WCC 2020 Res 089 - Progress Report

Recent developments:
To protect the GIB, the Supreme Court of India ordered in 2021 that all high-tension cables in renewable power (solar/wind)project areas in Rajasthan and Gujarat (key GiB habitats) be laid underground.
However, laying high-tension cables underground could make solar power projects unviable for companies, slowing India's efforts to cut global emissions in the fight against climate change. The government, therefore, sought a modification of the 2021 ruling to support power projects in solar-rich Gujarat and Rajasthan
Factoring the trade-off between India’s climate obligations and responsibility to protect the GIB, a three-judge bench of the Supreme Court on March 21, 2024 withdrew its blanket order demanding that all high-tension cables be laid underground.
The Supreme Court appointed an Expert Committee to determine how to protect the Great Indian Bustard the best.
Recent initiatives by Ministry of Environment Forests and Climate change:
The species has been identified for conservation efforts under the component ‘Species Recovery Programme’ of the Centrally Sponsored Scheme- Development of Wildlife Habitats. Financial and technical assistance is provided to the State/ Union Territory Governments under the scheme for providing better protection to Great Indian Bustard and its habitat.
Conservation breeding of the Great Indian Bustard has been undertaken in collaboration with Rajasthan, Gujarat and Maharashtra Forest Departments and technical support of Wildlife Institute of India, Dehradun with the aim of building a captive population of the species for release in the wild and promoting in-situ conservation of the species.
A satellite conservation breeding facility has been established at Sam, Jaisalmer, Rajasthan.
In July 2024 The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC) has approved Rs 56 crore(7 million USD)or the next phase of the conservation of Great Indian Bustard (GIB) and Lesser Florican.
Recent initiatives by The Corbett Foundation:
TCF has been at forefront for GiB conservation
TCF has successfully completed grassland restoration project over 55-acre community grazing land in Kutch, Gujarat - Invasive species have been removed (uprooted) to develop the degraded land into a grassland. The indigenous and edible grass species suitable for bustards have been sowed.
TCF held meetings with the local stakeholders (Gujarat Forest Department, Collector, Air Force Station at Naliya, Gram Panchayat Members, power companies and villagers) to discuss the issues such as grassland habitat restoration, organic farming in GIB landscape, stall-feeding of livestock and mitigating power lines through undergrounding and/or installing bird diverters.
Activities like stall-feeding of livestock and the development of grass seed-bank are also being by TCF through active participation and ownership of the local community.
Raised awareness among the local communities and at the national level through media reports, school and community sensitisation programmes, provided inputs for media articles to raise awareness on bustard conservation.

Recent efforts by Business community
Under Confederation of Indian Industry, a Technical Working Group is being set up to foster a collaborative framework among businesses and local stakeholders and provide informed policy feedback to support the conservation of GIB and restoration of its habitats. This collaboration will focus on the following key areas of intervention identified during the first consultation meeting.
Key Areas of Intervention:
Mass Awareness Campaign on GIB along its Habitats to educate and engage the public, local communities, and stakeholders about the GIB, its significance, and the critical need for its conservation.
Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) for Businesses Operating along GIB Habitats for its management and avoidance of any damages to GIB and its habitat by establishing guidelines and protocols for businesses to minimize their impact on GIB habitats and contribute to conservation efforts.
Promotion of grasslands restoration and conservation to restore and conserve grassland ecosystems, which are crucial habitats for the GIB and other wildlife species.
Managing feral predator population in GIB Habitat to reduce the impact of feral predators on the GIB population through targeted management strategies.
Solution to address the shift in crop pattern from Bustard-friendly traditional monsoonal crops to cash crops to mitigate the impact of changing agricultural practices on GIB habitat by promoting sustainable farming practices that balance economic needs and conservation goals.

As reported by WII: Meetings & workshops were carried out jointly with MoEFCC to sensitize power companies agencies and regulatory bodies on the impact of power lines on bustards and the necessity of mitigation measures. Technical inputs to several power agencies & diverter developers were provided to implement power-line mitigation measures in Important GIB Areas. Project team shared evidence-based recommendations on legal issues pertaining to GIB conservation in the Hon. Supreme Court, Jodhpur High Court, NGT Delhi and NGT Bhopal. A documentary film on GIB conservation was developed (available at youtu.be/XR5Z_rA7xd0). Four project personnel were trained in semen collection and insemination of poultry in Anand Agriculture University, Anand in February 2023. Three project personnel were trained in artificial breeding techniques at National Avian Research Centre (NARC), Abu Dhabi in 2022-23.
under their projects Sites in Ramdevra and Sorsan in Rajasthan were selected for long-term conservation breeding facilities. Since the construction and operation of new facilities would require a few years, a temporary facility was established in Sam, Jaisalmer, in June 2019. A long-term facility has been developed at Ramdevra and has been made functional in August 2022. These two facilities currently house 22 hand-reared captive GIB that were secured from 31 wild-laid and artificially incubated eggs. The world’s first captive-bred Great Indian Bustard chick hatched in March 2023 in Sam Conservation Breeding Centre (CBC) at Jaisalmer. This chick has been artificially hatched from an egg laid by a captive-reared bird via natural breeding. Conservation Breeding of LF was commenced in a temporary centre at Bijainagar, Ajmer from 2020 which houses eight LF from wild collected artificially hatched eggs, which are being reared following similar approach. A Memorandum of Understanding was signed between the WII and the IFHC for bustard conservation in September 2022. 3-member committee has been formed to monitor and instruct on how and where to underground the high-voltage lines (130 kV and above, as per the affidavit filed by Power Ministry), till then the bird-diverters should be installed on such lines with immediate effect. Dr. Rahul Rawat, Scientist at Ministry of New and Renewable Energy, Dr. Sutirtha Dutta, Scientist at Wildlife Institute of India, and Mr. Devesh Gadhavi, Scientist and Deputy Director of The Corbett Foundation, have been appointed as the Members of this Committee.
The Corbett Foundation (TCF) has worked with Gujarat Forest Dept. to carry out trainings on satellite tagging the birds, designing/installing bird diverters on powerlinesetc. TCF also carried out extensive field activities for development and restoration of 55 acre community grazing land in Kutch, Gujarat to create suitable habitat for GIB. Several technical studies have been carried out With the valuable support of The Habitats Trust's Strategic Partnership Grant (THTSPG) - 2020, TCF has installed around 800 bird diverters on two powerlines. Communication and awareness raising has also been carried out in form of national and state level media reports, community sensitisation workshops.