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Item Status and trend of Great Indian Bustard, associated wildlife and threats in Thar(Wildlife Institute of India, Dehradun, 2017) Dutta, S.; Bipin, C.M.; Anoop, K.R.; Uddin, M.; Shekhawat, R.S.; Jhala, Y.V.Arid ecosystems of India support unique biodiversity and traditional agro-pastoral livelihoods. However, these habitats are highly threatened due to large-scale land-use changes and historical neglect of conservation policies. The Critically Endangered great Indian bustard acts as a flagship and indicator of this ecosystem, for which Government is planning conservation actions that will also benefit associated wildlife. Persistence of this species critically depends on Thar landscape, where ~75 % of the global population resides. Since 2014, Wildlife Institute of India and Rajasthan Forest Department have been jointly conducting scientific surveys to better understand the current status, distribution patterns, and local contexts of key conservation-dependent species in Thar for informing management actions. This study assessed the status of great Indian bustard, chinkara and fox alongside their habitat and anthropogenic pressures across 19,728 km2 of potential bustard landscape in Thar spanning Jaisalmer, Jodhpur and Bikaner districts of Rajasthan. Systematic surveys were conducted in 144 km2 cells from slow-moving vehicle along 17.9 + 3.9SD km transects to record species’ detections, habitat characteristics in sampling plots, and secondary information on species’ occurrences. Multiple teams comprising field biologists and Forest Department staff simultaneously and rapidly sampled 108 cells along 1697 km transects in March 2014, 77 cells along 1246 km transects in March 2015,and 120 cells along 2273 km transects in March 2016. Sampling was carried out in two phases: extensive surveys to assess great Indian bustard occurrence across the landscape and intensive surveys to estimate their density in used cells. Great Indian bustard and other key species' detection data were analyzed in Occupancy and Distance Sampling framework to estimate proportion of sites used and density/abundance. Detection/non-detection data from multiple year surveys (2014-16) showed that great Indian bustard used 10.9 ± 3.4SE % sites (naive occupancy 8.4%). Bird density in used sites (cells where at least one bird was detected during 2015-16) was estimated at 6.5 ± 1.4SE /100 km2. Random sampling of the potential bustard landscape in Thar using line transect distance sampling yielded density and abundance estimates of 0.84 + 0.38 birds/100 km2 and 166 + 74 birds in 2016. During the surveys 38 (2014), 40 (2015) and 37 (2016) individual birds were detected. Bustard-habitat relationships, assessed using 5 multinomial logistic regression, showed that disturbances and level of protection influenced distribution in this landscape. Great Indian bustard occurrence in the landscape declined with distance from enclosure (regression effect size = -0.06 ± 0.02SE), human presence (-3.22 ± 1.52SE) and infrastructural intensity (-3.97 ± 1.61SE). Chinkara was found in 78% sites and its density at landscape-scale was estimated at 187.5 ± 25.1SE animals/100 km2, yielding abundance of 37,000 + 4970SE in 19,728 km2 area (2016). Desert and Indian fox used 60 ± 7SE % of sites, at densities of 14.35 ± 3.46SE desert fox/100km2 and 2.28 ± 1.19SE Indian fox/100km2 at landscape-scale, and abundances of 2830 ± 683SE desert fox and 450 ± 235SE Indian fox in 19,728 km2 area. Eleven percent of sampled cells were found to be of high conservation value, out of which, 62% cells were outside Protected Area. Although some of these 'unprotected' areas benefit from community protection or inviolate spaces created due to Army occupation, others continue to be threatened by hunting and unplanned land-uses. Our study provides robust abundance estimates of key species in Thar. It provides spatially explicit information on species’ distribution and ecological parameters to guide site-specific management and policy. Our questionnaires generated spatial patterns of community composition, livelihoods, livestock holdings and species’ occurrence reports that will help in designing community outreach and conservation programs. Thar supports the largest global population of great Indian bustard and offers the best hope for its persistence. This survey captured snapshots of great Indian bustard distribution that needs to be augmented with satellite telemetry based information on seasonal landscape use to mitigate threats. Based on results and field experiences, we strongly recommend: a) improving great Indian bustard recruitment in existing enclosures using predator-proof-fences and nest-predator removal, b) creating more enclosures or conservation/community reserves in priority conservation cells, c) smart and intensive patrolling to control poaching and generate management information, d) targeted research to understand local ecology