.webp)
Environment, Forest and Climate Change Minister Md Shahab Uddin on Thursday said the government-planned 'Bangabandhu Wildlife Conservation Corridor' will play a vital role in conserving wildlife including elephants and tigers.
“Establishment of the planned corridor will help in the reproduction of these two animals as well as in the conservation of other wildlife in the region,” he said.
The minister stated this at the National Result Sharing and Consultation Workshop on the Feasibility Study of Transboundary Wildlife Corridor in Chittagong, Chittagong Hill Tracts and Cox's Bazar with Myanmar and India held at the Bangabandhu International Conference Centre here.
The possibility of creating an inter-country uninterrupted movement or corridor for Asian elephants and Bengal tigers from India to Kasalang in the Chittagong Hill Tracts, Sangu via Myanmar is being explored. If this can be done, the connection between the fragmented habitats of elephants and tigers in these three countries will be established, said the minister in his address.
The corridor will play a vital role in the reproduction of these two animals as well as in the conservation of other wildlife in the region, he told the function organized by the Department of Forests.
Shahab Uddin said the forest lands of Bangladesh are constantly shrinking for settlement within the forest lands, conversion of forest lands into agricultural lands and conducting various development activities. “At the same time wildlife is losing their habitat and pasture. As a result, human-wildlife conflicts continue to escalate, killing both humans and wildlife,” the minister noted.
According to a 2016 survey by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), the total number of Asian elephants in Bangladesh is about 268 and according to the 2018 survey, the total number of Bengal tigers in Bangladesh is about 114. These important animals will soon be lost from Bangladesh if immediate conservation measures are not taken.
In order to take immediate steps in this regard, the Bangladesh Forest Department under the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change undertook the feasibility study in June this year with the aim of smoothing the domestic and international movement of Asian elephants and Bengal tigers.
“We have to work in a coordinated manner to protect the wildlife that has survived so far in our country,” said the minister.
Deputy Minister Habibun Nahar, Additional Secretary (Administration) Iqbal Abdullah Harun, Chief Conservator of Forests Md Amir Hossain Chowdhury and others spoke as special guests at the workshop chaired by Secretary of the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change Md Mostafa Kamal.
IUCN Bangladesh's Country Representative Rakibul Amin presented the overview of the project. The keynote paper was presented by M Monirul H Khan, National Expert of Corridor Project.
