20 Blackbucks Released in Gujarat’s Banni Grasslands on Independence Day

Key facts

• The Gujarat Forest Department, with technical support from the Greens Zoological Rescue and Rehabilitation Centre (GZRRC), Vantara, released 20 blackbucks (five males and 15 females) into the Banni Grasslands on India’s 80th Independence Day.
• The release was part of an initiative to restore the native herbivore community in the Banni Grasslands, one of India’s largest grassland landscapes.
• The blackbucks were transferred from Vantara in Jamnagar after obtaining approvals from the Chief Wildlife Warden, Gujarat, and the Central Zoo Authority.
• The animals underwent veterinary examinations, health screening, quarantine, and disease surveillance before being transported and released in accordance with wildlife translocation protocols.
• The Central government, through the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, has approved the translocation of 500 blackbucks and 100 chinkaras in Gujarat.
• Vantara had previously supported the Gujarat Forest Department in rewilding nearly 80 spotted deer in Barda Wildlife Sanctuary.
• Some components of the broader programme are intended to augment prey populations in connection with the planned cheetah reintroduction programme.
• The Banni Grassland Forest Division has sought Vantara’s technical assistance for the wider translocation programme, including specialised vehicles, portable boma systems, and veterinary expertise.