But in a recent incidence in Gothatar of Bhaktapur, the senior veterinary doctor and chief of the rescue team at the Central Zoo could not take the leopard under control and was instead attacked by the beast and had to be hospitalized. [break]
The leopard itself was ultimately killed by the locals after it was shot by the police, which led to emotional outpourings from many wildlife lovers in social media and news sites.
Inadequate rescue mechanism is responsible for the tragedy this time, too, noted veterinary assistant Radha Krishna Gharti, a member of the Central Zoo´s rescue team. “Even in the past, leopards have died in the same manner and we have sustained injury in the process,” said Gharti.
Gharti has 26 years of experience in this field. On that basis, he feels saving leopards after they enter human settlements should have been much easier using modern tools, basically the quick information system.
A leopard prowls at Gothatar. (Photo: Bhaswor Ojha)
Despite that leopards killing animals and vice versa hasn´t ceased as the incidences of human-wildlife conflict in the capital seems to grow.
In the Wednesday´s incidence near the Tribhuvan International Airport, Dr Giri was not the only person who was injured by the leopard. As Giri was about to shoot a dart to tranquilize the leopard, an onlooker threw a stone which further roused the beast. It went on to injure eleven other people.
“If we reach the spot as soon as such animals are sighted, we can wrap up the rescue effort before huge mob gathers. If there are fewer people around, leopards do not behave aggressively. Moreover, if there are fewer people, it is easier for us to convince them to keep silence, making it very easy for us to take the situation under control,” said Gharti. “But what normally happens is when a leopard is seen around people call as many of their acquaintances as possible."
Gharti also pointed out that significant amount of time is lost due to procedural delays. "Even if people call police or Central Zoo after a leopard is spotted, we are not allowed to take action without permission from higher authorities," said Gharti.
Dr Bal Krishna Giri
"First, the DG of the forest department or the director of national parks has to be informed. They then contact the Central Zoo and chief, who might or might not be in Kathmandu at that time, must give orders for rescue efforts only then we can move from here. Obviously, 3 to 4 hours are lost in the process. By this time, large crowd would have gathered and the beast would have turned aggressive, making it very difficult for us to take the situation under control.”
Only two rescuers
Though it is called ´rescue team´ it consists of just two people. When one is on leave, just a single person is left to deal with such situations. In absence of both, it is impossible to carry out rescue operations. According to Giri, he had reached the spot alone on Wednesday as Gharti was on leave. “Had there been both of us, may be we could have handled the situation better,” said Giri.
The team rescues other animals as well
On Sunday, a few large Indian cebets (neel biralo) were spotted at Budanilkathna area. The police called the zoo staff to recover them. As Giri is still in hospital, Gharti did the job alone. A few months ago, the team was called by Ramechhap district forest office to get red panda.
The team has to be poised for action all the time. They have also been to other parts of the country in rescue missions.
No attractive incentive
To carry out the very demanding and at times dangerous job, the sole rescue team of the country does not get any exciting perks. According to Gharti, there is a good jeep with them and a driver and even the fuel is provided by the office whenever they have to set out for rescue operation. “But for food and lodging we are not given enough money. I get Rs 825 and Dr Giri gets Rs 1000 per day for rescuing wild animals. It is the same even when we go out of Kathamndu which is often not sufficient.”
Radha Krishna Gharti
No govt mechanism
Though the rescue team is visibly passionate about their roles, they feel there has to be a separate mechanism to deal with human-wildlife conflict situations. “We are zoo staff and our responsibility is more towards the zoo, like looking after sick animals. We have been carrying out rescue operation as well but it is not our responsibility. We are actually helping the government. The government needs to have resources and introduce modern technologies to train rescue teams,” Gharti said.
Meanwhile, director general at the forest department Bajra Kishore Yadav said that the team is wrong to think that way as they are no less than any government staff. The government handed over the operation of zoo to national trust for nature conservation (NTNC).
“They are given salary and vehicles and they have all the skills they need,” Yadav said. “However, there may be the need of additional human resources. We are also thinking of setting up separate mechanism.”
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