Felled trees in Garbhanga forest. Picture by S.H. Patgiri

May 5: Early Birds, a local wildlife NGO, has decided to urge the Assam government to declare the Rani and Garbhanga reserve forests wildlife sanctuaries.

A resolution was passed to that effect in the recent 15th annual general meeting of Early Birds.

?Considering the state of the two forests and the massive deforestation, there is every possibility that these beautiful wild resources might be lost in the near future,? Moloy Baruah, president of Early Birds, said.

Together, the Rani and Garbhanga reserve forests cover about 180 square km, stretching from the Meghalaya forests to the Deepor Beel sanctuary.

The forests are inhabited by a wide variety of wild mammals such as leopards, slow lorises, Assamese macaques, elephants, some rare species like hollock gibbons, Royal Bengal tigers, bison and other common wild animals like deer and wild cats. They also form an ideal breeding place for big mammals such as elephants, tigers and leopards.

Baruah added that a a wildlife sanctuary tag would protect the wild animals in Rani and Garbhanga reserve forests from the verge of extinction.

Besides felling, the other major problem threatening the reserve forests is encroachment. Officials of the forest department have had their hands full trying to keep reclaimed areas free from encroachment. The evicted settlers come back to encroach the reclaimed areas once the eviction drive is over.

Baruah said there should be a ban on dumping of municipal garbage into natural wetlands like Silsako Beel. It also demanded a ban on earthcutting in and around the city and urged the government to clear encroachers from around Gandhi Mandap.

The Early Birds activists have also demanded an immediate joint survey ? by the forest and revenue departments of the Amchang Wild Life sanctuary.

The sanctuary, comprising the reserve forests of Amchang, South Amchang and Khanapara, is spread over a total area of 7,864 hectares. It shelters 44 species of mammals, including elephants, leopards, wild dogs and bison. Lesser and greater adjutant storks, hill mynahs, khaleej pheasants, red jungle fowls, monitor lizards, cobras and pythons also abound in the sanctuary.

Guwahati has 11 reserve forests making it one of the few urban centres in the world with such a huge wildlife concentration.

According to experts, it is perhaps one of the very few metropolis where the wild Asian elephant can be seen within its limits. Elephants from Amchang-Panikhaiti regularly move into Narengi cantonment, the Khanapara reserve forest near Panjabari and other areas on the eastern part of the city.