Open wells in Gujarat’s Gir forest continue to pose threat to the Asiatic lions with four of them, including a lioness, falling in one of them on Sunday. Fortunately, rescue arrived in time for them and they are recuperating from the injuries.
The unused well was about 100-feet deep and was situated on a farm in Manavav, and the four big cats, in the 2-3 year age group, fell into it on Saturday evening, Sarasiya Range Forest Officer MR Odedra said.
“The farm owner alerted us. A forest department team managed to rescue the lions and lioness after working through the night. The well was dry and the four had to be dragged out with the help of residents and equipment we had carried for the purpose,” the forest officer said.
Last month, a lion had died after falling into a well at Kantala village in Tulsishyam Khambha range of the Gir East wildlife division in Gujarat’s Junagadh district.
The incident comes within a month after the State Government had informed the State High Court that it has taken care of the open well problem by providing financial subsidy up to Rs 16,000 for construction of parapet wall around the wells and so far 37,201 open wells have been covered.
According to officials, there are over 50,000 such wells that pose danger to wild animals.
As many as 222 lions died, most of them due to natural causes in the Gir forest region in Gujarat in the last two years, the Gujarat Government had told the legislative Assembly recently.
Among them, only 23 lions died because of “unnatural” causes such as getting hit by trains or falling into wells between June 2017 and May 2019.
In a written reply a query by Congress MLA Shailesh Parmar, Forest Minister Ganpat Vasava had stated that 82 lions, including 30 cubs, have died between June 2017 and May 2018 while the number of deaths stood at 140, including 60 cubs, for the June 2018 — May 2019 period.
Wildlife activists feel that open wells are like death traps and such incidents (falling of lions in wells) reflect the fact that overcrowding in and around Gir was harming Asiatic lions in more ways than one and that something had to be done to resolve this.
Gir forest is the only abode of Asiatic lions. As per the last census of 2015, it is home to 523 lions. However, the State Government had recently said the number of lions has gone up to 600.
