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Union Environment Minister Bhupender Yadav reviewed Great Indian Bustard (GIB) conservation, grassland restoration and Project Cheetah at Bhuj, Kachchh, on 13 September 2026.
He released the Gujarat Action Plan for GIB Conservation, prepared by the Wildlife Institute of India with the Gujarat Forest Department. Its target is a minimum viable population of more than 30 birds on 200-500 sq km of contiguous habitat.
In a 'jump-start' trial at Naliya, infertile wild GIB eggs were replaced with viable captive-bred eggs. The chick from the second attempt has survived beyond its first three months in the wild.
A proposed five-year national grassland assessment, backed by National CAMPA, is to lay the basis for a national grassland management framework.
Project Cheetah has grown from 29 founders to 52 cheetahs, 49 of them born in India. Banni (Gujarat) and Nauradehi (MP) are identified as future release sites.
A science-based roadmap to rebuild Kachchh's GIB population.
Key: Prepared by WII with the Gujarat Forest Department. Covers habitat restoration, grazing management, invasive removal, predator control and mitigation of infrastructure threats.
Save the GIB through captive breeding plus in-situ habitat work.
Key: Sanctioned in 2016 with CAMPA funding of Rs 33.85 crore (2016-21, extended to 2024) and implemented by WII. Breeding centres at Sam (temporary, June 2019) and Ramdevra (functional August 2022), Jaisalmer.
Acclimatise captive-bred birds from Rajasthan before release.
Key: Birds will be released only once release protocols and habitat conditions are in place.
Five-year mapping, ecological assessment and restoration of Open Natural Ecosystems, including Banni.
Key: Run by WII, ICFRE and FSI with National CAMPA support, as the basis for a national grassland management framework.
Restore the cheetah, which was declared extinct in India in 1952, through intercontinental translocation.
Key: Moving to landscape-level management of habitat, prey base and connectivity. Future release sites: Banni Grasslands and Nauradehi WLS.
GIB and lesser florican are in Schedule I, the highest protection.
In 2021 the Court ordered overhead power lines in GIB habitat to go underground. In March 2024 it withdrew that blanket order and recognised a right against the adverse effects of climate change under Articles 14 and 21. In December 2025 it fixed Revised Priority Areas of ~14,013 sq km (Rajasthan) and 740 sq km (Gujarat), and banned new solar and wind projects in core habitat.
Created National CAMPA, which funds the GIB programme and the grassland assessment.
Autonomous institute under MoEFCC, est. 1982. Prepared the Gujarat plan and runs GIB conservation breeding.
Statutory body under the WPA 1972 (2006 amendment). Oversees Project Cheetah.
Forestry research council formed in 1986, autonomous under MoEFCC since 1991.
Set up on 1 June 1981. Publishes the biennial India State of Forest Report.
GS Paper 3 > Environment > Conservation of Biodiversity
General Awareness > Environment > Endangered Species and Protected Areas
With reference to India's Desert National Park, which of the following statements are correct? 1. It is spread over two districts. 2. There is no human habitation inside the Park. 3. It is one of the natural habitats of Great Indian Bustard. Select the correct answer using the code given below:
Answer: 1 and 3 only
Why is a plant called Prosopis juliflora often mentioned in news?
Answer: It tends to reduce the biodiversity in the area in which it grows.
"Project Tiger" was launched in India in which year?
Answer: 1973
Swapping infertile eggs in a wild nest for viable captive-bred eggs so that the wild female hatches and rears the chick.
Grasslands, savannas, scrub and deserts: naturally open, non-forest habitats that are often misclassified as wasteland.
The smallest population size likely to survive in the long term despite chance events; set at more than 30 GIBs for Gujarat.