Hyderabad:The extensive use of chemical pesticides and fertilizers has helped farmers in the state improve their yield in paddy and other produce, albeit with a serious environmental fallout. Telangana stood last among south Indian states in the population of bees, which are essential pollinators that help plants reproduce.
The World Wildlife Foundation’s Living Planet report, released on Thursday, flags a catastrophic 73 per cent decline in the average size of global wildlife population in just 50 years, and sounds a warning of the fast-approaching tipping points with nature loss and climate change as major threats to humanity. It is against this backdrop that the fast-declining bee population, coupled with indiscriminate poaching and cutting of wood in deep pockets of forests, has sent alarm bells ringing.
Talking to Deccan Chronicle, Elusing Meru, principal chief conservator of forests, admits that habitat loss, degradation and overharvesting, driven primarily by the global food systems, are the dominant threats to wildlife populations, as was reported in the Living Planet report.
He points out that, as far as Telangana is concerned, the Gutti Koya community coming from Chhattisgarh was a major threat as they have been making settlements in deep pockets of forests, and are involved in poaching of wild animals in the protected areas of Kinnarasani and Eturnagaram. They are clearing the forests where they make their temporary settlements. This has adversely four districts-Kothagudem, Mulugu, Bhoopalapally and some parts of Khammam, he said.
Apiculture Technology Centre director P. Ravindra Kumar, said that the large-scale use of pesticides and chemicals in agriculture were the major cause for the declining bee population.
Maintaining that the state is left with only 40 per cent of the honey bee population, Ravindra Kumar said that Telangana stands last in bee population among all south Indian states. Global warming, industrialisation, mining, pharmacy industries and brick kilns are the factors that led to the decrease in bee population.
“While bees are not the only insect pollinators, they are one of the most vital links. They are crucial in pollinating wild and managed plants. Bees perform about 80 per cent of all pollination worldwide. They keep our planet's precious ecosystems growing and thriving”, Ravindra Kumar said about the key role of bees in protecting nature.
Dr. Prayag H.S., the chief veterinary officer, Wildlife Conservation, Karnataka, said that habitat loss, degradation and overharvesting, driven primarily by the global food system, are the dominant threats to wildlife populations.
Pointing out the drastic sliding of natural food base is the main reason for reducing birds and animal population, he points out the sparrow population had come down due to use of artificial colours in place of rice-flour used in making rangoli.
The reduced cultivation of maize and jowar, among others, besides use of chemical pesticides is responsible for decrease in parrot population and other omnivorous birds.
“The large-scale encroachment of lakes and water bodies put a dent on the population of water birds. The human greed for land has led to alarming situations in the last 20 years. Nature has to be restored to what it was earlier and it is too late”, he said and added that the non-monsoon showers and increased carbon print due to climate change has also contributed to habitat loss.
