CHITWAN, March 4: The Chitwan National Park (CNP) released 103 crocodiles, including a sole male, into the Rapti River. The crocodiles were raised at the Gharial (Crocodile) Breeding Centre in Kasara of Chitwan into the Rapti River after mid-July, 2024.
According to CNP information officer Abinash Thapa Magar, the reptiles released in the river were hatched in 2020. Last fiscal year, the CNP had released 105 crocodiles in the river. The eggs of crocodiles are collected from the river bank to hatch them in artificial conditions at the Centre. The grown-up reptiles are left in the river.
To date, since its establishment in 1978, a total of 2060 crocodiles have been released into the various rivers in the country, including the Rapti and Narayani. However, the survival rate of this animal is very low. As Thapa Magar said, during last year's survey, 152 animals were recorded in Rapti and 113 in Narayani. At present, the Centre is home to 697 crocodiles.
Gharial is an endangered reptile and its existence has been restricted to Nepal and India lately. In the past, it would be found in Pakistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, and Myanmar. In 1940, its global number was estimated at around 10,000. In the following 30 years, their numbers dropped significantly down to just two per cent of the 1970 population. During the time of the establishment of the Centre, less than 100 numbers of Gharial were estimated to exist across the country.
Increasing human encroachment of the rivers, extraction of river-based products, and fishing are among the major factors affecting the natural habitats of the animals. Also, the animals get swept away beyond the Nepal-India border during floods.
RSS