GREAT INDIAN BUSTARD (Syllabus: GS Paper 3 – Environment)

Context:The Supreme Court said it will review its April 2021 order to bury underground all power lines in the habitat of the Great Indian Bustard.

Great Indian Bustard

• About: It is the State bird of Rajasthan and is considered India’s most critically endangered bird.
• Flagship species: It is considered the flagship grassland species, representing the health of the grassland ecology.
• Habitat:

oIts population is confined mostly to Rajasthan and Gujarat.

oSmall populations occur in Maharashtra, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh.

• Protection Status:

oIUCN: Critically Endangered

oCITES: Appendix 1

oConvention on Migratory Species (CMS): Appendix 1

oWildlife (Protection) Act, 1972: Schedule 1

• Concerns: As Rajasthan shares the international border with Pakistan's Sindh and Punjab provinces, the birds will become easy prey for the gun-toting poachers there.
• Initiatives taken to protect GIB:

oIntegrated Development of Wildlife Habitats: GIB is kept under the species recovery programme under the Integrated Development of Wildlife Habitats of the Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change (MoEFCC).