The sal and gajari forests of the Garo Hills along Sherpur's border were once home to tigers, bears, deer and fishing cats, and the hill villages rang with the calls of red junglefowl, peafowl and many other birds. With forest cover shrinking, habitat lost and settlements spreading, those animals are no longer seen, residents told Manab Zamin. The paper ran the report ahead of World Animal Day on Sunday, 4 October.
The picture covers the hill areas of Nalitabari, Jhenaigati and Sreebardi upazilas. Mohammad Abdul Jalil, who lives in the Nalitabari hills, told the paper that tigers, bears, deer, fishing cats and other animals were once seen in the forests, along with plenty of birds. Clearing of forest, felling of trees and the spread of settlements have since driven many of them away.
The Garo Hills have not been emptied of wildlife, however. Wild elephants now roam the border hills of the three upazilas regularly. Herds come down from the hills to villages and farmland in search of food, damaging crops and leading to conflict between people and elephants.
Local resident Hasen Mia said wild elephants are often seen in the hill areas and herds come close to settlements; farmers lose crops and people live in fear.
Residents fear that unless the forest and wildlife habitat are protected, the animals that survive today will also be at risk. They want long-term, effective action beyond the formalities of the day: conserving what remains of the Garo Hills forest, protecting safe ranges for wildlife and ensuring people and wild animals can live side by side.
Photo: Ayman Nakib Badhan / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0)
Source: Manab Zamin
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