01-08-2025
Greenery, goat bank help in man-animal conflict zones
Kolkata: From a tree bank in Sundarbans to a goat bank in Purulia, conservationists are devising unique ways to address man-animal conflict in south Bengal. While saplings are being distributed among a group of village women in Sundarbans to make them aware about the importance of forest and discourage them from venturing into the woods, the goat bank in Purulia is helping the forest department and activists compensate for loss of villagers' livestock in attacks by predators.
"As part of our initiative, 'Bon Banche, Narir Hatey' (Forest's future in women's hands), two mango saplings were handed to 50 forest-fringe women — not as gifts, but as promises of shade, sustenance, and survival. These trees symbolize her connection to the landscape, her role in nurturing life," said Joydip Kundu of city-based NGO Society for Heritage and Ecological researches (SHER).
Over 250 kilometres away, a community-led seed goat bank replaced the first goat lost to carnivores in Purulia's Kotshila forest range.
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In a step towards community-led wildlife conservation, a resident of Haratan village in Purulia became the first beneficiary of a community-managed seed goat bank. The initiative, led by Human & Environment Alliance League (HEAL) and supported by WWF India's Conservation Catalyst Programme, aims to foster coexistence between people and wild carnivores by replacing livestock lost to predation. The incident occurred on July 20, when Bimal Mahato, a goat herder from Haratan, found the remains of a partially eaten goat from his herd in the forest.
HEAL volunteers helped verify the incident and relayed it to the seed goat bank committee in Simni. On July 24, Mahato was given a replacement goat during a community handover event.
