Gaikwad, an MLA from Buldhana assembly seat in Vidarbha region, is no stranger to controversies.
Youtuber Elvish Yadav was questioned by the Noida Police early Wednesday over suspected use of snake venom at a party, officials said, even as an investigation by the veterinary department found venom glands missing in all nine snakes that were rescued last week.
The fires that have broken out in Mhadei Wildlife Sanctuary in Goa are being kept under control through the joint efforts of the Indian Navy, Indian Air Force and the forest department, state minister Vishwajit Rane said.
One more cheetah has died at the Kuno National Park in Madhya Pradesh, making it the sixth adult feline to have died since March, according to a statement from the Madhya Pradesh Forest Department on Wednesday.
The death of the more than four-and-a-half years old female feline is being seen as a setback to Project Cheetah, aimed at reviving the population of the world's fastest land animal in India, seven decades after they became extinct.
In a purported video which surfaced on social media, the accused man, reportedly a Tamil Nadu native, could be seen sitting on a platform atop the Ponnambalamedu Hills, located about four km from the Sabarimala temple, and chanting mantras and doing some rituals.
The agency said the first-of-its-kind attachment under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act "enabled" the zoo authorities to retain the animals as the smuggler was making attempts to take them away.
The drive met with opposition in Tinsukia in upper Assam leading to lathicharge by the security forces, while in Sonitpur the alleged illegal settlers claimed that it was launched about a week before the stipulated date.
During the training, the dogs will be trained to detect tiger and leopard skins, bones, elephant tusks and other body parts, bear bile, Red Sanders, and several other illegal wildlife products.
'I had the opportunity to portray a wildlife crime fighter on screen, which allowed me to express my concern for society, wildlife, and the environment. I strongly believe that humans share this planet with countless other species and hold immense respect for every living creature.'
The forest department officials have filed a case against Arif under relevant sections of the wildlife protection act and issued him a notice, asking him to appear and record his statement.
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'It is a clear dent on a lady's dignity and right of privacy guaranteed under Articles 14 and 21 of the Constitution of India.'
Punjab Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi on Tuesday allocated portfolios to the new ministers, keeping 14 departments with himself and giving home affairs to deputy chief minister Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa and health to other deputy O P Soni.
'It is also being done in violation of our Forest Tribal Act because it will involve the eviction of the tribals living in these forests.'
Though the legislator of Rupohihat, Nurul Huda, stopped the drive in Sitalmari area of Burachapori Wildlife Sanctuary for a while claiming it was illegal, the exercise resumed later, a senior official said.
Yadav's comments came amid concern expressed by some experts on the cheetah project and that some recent deaths could possibly be due to infection caused by radio collars though that is highly unusual and collars have been used in wildlife conservation in India for over two decades.
The Wildlife Institute of India's former dean Yadvendradev Vikramsinh Jhala, who was part of the cheetah project in the past, told PTI that KNP has 'inadequate space' for these animals.
According to new ministry guidelines, the permission to chop down forests will be given only after all the compensatory levies are provided
Apart from leopards, a wide range of species of flora and fauna is found in the Aarey forest, an 1,800 acre area termed as the city's 'green lung', located in suburban Goregaon and adjacent to the Sanjay Gandhi National Park.
Delhi authorities are taking steps to deploy langur mimics and put up cut-outs of the simians at vantage points to scare away monkeys during the G20 Summit in the national capital.
One more African cheetah died in Madhya Pradesh's Kuno National Park (KNP) on Tuesday due to suspected infighting, a senior forest department official said, the seventh feline fatality in four months.
Himachal Pradesh on Monday became the fourth state to report cases of bird flu after Rajasthan, Kerala and Madhya Pradesh, with officials confirming that migratory birds found dead at Pong Dam Lake in Kangra district have tested positive for the dreaded avian influenza.
As media phenomenon, Arikomban is in a different league. Efforts to capture the elephant were telecast live. Local three-wheeler drivers started a fans association for the pachyderm. A film has now been announced based on Arikomban's life.
The elephant, Laxmi, was traced to Yamuna Khadar area. Its mahout, Saddam, has been arrested
A police complaint was lodged on Sunday against Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, spiritual leader Jaggi Vasudev and others for allegedly violating wildlife protection laws during their jeep safari after dusk in the Kaziranga Nation Park the previous day.
Fires are blazing across Jammu and Kashmir, the state of Uttarakhand and have reached the doorstep of Himachal Pradesh's capital city Shimla.
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According to the national park's range forest officer Ankur Patel, blackbucks keep moving from one place to another, and the video was shot a few days back by a Gram Rakshak Dal jawan stationed at a police check post on Dholera-Bhavnagar highway.
Heavy rains continued to pound Chennai and nearby districts on Monday under the impact of a cyclonic storm, which is likely to cross the coast in Andhra Pradesh on December 5.
Female cheetah 'Daksha', translocated to Madhya Pradesh's Kuno National Park from South Africa, died on Tuesday, a forest official said.
The five-year-old tigress, known officially as T1, was the focus of a hunt for over past two months.
Calling the Supreme Court order 'unjust' to the tribals as well as against the interest of wildlife conservation in India scientists have demanded cancellation of SC order
Modi had released the first batch of eight eight spotted felines -- five females and three males -- from Namibia into a quarantine enclosure at Kuno on his 72nd birthday on September 17 last year.
An official statement issued by the forest department stated that the committee has been formed on directions of Forest Minister Sudhir Mungantiwar to conduct an 'in-depth' inquiry into the death of the tigress.
As per the May 2015 census, there were 523 Asiatic lions in Gir, an increase of 27 per cent from 2010.
The swab samples of the pangolin has been collected for the coronavirus test
The wildlife officials said the female adult blue bull has sustained injuries on her legs and the wounds are being treated by the department.
The seven-year-old big cat went missing from Umred Karhandla wildlife sanctuary in April.
Sherdil: The Pilibhit Saga is a boring, overlongm tale of an eccentric with delusions of leadership, sighs Deepa Gahlot.