On 50th year of crocodile conservation programme, expert says Odisha tops in recovery of reptile

AS the Crocodile Conservation Programme in India is all set to observe its 50th anniversary on June 17, Odisha, the only state to house all three species of crocodiles, finds itself in a proud place in implementing the most successful conservation project of saltwater crocodiles.

- PBD BUREAU/PTI

Before the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972, came to be implemented, people used to kill the reptile freely for commercial purposes.

The state launched the conservation programmes for all three crocodilian speciesgharial, mugger and estuarine crocodiles in 1975, which no other state did so five decades back.

Now, the conservation programmes have been able to change that scenario, according to a researcher associated with the project.

While Bhitarkanika National Park is home to 1,826 saltwater crocodiles, Satkosia Gorge is the abode of 16 Gharials as per the census report of January 2025. Around 300 Muggars live in the rivers of the state, an official said.

The conservation programme of saltwater crocodiles, facing extinction five decades back, at the Bhitarkanika National Park in Kendrapara district has turned out to be the most successful one in the country.

Bhitarkanika is home to nearly 70 per cent of India's estuarine crocodile or saltwater crocodiles, said researcher Sudhakar Kar.

Kar was earlier officiated as the research officer in the state forest department.