of great Indian bustard, characterize threats, and ranging patterns, e) addressing local livelihood concerns through social research, and f) engaging local communities to monitor and protect wildlife through outreach and incentive programs.Item Status of Great Indian Bustard and associated wildlife in Thar(Wildlife Institute of India, Dehradun, 2016) Dutta, S.; Bipin, C.M.; Bhardwaj, G.S.; Anoop, K.R.; Jhala, Y.V.Despite unique biodiversity values and dependency of traditional agro-pastoral livelihoods, arid open habitats of India are facing imminent risk due to our neglect and mismanagement. The Critically Endangered Great Indian Bustard (GIB) acts as a flagship and indicator of this ecosystem, for which Governments are planning conservation actions that will also benefit associated wildlife. Persistence of this species critically depends on the Thar landscape, where ~75% of the global population resides, yet their status, distribution and ecological requirements remain poorly understood. This study aimed at assessing the status of Great Indian Bustard, Chinkara and Fox alongside their habitat and anthropogenic stressors across ~25,500 km2 of potential bustard landscape in Thar spanning Jaisalmer and Jodhpur districts of Rajasthan. Systematic surveys were conducted in 144 km2 cells from slow-moving vehicle along 15-20 km transects to record species’ detections, habitat characteristics in sampling plots, and secondary information on species’ occurrence. Eighteen teams comprising of field biologists and Forest Department staff sampled 118 cells along 1924 km transect in March 2014. Species’ detection data were analyzed in Occupancy and Distance Sampling framework to estimate area of occupancy and density/abundance of key species. Our key findings were that Great Indian Bustard occupied 5.8 ± 4.4 % of sites, although information from local community questionnaire surveys recorded usage in 27% of sites. Bird density was estimated at 0.61 ± 0.36 /100 km2, yielding abundance estimates of 103 ± 62 in the sampled area (16,992 km2) and 155 ± 94 GIB in Thar landscape (25488 km2 area). During the survey, 38 individual birds were detected. Bustard-habitat relationships, assessed using multinomial logistic regression, showed that disturbances, level of protection and topography influenced distribution. Chinkara population occupied 91.0 ± 3.4% of sites at overall density of 378 ± 57 animals/100 km2 and abundance of 96,291 ± 14,556 in the landscape. Desert Fox population occupied 53.5 ± 8.8 % of sites, at overall density of 33.58 ± 8.17 animals/100 km2 and abundance of 8,558 ± 2,081 in the landscape. Seventy-five percent of priority conservation sites were outside Protected Area. Although some of them benefit from community protection, majority are threatened by hunting and unplanned landuses. This study provides robust abundance estimates of key species in the Thar landscape. It also provides spatially-explicit information on species’ occurrence and ecological parameters so as to guide in-situ site-specific management and policy. Thar landscape supports the largest global population of GIB with the best hope for the species’ future survival. Since this survey was a snapshot at GIB distribution, landscape-scale seasonal use information is lacking but critically required. A satellite telemetry based study should be urgently implemented to prioritize areas for conservation investment.Item Habitat improvement and conservation breeding of the Great Indian Bustard : an integrated approach. Progress report April 2018-March 2020(Wildlife Institute of India, Dehradun, 2020) Jhala, Y.V.; Dutta, S.; Karkarya, T.; Awasthi, A.; Bipin, C.M. et.al.The Great Indian Bustard (Ardeotis nigriceps) is critically endangered with 100-150 individuals left, largely in Jaisalmer (Rajasthan) and very small populations in Kutch (Gujarat), Sholapur (Maharashtra), Ballari (Karnataka) and Kurnool (Andhra Pradesh). The species has suffered 90% reductions in number and range, over the last five decades, due to prevalent habitat loss and human induced mortalities compounded with its slow life history traits. The Ministry of Environment, Forest & Climate Change (MoEF&CC) formulated the National Bustard Recovery Plans in 2013 based on scientific consultation, and initiated the Project “Habitat Improvement and Conservation Breeding of Great Indian Bustard” in 2016 with the Wildlife Institute of India (WII) as the nodal agency along with State Forest Departments and partner NGOs as collaborators. This project aims at recovering the species from extinction through holistic approach of conservation breeding, applied research, outreach and pilot habitat management. This report presents the project activities undertaken between 2018-19. 