Reduction in number of Great Indian Bustard started in 1960s, Centre tells SC

Reduction in number of Great Indian Bustard started in 1960s, Centre tells SC

New Delhi: The Centre told the Supreme Court on Tuesday the reduction in the number of critically-endangered Great Indian Bustard started in the 1960s and low birth rate, poaching, predation, ecological factors and habitat destruction are some of the causes that have pushed these birds to the verge of extinction.

The Great Indian Bustard (GIB) is mostly found in Rajasthan and Gujarat, and the alarming decrease in its numbers is attributed to their frequent collisions with overhead power transmission lines including those of solar power plants their habitats.

The GIBs have lateral vision as their eyes are on the sides of their head and they find it difficult to change their course of flight when confronted with a live wire.

According to the 2021 report of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), the GIBs are on the verge of extinction with hardly 50 to 249 of them alive.

"How many of these birds are in wild now and roughly what is the population in captivity?" a bench headed by Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud asked Additional Solicitor General (ASG) Aishwarya Bhati, who was representing the Centre.

Bhati said as per estimates, their number is anywhere between 150 and 200. The ASG told the bench, also comprising Justices J B Pardiwala and Manoj Misra, that pursuant to the apex court's order of January 19, the government has filed an affidavit in the matter.

The top court had in January asked the Centre to come out with a comprehensive plan to save GIB while simultaneously keeping in mind India's international commitment to solar power.

During the hearing on Tuesday, Bhati said GIB lays only one egg a year, that too on ground, making it is vulnerable to predators.

"The background is very important for us to understand because if any conservation efforts have to be made, we have to first identify what are the causes," she said, adding bird-hits on transmission lines is a phenomenon that began only in 2017-2018.

"The reduction (in their number) started in 1960s, much before electrification in this area and construction of transmission lines," the ASG said. Referring to the conservation efforts, she said India has some very successful examples and the Tiger project has been a phenomenal success story.

"If you were to do underground cabling… what is the cost that would be envisaged for underground cabling?" the bench asked.

Responding to the query, the ASG said, "It cannot be even fathomed right now but there is another difficulty. There is a technical impossibility in under-grounding cables which are more than 220 KV due to the dangers they pose. So, technically also, it is not feasible."

During the hearing, the bench observed there was no doubt about the need for preservation of GIBs for which it has been issuing directions to make sure that the species does not become extinct.

The apex court said the matter would be heard again on Wednesday. During the hearing in January, the apex court had referred to twin rival aspects of the matter, saying that one pertained to saving these birds and the other related to setting up of solar power plants in states like Rajasthan and Gujarat, the key habitats of this endangered species.

The bench had taken note of the submissions of senior advocate Shyam Divan, appearing for PIL petitioner MK Ranjitsinh, a retired IAS officer, and others that the GIB is on the verge of extinction and the court's 2021 judgement has not been complied with.

The top court, in its 2021 judgement on the PIL, had passed a slew of directions to save the GIB.

It had earlier directed the governments of Gujarat and Rajasthan to replace overhead electric cables with underground cables, wherever feasible, and install bird diverters in priority areas where GIBs live.

It had also set up a three-member committee comprising scientists Rahul Rawat, Sutirtha Dutta and Devesh Gadhavi, Deputy Director of Corbett Foundation, to assess the feasibility of laying high-voltage underground power lines.

The PIL sought the court's directions for an emergency response plan to protect and increase the numbers of GIB and Lesser Florican.