Gujarat’s pride gets back its grasslands

RAJKOT: ‘However hungry, a lion will never feed on grass,’ goes the popular idiom. But lack of grass can easily devour the feline’s favourite habitat!

Over the years, large swathes of Saurashtra’s natural grasslands were depleting fast due to growth of thick and wild vegetation even as the number of Asiatic lions were increasing fast. But in the last five years, these vidis (as they are locally known) have seen a spectacular revival across the region.

Experts say the staggering increase in cultivation of grass, expected to touch nearly 2 crore kg this year, is an encouraging sign not only for lion conservation but for the ecosystem that thrives in these sprawling lands.There are nearly 60 Asiatic lions living in 10 vidis spread across five districts viz Junagadh, Amreli, Bhavnagar and Gir-Somnath, which are home to over 500 lions including the Gir sanctuary.

In fact, two lions had settled in Chobari grassland near Chotila in Surendranagar district a few months ago.
Chief conservator of forest, Junagadh circle, S K Srivastava told TOI, “A lion pride easily gets food due to presence of herbivores in the grasslands. The hunting is also easy.”

Srivastav explained that concerted efforts were undertaken to reclaim the grasslands, which included removal of unwanted species like shrubs, gando baval (prosopis juliflora) and others. “This was supplemented by grass plantation.” he said, adding no other state in India has taken up this task.

Rani Gala vidi in Bhavnagar and Babra vidi in Junagadh district are the two biggest grasslands in Saurashtra, housing at least 60 lions.
Sandeep Kumar, deputy conservator of forest, Bhavnagar division added, “Grasslands are important in Bhavnagar for conservation of lions, leopards and other wild animals. For them, grasslands are a resting site and they prefer to live with the family."