1. The Tripartite Memorandum of Agreement (MoA) for the Great Indian Bustard (GIB) and Lesser Florican conservation breeding and research program was signed between MoEF&CC, Rajasthan Government and WII to operationalize conservation breeding of the GIB under the guidance of a Steering Committee, with facilitation of Rajasthan Government and funding of MoEF&CC. Based on the preliminary surveys carried out by the Project team, two sites – Sorsan, Baran District and Ramdevra, Jaisalmer District were finalized for establishing the Conservation Breeding Center in consultation with the concerned agencies and construction is under progress in Ramdevra. The project team was trained in husbandry practices and veterinary care at the International Fund for Houbara Conservation (IFHC), Abu Dhabi. To utilize the GIB breeding season in 2019-20, as a fully functional pilot project the first GIB Conservation Breeding Center has been established at Sam, Jaisalmer that currently houses ten hand-reared GIB chicks from wild collected and artificially hatched eggs in close collaboration with Rajasthan Forest Department and technical support of International Fund for Houbara Conservation / Reneco. 2. Under the applied research component, three GIB females were radio tagged in Desert National Park, Jaisalmer for understanding bird movements, identifying critical habitats for conservation planning, prioritizing power lines for mitigation, and searching nesting sites for conservation breeding program. Birds have been transmitting data for months from Jaisalmer and Kachchh and providing hitherto unknown basic information on GIB space use and ranging patterns. The average travel distances were similar between the two tagged birds in Thar and almost double than that of Kachchh. Bird home ranges ranged between 76 km2 in Kachchh to 124 km2 in Jaisalmer. The core usages for birds ranged between 13–29 km2 in Jaisalmer and 15 km2 in Kachchh. Movements were located mostly within protected enclosures that corroborate the recommendation of National Bustard Recovery Plans that enclosures of 10-20 km2 can accommodate the birds’ ecological needs to a great extent, if they are managed scientifically. This action supplemented with power line mitigation in the areas surrounding enclosures is necessary to restore potential habitats across the species’ range, wherever feasible. The National Lesser Florican survey was jointly conducted by the project team with partner agencies in July - September 2018 that yielded an estimate of 426 (174–805 95% CI) male territories (conservatively 220 + 38) across the range; highlighting the critical status of this species for urgent conservation efforts. Investigation on patterns of bird community structure in relation to land-use driven habitat changes in the arid grasslands of Thar suggested that although primary grassland habitat is essential to save the full spectrum of the regional species pool, low-impact land-uses can act as important secondary habitats for conservation of bird species. Assessment of factors that shape vegetation in the arid zone of India in Thar, Jaisalmer showed a 62% loss in the vegetation types to agriculture and settlements highlighting the need to delineate conservation areas based on requirements of faunal species of interest and its habitat requirements before a complete wipe-out of vegetation structure types occur. Molecular analysis of GIB biological samples revealed that genetic differentiation between GIB subpopulations was low to moderate and level of gene flow between Rajasthan and Gujarat subpopulations was high. From bird carcass surveys under power lines in Kachchh, we estimated carcass encounter rates of 0.27 (0.14 SE) and 0.25 (0.06 SE) per km per month for high- and low- tension power-lines and mortalities of ~22,000 birds (all species) annually in ~1100 km2 GIB habitat emphasizing the need for immediate power line mitigation measures. Preliminary investigation of soil and GIB food samples revealed presence of organophosphate pesticides in GIB habitat in and around Rollapadu Wildlife Sanctuary, Andhra Pradesh.. As part of social engagement, our team surveyed villages in Jaisalmer district to assess livelihood concerns and conservation attitude of the local population. We intend to involve the locals as stakeholders in GIB conservation to create goodwill, and these social surveys will help in developing outreach programs. Additionally, customized nature education programmes in 22 schools, skill development workshop for responsible nature tourism to local youth and forest department staff, awareness program to sensitize locals and tourists on grassland and GIB conservation at Desert festival, Jaisalmer were conducted. Publicity materials such as posters, t-shirts, caps, books, bags, brochures for power agencies and other stakeholders were prepared and widely disseminated. The team met with representatives of various private and government power agencies as well as senior government officials, media and legal fraternity to sensitize them on the critical issue of power line mitigation for GIB conservation. We also conducted training workshops on population, habitat and threat surveys involving Forest Department staff and volunteers in bustard range states. 