Thaindian News

Jalore (Rajasthan), April 25 (IANS) With water becoming scarce in the forest areas of Rajasthan due to soaring temperatures, thirsty bears are increasingly beginning to stray into populated areas in this district.
In order to prevent bears from entering villages, the forest department has started constructing an 800-meter long wall in the foothills of Lohiyanagarh.

This area, which falls in Jaswantpura region of Jalore district, has a large number of wildlife including boars, bears and monkeys.

“We are constructing an 800-meter long and five meter-high wall to stop the bears,” a forest official told IANS.

Jagat Ram, a resident of Jaswantpura, said: “We had a bear straying into our villages daily. We were living in danger. Hopefully this wall will help.”

No casualties though have been reported due to bears venturing into villages.

He said over Rs.2.7 million is being spent on construction of the wall and the work is slated to be completed in a year.

The forest department is also constructing a water reservoir in the forest area for the wild animals.

Soaring temperatures have made water hard to come by in Rajasthan’s sanctuaries with the result that wild animals are straying into nearby villages in search of water and migratory birds are giving the area a miss.

“Some of the wildlife reserves and parks are facing an acute water shortage this summer,” said Babulal Jaju, the state in-charge of People for Animals (PFA), adding that measures adopted by the state government were inadequate.

Due to the heat wave, several small water reservoirs have dried up while others are on the brink of drying up.

Jalore is some 400 km from state capital Jaipur.

India’s desert state boasts of two tiger reserves, one bird sanctuary and 25 wildlife sanctuaries. These protected areas offer great eco-tourism opportunities and attract domestic and foreign tourists in large numbers.