Kolkata: It is often said that painters create magic on the canvass with their talent. However, the artists may well be erasing species with their brushes if we look closely. As per the Indian Forest Service (IFS) officers Santosh GR and Saket Badola, painters' brushes in Europe and America are made from the hair of the carnivorous mammal Sable.
The indiscriminate killing of animals for the paintbrush industry is posing a threat to the species. Repeated protests by environmental activists have not helped much in this regard. Back home in India, the brushes are made from the hair of mongooses and squirrels. Among these squirrel hair is considered to be of the best quality.
However, squirrel hunting is prohibited in India under the Wildlife Act (Schedule-II), which has converged the threat to mongooses. However, despite knowing the law, some artists are secretly using paint brushes made of squirrel hair, IFS officers Santosh GR and Saket Badola said. And to meet their needs, every day there is a secret killing of squirrels all over the country, they added.
Mongooses are being small in size, 50 to 60 grams of hair can be obtained from the body of each mongoose, which is very little. So, in many cases, it takes more than one mongoose to make just one brush! According to the Wildlife Crime Control Bureau (WCCB), at least 50,000 mongooses are hunted for paintbrushes in India every year.
Also read: Two rare male 'Squirrel Monkeys' stolen from Chennai zoo
Some years the number rises close to one lakh. And this work is done only to meet the needs of painters and makeup artists. Recently, raids were conducted in various parts of India, including Delhi and Uttar Pradesh, and a large consignment of mongoose hair was recovered. In one instance, 50,000 brushes were seized while 20 kg of mongoose hair was seized.
So, it is clear from this that the rate at which mongoose is being killed in India. Saket said that despite regular operations, there is no specific information about mongoose hunting across India. In fact, those who hunt mongoose, usually have been doing this for generations. Sometimes the animals are caught by wire traps, sometimes by laying nets.
Santosh based on his experience in-charge of the forest department of South 24 Parganas said that there are many people from Behala, Falta and Bhande, who hunt mongooses and make brushes from their hair. Artist Ayan Banerjee, however, has a different take on the matter. He said that after the animals were protected under the law, they now have to solely rely on synthetic materials to make paint brushes.
"I have no clue if anyone else uses this tool," Banerjee said. But the forest officials do not think that the alternative of synthetic material has created much difference. And this is where environmentalists and animal lovers are expressing fear. The way people are aware of the conservation of animals like tigers, elephants and rhinos, but they are not about mongooses and squirrels. More importantly, environmentalists fear about a possible outbreak like Covid-19 that, too, is said to have spread from Pangolins to humans.
