FRIDAY, APRIL 26, 2024
Team Herald
PANJIM: Video footage of two tigers taking a stroll on a road cutting across a thick jungle could possibly strengthen the citizens’ fight against the controversial linear projects in Goa.
An Odisha cadre Indian Forest Service (IFS) Officer Susanta Nanda recently posted on his social media page a 58-minute video of the tigers captured during the late hours. High resolution lights and a drone hovering over the big cats also caught the attention of the netizens.
“Linear projects through tiger habitats… Somewhere in Western India,” Nanda said on his Twitter handle @susantananda3. The officer claimed the video had been shared by a colleague.
The tweet has so far received close to 2,000 likes and has been re-tweeted around 250 times with Twitterati expressing anger to projects killing the habitat of the animals. “So sad, Indian government hardly gives importance to the environment and wildlife… even in this current climate crisis,” Twitter user Sana T reacted.
“Worst part is destroying such land in wildlife environment in the name of development and then abandoning such land without even a bit of development there, causing difficulties for the wild animals,” another user, Jay Krishnan, posted.
Several others spoke about banning night travel along stretches where man-animal conflict could arise, while many condemned high beam lights disturbing the wild animals and also drones.
Incidentally, a recent Hindi movie Sherni – released on OTT platform – gives an account of the horrors faced by wild animals in sharing the earth with inconsiderate humans, while it also showcases rampant deforestation for commercial reasons, well-paved roads cutting across jungles and unchecked mining pits between a village and the National Park, that led to a complex situation between humans and tigers struggling to find their natural habitat.
Goa’s Save Mollem struggle has been ongoing for several months in a bid to ensure Goa’s ecology does not face destruction owing to the linear projects. Save Mollem Campaign, citizen’s movement to raise awareness about Mollem National Park and Bhagwan Mahavir Wildlife Sanctuary, has slammed the government’s fresh move to acquire areas in South Goa for the double tracking project between Hospet-Tinaighat and Vasco da Gama. Community and farmland in Curchorem, Cacora, Davorlim, Velsao, Cansaulim and Arossim have been demarcated despite an earlier gazette notification last December stating that South Western Railway will not involve land of farmers in Curchorem and Cacora.
“The fact that National Security Act was evoked a day before Goa Revolution Day 2021 shows that governing bodies are using every tool possible to detract and suppress people’s movement to put out sparks that have been steadily since last June…” the press statement by Save Mollem Campaign said.
