‘Kashmir's Wildlife Cannot Wait Any Longer’

Despite laws and awareness campaigns, Kashmir’s iconic species struggle, leaving experts to warn of ecological imbalance.

- Aashig Hussain Andrabi

Wildlife experts in Kashmir are sounding an old alarm with new urgency. Project Hangul and Project Tiger started in the same era. Tigers recovered, but the Hangul never moved beyond crisis.

Dr. Mehreen Khaleel says the story is rooted in years of weak follow-through.

“Kashmir was one of the places where Project Hangul began alongside Project Tiger,” says Dr. Mehreen, an ecologist with a Ph.D. from IISC Bangalore. “Tiger numbers rose. Hangul numbers stayed stuck. The laws exist. They need respect, implementation and firm enforcement from government agencies and every stakeholder.”

Now working as an independent researcher and consultant on conservation programmes, she says the Hangul’s status is “deeply worrying”. The population has hovered around 350 for almost forty years.

“The female-to-fawn ratio shows how hard recovery will be,” says the Founder and Chairperson of the Wildlife Research and Conservation Foundation.

“We have big gaps in data on other species too: ungulates, primates, reptiles, amphibians and insects. These gaps block our understanding of how all of them interact with people and with each other. The rise in human-animal encounters tells us how urgent it is to fill this knowledge.”

Dr. Mehreen, looking back to your early days, what ignited your passion for nature and wildlife conservation, especially when some might find it a less financially rewarding path?

The concept of conservation didn’t seem alien because I grew up in an environment that fuelled this passion. Also, every religion emphasizes the importance of maintaining balance in Nature, entrusting humans with the responsibility of preserving this equilibrium.

The chapters in the holy Quran elaborate on various life forms and their benefits.