Hoollongapar Gibbon sanctuary: Railway Ministry, Forest Dept collaborating to draw canopy for making forest bridge

Tapan Kumar Gogoi, Lok Sabha MP from Assam also raised the issue of Hoolock Gibbons that were separated by a Railway line in Jorhat in the Parliament, writes ETV Bharat’s Gautam Debroy.

New Delhi: In a bid to protect the Hoolock Gibbons from extinction and ensure that the Gibbons are reunited in Assam’s Jorhat district, the Railway Ministry is in consultation with the Forest department to design and draw a canopy for making forest or tree bridges over the railway tracks at the Hoollongapar Gibbon sanctuary in Jorhat.

The initiative was taken following the fact that a railway line that crisscrossed the Hoollongapar Gibbon sanctuary separated this endangered species into two different zones. Minister of State for Railways Raosaheb Patil Danve has recently informed Tapan Kumar Gogoi, Lok Sabha MP from Assam that his ministry has already examined the issue with the Forest Department.

“I have had the matter examined and would like to inform you that a meeting of Railway officials, Jorhat district forest officers, and primatologists was held in November last year to finalize the drawing of the canopy for Gibbons’ crossing. The forest department has been requested to advise on the design and drawing of the canopy. In this connection, further course of action will be taken on advice of the forest department,” stated Danve in his letter written to Gogoi.

The railway track set up during the British colonial era sliced the sanctuary into two chunks with one area comprising about 150 hectares and the other area consisting of about 1,950 hectares. “The railway line has separated the families of gibbons which always like to live on trees,” Gogoi told ETV Bharat.

Earlier Gogoi also raised the issue of Hoolock Gibbons that were separated by a Railway line in Jorhat in the Parliament. The matter was raised by Gogoi under Rule 377 in Lok Sabha on December 12, 2022. He raised the matter of broadening the bridge over the railway track in Hollongapar Gibbon Wildlife sanctuary at Jorhat and connecting the bridge by tree or forest canopy on both sides at the end of the bridge.

“Government must ensure protection of Gibbons so that they can easily access both parts of the sanctuary and to protect the rare ape which may also face the fate of extinction in the next few years,” Gogoi said. According to an estimate conducted by the Assam Forest Department, the Hoollongapar Gibbon sanctuary houses at least 106 Hoolock Gibbons.

Earlier this week, Minister for Environment, Forest and Climate Change Bhupender Yadav informed that as per the information received from the Assam government, a railway line passes through the Hoollongapar Gibbon Sanctuary in Jorhat.

“Hoolock Gibbons are arboreal species and dwell on trees. However, there are records of Gibbons crossing the railway track on foot. Hoolock Gibbons are monogamous and avoid mating within family lines. Linear plantations along both sides of the railway track were carried out by the Assam Forest Department and it was observed that the Gibbons cross over the railway tracks using trees planted on either side of the track,” he said.

The Ministry of Environment Forest and Climate Change has sanctioned funds under the centrally sponsored scheme: ‘Development of Wildlife Habitats’ for management of Hoollongapar Gibbon sanctuary, including for installation of a canopy bridge for facilitating the movement of Hoolock Gibbons.

The western hoolock gibbon (Hoolock hoolock) is a primate from the gibbon family, Hylobatidae. The species is found in Assam, Mizoram, and Meghalaya as well as in Bangladesh and Myanmar west of the Chindwin River.