Asiatic lion run over by goods train near Pipavav port in Gujarat’s Amreli district
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Asiatic lion run over by goods train near Pipavav port in Gujarat’s Amreli district
Subject :Environment
Section: Species in news
Context:
- An Asiatic lion was run over by a goods train, another was injured after being hit by the same train near the Pipavav port in Gujarat’s Amreli district.
Details:
- The incident took place in Uchaiya village, some 4 km north of the limits of the port in the Rajula range of the Shetrunji wildlife division.
- The four sub-adult lions—two males and two females—were trying to cross the railway track at the time of the incident.
Pipavav port:
- Port Pipavav, India’s second port in the private sector after Mundra Port, is a port on the West Coast of India for containers, bulk and liquid cargo.
- Its lead promoter is APM Terminals, one of the largest container terminal operators in the world.
- The services include pilotage/towage, cargo handling and logistics support.
- Port Pipavav is located in Rajula Saurashtra, Gujarat, at a distance of 90 km South of Amreli, 15 km South of Rajula and 140 km South West of Bhavnagar.
- The port handles both bulk, container and liquid cargo.
- The port has a natural breakwater facing the wharves called Shialbet Island.
- The port is along the major trade routes and is close to the major Indian Port of Nhava Sheva.
- Pipavav is among the busiest ports of Gujarat and the railway line on which the accident took place connects the port with Surendranagar and gives the port access to the railway network of the country.
- Lions often enter even the area of the Pipavav port.
Main ports of Gujarat:
- The main ports in Gujarat are Kandla, Bhavnagar, Porbandar, Veraval, Okha, Bedi, Navlakhi, Mundra, Pipavav, Poshitra, Dahej, Magdalla and Hajira.
- Kandla is the biggest port among the other ports of Gujarat.
Asiatic lion:
- Asiatic lions’ only wild population in the world has been surviving in the Gir forest and other protected areas spread across Junagadh, Amreli, Gir Somnath and Bhavnagar districts in the state’s Saurashtra region.
- Many lions have settled in the coastal belt of Rajula with a thicket of gando baval (prosopis juliflora) providing them shelter and a healthy prey base, mainly of blue bulls and wild boars.
National Parks in Gujarat region:
| Name of National Park | District | Major wildlife supported |
| Gir Forest National Park | Junagadh | Asiatic lion, leopard, chausingha, spotted deer, hyena, sambar deer, chinkara |
| Blackbuck National Park, Velavadar | Bhavnagar | Blackbuck, fox, Macqueen’s bustard, lesser florican |
| Vansda National Park | Navsari | Leopard, hyena, deer, chausingha |
| Marine National Park, Gulf of Kutch | Jamnagar, Devbhumi Dwarka | Sponges, corals, jelly fish, seahorse, octopus, pearl oyster, starfish, lobster, dolphin |
Wildlife sanctuaries in Gujarat:
| Name of Sanctuary | District | Major wildlife supported |
| Kutch Desert Wildlife Sanctuary | Kutch | Chinkara, hyena, fox, flamingo, pelicans and other waterfowl and herpetofauna |
| Gir Wildlife Sanctuary & National Parks | Junagadh, Gir Somnath, Amreli | Lion, leopard, chausinga, chital, hyena, sambar, chinkara, herpetofauna, crocodiles and birds |
| Marine Sanctuary | Jamnagar, Devbhumi Dwarka, Gulf of Kutch | Sponges, corals, jellyfish, sea horse, octopus, oyster, pearl oyster, starfish, dolphin, dugong, waterfowl |
| Barda Wildlife Sanctuary | Porbandar | Leopard, blue bull, hyena, wild boar, jackal, birds, herpetofauna |
| Purna Wildlife Sanctuary | Dangs | Leopard, barking deer, macaques, four horned antelope, sambhar, hyena, herpetofauna, birds |
| Nal Sarovar Bird Sanctuary | Ahmedabad, Surendranagar | Flamingos, pelicans, coot, ducks, waders, storks, herons and other waterfowl, herpetofauna |
| Pania Wildlife Sanctuary | Amreli | Lion, chinkara, leopard, chital, hyena, wild boar, four horned antelope, pangolin, blue bull, birds |
| Rampara Wildlife Sanctuary | Morbi | Blue bull, chinkara, wolf, fox, jackal, birds, herpetofauna |
| Thol Lake Bird Sanctuary | Mehsana | Cranes, geese, flamingos, sarus and about 125 other waterfowl species |
| Khijadiya Bird Sanctuary | Jamnagar | Indian skimmer, ibises, painted stork, cormorants, etc. About 220 bird species, herpetofauna |
| Gaga Wildlife Sanctuary | Devbhumi Dwarka district | Great Indian bustard, wolf, jackal, birds, herpetofauna |
| Kutch Bustard Sanctuary | Kutch | Great Indian bustard, lesser florican, Macqueen’s bustard, chinkara, blue bull, herpetofauna |
| Mitiyala Wildlife Sanctuary | Amreli | Lion, Blue bull, Chittal, Chinkara, Panther |