Ahmedabad: Fifty guards, round-the-clock surveillance, sealed roads, and specially erected watchtowers — turns out, none of it was enough to protect the Great Indian Bustard chick, the first born in Gujarat’s wild in nearly a decade. The much-celebrated chick disappeared just 26 days after its birth. Forest officials said the hatchling has not been sighted since April 18. Despite repeated searches, it has not been found near its tagged mother, whose location signals continue to transmit.Hatched on March 24 in Kutch and protected with forest security that rivaled India’s Z+ tier — reserved for VVIPs — the chick was a hope for one of the most critically endangered bird species on the planet. Its disappearance has now put the state’s conservation machinery under serious scrutiny. The incident is the latest in a string of setbacks for the species in Gujarat. In Dec 2018, the state’s only male bustard went missing and has never been found. The population has since dwindled to just three females. Following the recent hatching, the two remaining females were tagged to improve monitoring. An official associated with the Wildlife Institute of India, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the suspected loss points to delayed and incomplete protection of the nesting site. Sources said the security measures are being reviewed to determine whether there was any delay in implementing full-scale protection. The questions being raised are: Were the measures put in place only after the chick hatched? Were there gaps in the fencing that may have allowed the nesting area to be accessed?The chick’s disappearance also spotlights a wider disconnect. A former principal chief conservator of forests pointed to a 2022 affidavit submitted by the state energy department to the Supreme Court, which proposed relocating the remaining birds to facilitate the expansion of high-tension power lines and renewable energy infrastructure in Kutch. The forest department is not known to have been consulted.Now, with no trace of the GIB chick, hopes of finding it alive are fading. Conservationists warn that the loss, if confirmed, lays bare the species’ extreme vulnerability and the urgent need for advance planning and stronger habitat protection.
