Ten years have passed since a crocodile breeding centre was set up at Tengragiri Eco Park in Taltali, Barguna. But the number of crocodiles has not increased by a single one.

Locals allege that although eggs hatch, the young crocodiles cannot be saved because officials lack commitment. The Forest Department says the hatchlings cannot be saved for want of skilled, trained staff.

The eco park was built in the Tengragiri mangrove forest in 2012, and a crocodile breeding centre was opened inside it with two crocodiles. The male was named "Tengra" after the Tengragiri forest, and the female "Sakina" because the forest lies next to Sakina village. In the ten years since, the two crocodiles have produced hatchlings, but none has survived.

Locals say the crocodiles lay eggs every year and the eggs hatch, but because Forest Department staff do not rear the hatchlings properly, not one has survived so far.

Several residents of the Sonakata area, including Raju, Hasan and Mehedi, told Jago News: "Because of the lack of commitment and the indifference of Forest Department officers and staff, not one crocodile hatchling has been saved in ten years. If they had survived, revenue could have come from exports, and tourists could have been attracted too."

Locals also allege the crocodiles are not fed properly. KM Riazul Islam of the Sakina area told Jago News: "The two crocodiles at the breeding centre are not even fed properly. They are given two broiler chickens every three or four days, and they are barely surviving on that."

Arif Rahman, president of the Barguna Tourism Management Committee, told Jago News that more crocodiles at the Tengragiri Eco Park breeding centre would have added a new dimension to tourism.

Md Moniruzzaman, the Forest Department's Taltali range officer, said that after the hatchlings are born at the centre, the male crocodile eats them. "We don't have the trained, skilled staff needed to collect the hatchlings and nurse them. That is why we cannot save them," he said.

On the claim that the crocodiles are not fed regularly, he said: "The two crocodiles are fed regularly. If they were not, they could not have been kept alive for ten years."

Source: Jagonews24. First published in Bengali on The Agro News.