Delhi: Four sloth bears including a cub were rescued by authorities in Lahan in the southeastern Sirhaha district in Nepal, last week, acting on the information provided by the Wildlife Trust of India (WTI). Three of the four bears were adults trained as dancing bears to be sold to Kalandars in India.
With the support of the World Society for Protection of Animals (WSPA), WTI gathered information on the bears through covert field operatives. The Nepal authorities were informed and a raid was conducted last Monday in the house of the suspect, Salim, in Sukhipur village, Lahan. A bear cub was found tied. On interrogation Salim revealed that he had three trained adult bears as well.
A WTI official who assisted the Nepali authorities said, “All of the four seized bears were meant for Indian market. As Indian authorities tighten the noose, Kalandars are buying trained bears as well as cubs from across the border.”
The seizure in Sukhipur, only 20 km from the Indo-Nepal border highlights the rampant cross-border wildlife trade taking place through the porous Nepal-India border. Earlier this year, in April, forest officials had seized a bear cub from the same district following a tip-off by WTI.
Ashok Kumar, Vice-chairman, WTI, said, “Generally, bear cubs are captured in India and are taken to Nepal to be trained as dancing bears. Serious campaigning by NGOs in India has increased awareness levels here on the illegality of dancing bears. The miscreants are now using the unchecked borders and relatively low awareness levels on the issue in remote villages of Nepal to their advantage. Collaborative efforts between the two countries will be required to address this issue.”
Sloth bears are protected by wildlife laws of both India and Nepal, as well as by international treaties to which both the countries are signatories. However, factors such as lack of awareness, weak law enforcement and porous borders facilitate illegal wildlife trade.
Despite the ban prohibiting capture and confinement of sloth bears, they are still on demand in India. The bear cubs are bought and trained to dance by Kalandars, who earn their livelihood through bear dance performances. Kalandars have been known to visit tourist hotspots in Nepal to organise bear dances.
Sloth bears are also persecuted for their bile, which, despite the presence of synthetic alternatives, is highly valued in production of Traditional Chinese Medicines (TCM). Kalandars have reportedly also been involved in illegal trade in bear parts; old and diseased dancing bears are sold off for quick money by them.
According to a WSPA-WTI study conducted in 2006 under the Integrated Sloth Bear Conservation and Welfare Project, about 400 sloth bears were found to be in the captivity of Kalandars in India. Since then however, an encouraging number of Kalandars have surrendered their bears and opted for alternative livelihood opportunities offered by the WSPA-WTI project in various Indian states including Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Bihar. Converting practising bear dancing Kalandars and their rehabilitation through alternative livelihood provision is one of the key facets of this WSPA-WTI project, which aims for the holistic conservation of sloth bears in India.