4. Under pilot habitat management, 801 dogs from 23 villages in/around DNP were sterilized in collaboration with Humane Society International (HSI)- India and Rajasthan Forest Department. Analysis of data collected from population surveys of dogs and other nest predators in/around DNP is under progress. Preliminary analysis showed that the proportion of unsterilized dogs is still very high in villages. Pigs and desert foxes were the most abundant nest predators in/around DNP. Preparations are underway to relocate nest predators from GIB breeding enclosures in DNP. Meetings with the local community to manage a portion of their land in GIB-friendly manner, and interactions with power agencies and bird diverter suppliers for marking critical power lines were held. More bird diverters for power lines have been procured for installation with the help of power agencies in Thar.Item Habitat Improvement and conservation breeding of Great Indian Bustard : an integrated approach Annual Progress Report II (March 2017-April 2018)(Wildlife Institute of India, Dehradun, 2018) Jhala, Y.V.; Dutta, Sutirtha; Habib, Bilal; Narwade, Sujit; Karkaria, Tushna; Bipin, C.M.; Awasthi, Arjun; Singh, Vineet; Yellapu, Srinivas; Bagaria, Priyamvada; Uddin, Mohib; Supakar, Sourav; Gupta, Tanya; Pandey, Devendradutt; Khan, ShaheerThe Great Indian Bustard Ardeotis nigriceps (hereafter GIB) is one of the rarest birds in the world. With ~150 individuals left, almost exclusively in India, the species is listed as Critically Endangered (IUCN 2011) and lies within Schedule I (the highest protection status) of the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972. Their populations have steadily declined by 75% in last 30 years and are facing imminent extinction risk unless serious management interventions are applied (Dutta et al. 2011). Historically, GIB was distributed throughout the western half of India, but, currently they are found in five fragmented pockets. According to our recent population assessment (Dutta et al. 2016), the largest population of 140+53 birds occurs in Thar landscape of Rajasthan (Desert National Park in Jaisalmer alongside Jodhpur). The other populations are <15 birds each, occurring in Gujarat (Lala-Naliya Sanctuary and its neighbourhood in Kachchh), Maharashtra (Bustard Sanctuary in Solapur, alongside Chandrapur and Nagpur), Andhra Pradesh (Rollapadu Sanctuary and its neighbourhood in Kurnool) and Karnataka (Bellary) (Dutta et al. 2011). The species has declined due to compounding effects of direct and indirect human exploitation on their slow life-history traits. They were subjected to exhaustive hunting and egg collection in the past that reduced their population to ~1260 birds in 1969 (Dharmakumarsinhji 1971). However, their contemporary decline is largely due to prevailing habitat loss as dry grasslands have been marginalized as ‘unproductive wastelands’ and progressively converted to other land uses since colonial times. Recent developments in irrigation and farming technologies have intensified agriculture in bustard habitats and changed cropping practices from seasonal to year-round, intensive crops. This change has led to food scarcity for bustards, pesticide contamination, and habitat loss. Development activities like infrastructural growth (electricity, road and irrigation networks), industries, power projects, and wind turbines have caused severe habitat degradation and disturbance to birds. Being low and heavy flyers, they face a high risk of fatal collisions with power-lines, which are difficult to detect from afar. Populations of free-ranging dogs have increased in bustard habitats, and along with native predators (fox, mongooses, and cats), they have increased predation pressure on nests and chicks and reduced recruitment. Past efforts of banning human activities to create bustard Sanctuaries over large human-use landscapes, without appropriate settlement of land rights, have generated bitterness among local people, leading to lack of conservation support. These factors have in turn caused local extinctions from some Sanctuaries. Local people and managers are not sufficiently aware of the conservation benefits of grasslands and the scientific ways to manage them.Item Status of Great Indian Bustard and associated wildlife in Thar(Wildlife Institute of India, Dehradun, 2014) Dutta, S.; Bhardwaj, G.S.; Bhardwaj, D.K.; Jhala, Y.V.Despite unique biodiversity values and dependency of traditional agro-pastoral livelihoods, arid open habitats of India are facing imminent risk due to our neglect and mismanagement. The Critically Endangered Great Indian Bustard (GIB) acts as a flagship and indicator of this ecosystem, for which Governments are planning conservation actions that will also benefit associated wildlife. Persistence of this species critically depends on the Thar landscape, where ~75% of the global population resides, yet their status, distribution