Concerned about large-scale crop destruction by herds of 'Ghodparas,' also known as nilgai or blue bull, and wild boar in certain districts of Bihar, the state government has decided to hire professional shooters with licenced guns to kill the two species outside protected forest areas.
According to Arvind Kumar Chaudhary, the principal secretary of the environment, forest, and climate change department, village 'mukhiyas' (heads) have been given the authority to assess crop damage complaints filed by farmers and decide whether a state-appointed shooter should be told to cull an animal as and when it strays into the fields.
"Blue bull and wild boar have ravaged agricultural crops in Muzaffarpur, Vaishali, Sitamarhi, Bhojpur, and Sheohar districts." Keeping the provisions of the Wild Life (Protection) Act of 1972 in mind, the forest department has designated mukhiyas as the nodal authority to identify and allow state-appointed shooters to kill these two species outside the protected area.
"The job will have to be done in collaboration with forest department officials," Chaudhary said. He also stated that a high-level committee has been formed to select professional shooters with licenced firearms. The committee has received applications from 14 shooters so far, and the hiring process will be completed by the end of this month, according to Chaudhary.
"Procedures laid down for the operation must be strictly followed," he continued. Mukhiyas will play a critical role in the entire process, from giving the go-ahead to making burial arrangements. The government will pay for cartridges and burial." When approached, Bihar Panchayati Raj Minister Samrat Choudhary stated that the operation must be carried out with extreme caution.
"There is no doubt that these two animals are wreaking havoc on crops in certain areas of the state." Mukhiyas, on the other hand, must exercise extreme caution. A mukhiya should only issue hunting permits to shooters after thoroughly investigating farmers' complaints. "Village heads will be required to submit a monthly report to the appropriate authorities," he told.
According to officials, farmers in some parts of Bihar have long complained about crop losses caused by these two species straying into their fields, especially at this time of year. Meanwhile, Alokparna Sengupta, the managing director of Humane Society International's India wing, has stated that animal culling cannot be the solution to this problem.
"Such measures have been taken in the past by other state governments as well." That never resulted in a long-term solution. There is still a problem there. "Innocent animal killing must be condemned," she added.
