DAILY NEWS ANALYSIS

GS-III : Biodiversity & Environment Wildlife & Fauna

13 July, 2022
5 Min Read

Red Panda

RED PANDA

An ambitious program has been started by the Padmaja Naidu Himalayan zoological park to release 20 Red Pandas in about five years to the forest.

About Red Panda

In the world, there are only two different panda species the Giant pandas and the Red pandas.
The red panda is the state animal of Sikkim.
India is the home to both subspecies of Panda which is the Himalayan red panda and the Chinese red panda, both found in the forest of India, Nepal, Bhutan, and the northern mountains of Myanmar and Southern China.
Red pandas are shy, solitary, and arboreal animals and are considered an indicator of ecological change.
The number of red pandas has been declining in the wild, even in the Singalia and Neora valley National Parks, the two protected areas where the endangered mammal is found in the wild in West Bengal.

Red panda

IUCN: Endangered
CITES: Appendix 1
Wildlife Protection Act 1972: Schedule 1

Giant panda

IUCN: VULNERABLE
CITES: APPENDIX 1

PROGRAMME FOR RED PANDA

Padmaja Naidu Himalayan Zoological Park has started an ambitious initiative to release 20 of these furry mammals in about five years to the forests.
The Padmaja Naidu park in Darjeeling is one of the high-altitude zoos in the country which has been quite successful in captive breeding of these furry mammals.
The Pandas will be released in the Singalila National Park, the highest protected area which is situated in West Bengal.

About Singalila National Park

It is located at Singalila Ridge in the Darjeeling district. It is the highest altitude park in West Bengal. It was initially a wildlife Sanctuary and later converted into a National Park in 1992.

Other national parks of West Bengal are as follows:

Jalda Para National Park
Neora Valley National Park
Sundarbans National Park
Gorumara National Park
Buxa National Park and Tiger Reserve

India’s conservation effort for red panda

Securing the red panda habitat

WWF-India works with local communities to reduce their dependence on fuelwood by introducing them to innovative techniques to meet their energy demands. In Sikkim, more than 200 individuals have been trained in manufacturing bio-briquettes.

Garnering local support

Local communities are involved in alternate livelihood activities that draw benefits for them, which also support the conservation initiatives.

In Arunachal Pradesh, community-based tourism enables the locals to earn additional income from the tourists coming to see red pandas.

Mitigating threats to red panda populations

Working with local communities to reduce forest dependence and involving them in conservation efforts addresses the threat of habitat degradation and fragmentation

Source: Down To Earth

Join Our Telegram

Voice clone-AI

Pradhan Mantri Suryodaya Yojana

06 Feb, 24
SHARE

Recently, Prime Minister announced Pradhan Mantri Suryodaya Yojana under which 1 crore households will get rooftop solar power systems. India’s Status of Current Solar Capacity India currently stands at 4th place globally in solar power capacity. As per Ministry of New an

Foreign Contribution Regulation Act (FCRA)- NGO

06 Feb, 24
SHARE

The Foreign Contribution Regulation Act, 2010 (FCRA) registration of two prominent non-governmental organisations (NGOs) — Centre for Policy Research (CPR) and World Vision India (WVI) have been cancelled this month. What is FCRA? Key provisions of FCRA, 2010 Key aspects Description

Voice clone-AI

06 Feb, 24
SHARE

Voice clone fraud has been on the rise in India. AI voice cloning – It is the process of creating a synthetic replica of a person’s voice through machine learning and speech synthesis technology.It is called as voice deepfakesor audio deepfakes. Objective – To achieve a high level of na

Science communication- how to promote

06 Feb, 24
SHARE

Steps taken by India to promote Science Communication Publications and Information Directorate (PID) - An organisation under Council of Science and Industrial Research (CSIR) established in 1951 for publishing and disseminating scientific information in India. National science magazines- The PI

Universal Basic Income (UBI)- Analysis

05 Feb, 24
SHARE

Universal Basic Income (UBI) can strengthen welfare architecture and unlock the nation’s latent demographic potential. UBI - It is an income support mechanism typically intended to reach all or a very large portion of the population regardless of their earnings or employment status. Objective- To provide enough to co