and ecological requirements remain poorly understood. This study aimed at assessing the status of Great Indian Bustard, Chinkara and Fox alongside their habitat and anthropogenic stressors across ~25,500 km2 of potential bustard landscape in Thar spanning Jaisalmer and Jodhpur districts of Rajasthan. Systematic surveys were conducted in 144 km2 cells from slow-moving vehicle along 15-20 km transects to record species’ detections, habitat characteristics in sampling plots, and secondary information on species’ occurrence. Eighteen teams comprising of field biologists and Forest Department staff sampled 118 cells along 1924 km transect in March 2014. Species’ detection data were analyzed in Occupancy and Distance Sampling framework to estimate area of occupancy and density/abundance of key species. Our key findings were that Great Indian Bustard occupied 5.8 ± 4.4 % of sites, although information from local community questionnaire surveys recorded usage in 27% of sites. Bird density was estimated at 0.61 ± 0.36 /100 km2, yielding abundance estimates of 103 ± 62 in the sampled area (16,992 km2) and 155 ± 94 GIB in Thar landscape (25488 km2 area). During the survey, 38 individual birds were detected. Bustard-habitat relationships, assessed using multinomial logistic regression, showed that disturbances, level of protection and topography influenced distribution. Chinkara population occupied 91.0 ± 3.4% of sites at overall density of 378 ± 57 animals/100 km2 and abundance of 96,291 ± 14,556 in the landscape. Desert Fox population occupied 53.5 ± 8.8 % of sites, at overall density of 33.58 ± 8.17 animals/100 km2 and abundance of 8,558 ± 2,081 in the landscape. Seventy-five percent of priority conservation sites were outside Protected Area. Although some of them benefit from community protection, majority are threatened by hunting and unplanned landuses. This study provides robust abundance estimates of key species in the Thar landscape. It also provides spatially-explicit information on species’ occurrence and ecological parameters so as to guide in-situ site-specific management and policy. Thar landscape supports the largest global population of GIB with the best hope for the species’ future survival. Since this survey was a snapshot at GIB distribution, landscape-scale seasonal use information is lacking but critically required. A satellite telemetry based study should be urgently implemented to prioritize areas for conservation investment.Item Habitat improvement and conservation breeding of the Great Indian Bustard and integrated approach. Progress Report April 2019-March 2020(Wildlife Institute of India, Dehradun, 2020) Jhala, Y.V.; Dutta, S.; Karkarya, T.; Awasthi, A.; Bipin, C.M. and othersThe Great Indian Bustard (Ardeotis nigriceps) is critically endangered with 100-150 individuals left, largely in Jaisalmer (Rajasthan) and very small populations in Kutch (Gujarat), Sholapur (Maharashtra), Ballari (Karnataka) and Kurnool (Andhra Pradesh). The species has suffered 90% reductions in number and range, over the last five decades, due to prevalent habitat loss and human induced mortalities compounded with its slow life history traits. The Ministry of Environment, Forest & Climate Change (MoEF&CC) formulated the National Bustard Recovery Plans in 2013 based on scientific consultation, and initiated the Project “Habitat Improvement and Conservation Breeding of Great Indian Bustard” in 2016 with the Wildlife Institute of India (WII) as the nodal agency along with State Forest Departments and partner NGOs as collaborators. This project aims at recovering the species from extinction through holistic approach of conservation breeding, applied research, outreach and pilot habitat management. This report presents the project activities undertaken between 2018-19. 1. The Tripartite Memorandum of Agreement (MoA) for the Great Indian Bustard (GIB) and Lesser Florican conservation breeding and research program was signed between MoEF&CC, Rajasthan Government and WII to operationalize conservation breeding of the GIB under the guidance of a Steering Committee, with facilitation of Rajasthan Government and funding of MoEF&CC. Based on the preliminary surveys carried out by the Project team, two sites – Sorsan, Baran District and Ramdevra, Jaisalmer District were finalized for establishing the Conservation Breeding Center in consultation with the concerned agencies and construction is under progress in Ramdevra. The project team was trained in husbandry practices and veterinary care at the International Fund for Houbara Conservation (IFHC), Abu Dhabi. To utilize the GIB breeding season in 2019-20, as a fully functional pilot project the first GIB Conservation Breeding Center has been established at Sam, Jaisalmer that currently houses ten hand-reared GIB chicks from wild collected and artificially hatched eggs in close collaboration with Rajasthan Forest Department and technical support of International Fund for Houbara Conservation / Reneco. 