SOURCE – INDIAN EXPRESS
GS PAPER 3
CONTEXT
In a bid to save endangered species of vultures from extinction, the National Board for Wildlife has approved a new plan that proposes setting up Vulture Conservation Breeding Centres in some States, including Tamil Nadu.
KEY FACTS
- A captive breeding center would come up at the Sigur Reserve Forest Range in the buffer zone of the Mudumalai Tiger Reserve.
- About 180 Oriental White-backed Vultures, a critically endangered species, are found here.
- The numbers of Long-billed Vultures, Red-headed Vultures, and Egyptian Vultures have dwindled to double and single digits.
Action Plan for Vulture Conservation 2020-25
- A vital feature is preventing misuse of veterinary non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs.
- There is a need to prevent the main food of vultures — animal carcasses — from getting poisoned by veterinary drugs
- Sigur Reserve Forest is the last surviving breeding ground for the critically endangered vulture in the State.
- Contamination of vulture food with non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs like diclofenac (now banned) is one of the primary reasons for the decline in the vulture population.
- Under the plan, every state will host at least one vulture safe zone to conserve the remnant population of vultures in the state. These centers will facilitate conservation and breeding of vultures.
GS These drivers of change are:
1. Accelerating our efforts to move towards a gas-based economy.
2. Cleaner use of fossil fuels particularly petroleum and coal
3. Greater reliance on domestic sources to drive bio-fuels.
4. Achieving the renewables target of 450 GW by 2030.
5. Increasing the contribution of electricity to de-carbonize mobility.
6. Moving into the emerging fuels including hydrogen
7. Digital innovation across all the energy systems.