Seven current and former members of the Gujarat Wildlife Board have written to the state government seeking a review of a series of permissions and proposed diversion of forest land that they claim threatens the habitat of Asiatic lions in and around Gir district.
In a report submitted to the government, the signatories claimed that mining, resort-related development and the re-entry of Maldari families into protected areas could negatively impact lion corridors and wildlife conservation efforts in the area.
The representative said the proposal to convert 75 hectares of Babbarkot reserve forest near Rajula under the Forest Conservation Act (FCA) for mining purposes poses a threat to more than 50 lions and other Schedule I wildlife living in the area permanently. The signatories said the area also forms part of the lion corridor identified in the Gir management plan. However, the diversion proposal describes the area as not a corridor, which they said is “not the real truth.”
The representation also claims that permission was recently granted to a popular artiste to return to Nice in Lilbani, reversing a previous refusal by the same office in 2023. This comes despite the government allotting land to the family under the Santhani resettlement scheme in Chachai village. The signatories warned that the permission prompted more than 50 other Maldaris to seek similar re-entry, describing it as “completely inconsistent with the government’s plan to resettle Maldaris outside the Gir Reserve.”
They also alleged that forest land near Khecha village in Dari taluka in Amreli district is being diverted under the Forest Conservation Act (FCA) for the benefit of a resort called Lionia, which they described as running illegally. Original approval was given to convert the land for residential use only, not for commercial purposes. Earlier, forest officials had blocked access to the resort through reserve forest land, but the current administration allowed it and began proposing a diversion, they said, warning that it would “certainly set a negative precedent.”
Pointing out two ongoing Public Interest Litigations (PILs) in the Gujarat High Court related to lion corridors and unnatural lion deaths, the actor warned that permissions could amount to contempt of court. “If action is not taken immediately, it could be disastrous and could cause irreversible loss of Gir protected areas,” the representation said.
The signatories include current members Snehal Patel of Nature Club Surat, advocates Rohit Vyas, C T Rana, Suresh Bhatt and Sanjay Killia, and former members Bhushan Pandya and Revtubha Raigadha.