2. Under the applied research component, three GIB females were radio tagged in Desert National Park, Jaisalmer for understanding bird movements, identifying critical habitats for conservation planning, prioritizing power lines for mitigation, and searching nesting sites for conservation breeding program. Birds have been transmitting data for months from Jaisalmer and Kachchh and providing hitherto unknown basic information on GIB space use and ranging patterns. The average travel distances were similar between the two tagged birds in Thar and almost double than that of Kachchh. Bird home ranges ranged between 76 km2 in Kachchh to 124 km2 in Jaisalmer. The core usages for birds ranged between 13–29 km2 in Jaisalmer and 15 km2 in Kachchh. Movements were located mostly within protected enclosures that corroborate the recommendation of National Bustard Recovery Plans that enclosures of 10-20 km2 can accommodate the birds’ ecological needs to a great extent, if they are managed scientifically. This action supplemented with power line mitigation in the areas surrounding enclosures is necessary to restore potential habitats across the species’ range, wherever feasible. The National Lesser Florican survey was jointly conducted by the project team with partner agencies in July - September 2018 that yielded an estimate of 426 (174–805 95% CI) male territories (conservatively 220 + 38) across the range; highlighting the critical status of this species for urgent conservation efforts. Investigation on patterns of bird community structure in relation to land-use driven habitat changes in the arid grasslands of Thar suggested that although primary 2 grassland habitat is essential to save the full spectrum of the regional species pool, low-impact land-uses can act as important secondary habitats for conservation of bird species. Assessment of factors that shape vegetation in the arid zone of India in Thar, Jaisalmer showed a 62% loss in the vegetation types to agriculture and settlements highlighting the need to delineate conservation areas based on requirements of faunal species of interest and its habitat requirements before a complete wipe-out of vegetation structure types occur. Molecular analysis of GIB biological samples revealed that genetic differentiation between GIB subpopulations was low to moderate and level of gene flow between Rajasthan and Gujarat subpopulations was high. From bird carcass surveys under power lines in Kachchh, we estimated carcass encounter rates of 0.27 (0.14 SE) and 0.25 (0.06 SE) per km per month for high- and low- tension power-lines and mortalities of ~22,000 birds (all species) annually in ~1100 km2 GIB habitat emphasizing the need for immediate power line mitigation measures. Preliminary investigation of soil and GIB food samples revealed presence of organophosphate pesticides in GIB habitat in and around Rollapadu Wildlife Sanctuary, Andhra Pradesh. 3. As part of social engagement, our team surveyed villages in Jaisalmer district to assess livelihood concerns and conservation attitude of the local population. We intend to involve the locals as stakeholders in GIB conservation to create goodwill, and these social surveys will help in developing outreach programs. Additionally, customized nature education programmes in 22 schools, skill development workshop for responsible nature tourism to local youth and forest department staff, awareness program to sensitize locals and tourists on grassland and GIB conservation at Desert festival, Jaisalmer were conducted. Publicity materials such as posters, tshirts, caps, books, bags, brochures for power agencies and other stakeholders were prepared and widely disseminated. The team met with representatives of various private and government power agencies as well as senior government officials, media and legal fraternity to sensitize them on the critical issue of power line mitigation for GIB conservation. We also conducted training workshops on population, habitat and threat surveys involving Forest Department staff and volunteers in bustard range states. 4. Under pilot habitat management, 801 dogs from 23 villages in/around DNP were sterilized in collaboration with Humane Society International (HSI)- India and Rajasthan Forest Department. Analysis of data collected from population surveys of dogs and other nest predators in/around DNP is under progress. Preliminary analysis showed that the proportion of unsterilized dogs is still very high in villages. Pigs and desert foxes were the most abundant nest predators in/around DNP. Preparations are underway to relocate nest predators from GIB breeding enclosures in DNP. Meetings with the local community to manage a portion of their land in GIB-friendly manner, and interactions with power agencies and bird diverter suppliers for marking critical power lines were held. More bird diverters for power lines have been procured for installation with the help of power agencies in Thar.