’s little wonder that the eggs are being plundered.

State Geology and Mining Minister Narottam Patel says he was not aware of the full problem but would get the information and act soon. But commissioner (geology and mining) H K Das sounds more concerned. “I admit that the problem in the Dahod areas has not been taken care of as yet.” Promising a concrete plan of action he points to headway made in the preservation ofRahioli village in Kheda district, which is a dinosaurs’ graveyard.

Interestingly, while Das’s example is a success story, what is surprising is that the government has not put two and two together. Experts say that when the dinosaurs were wiped out millions of years ago, the adult dinosaurs could not have been too far from the eggs. So the distance between the graveyard and the hatchery cannot be that great; common sense would dictate that they form one contiguous protected area. Government rules, however, dictate otherwise.

Dahod collector Elias Ibrahim Kalashva and Superintendent of Police K L N Rao admit that they had received unconfirmed reports about such thefts in the past, but not at present. They both speak of plans for the future, but are unable to give details.