SRINAGAR, June 23: Experts have concerned over rising population growth of pigs in Kashmir saying it will have a bad impact on the ecosystem. Wild boar or pig has been sighted in various parts of Kashmir in the recent years. On Sunday, a dead wild boar was found at a graveyard in the Boniyar area of Baramulla district. Range Officer Wildlife Department Baramulla, Altaf Koul claimed over 100 wild boars (pigs) are present in Baramulla district alone. While Dr Bilal Ahmad Bhat who teaches at Zoology Department of University of Kashmir said pig a not a native animal and is not good for ecosystem in Kashmir. “It is not good for ecosystem especially for our native species. This animal should not grow here,” Dr Bilal said. Retired Professor of Centre Of Research For Development (CORD) University of Kashmir, G A Bhat said the non-native species should not grow in Kashmir. “Exotic species should not come here. This animal (pig) most reside in residential area and eat waste. Religious point of view, people won’t like its presence here. Both exotic plants and animals should not come here which is not good for ecosystem,” Bhat said. Wild boar has also been sighted in the Dachigam National Park of Srinagar in recent years. In 2010, a dead wild pig was also sighted in Lachipora Wildlife Sanctuary of north Kashmir by a team of researchers when they were surveying for Markhor. The species was considered locally extinct even from the Dachigam National Park, and according to the State Wildlife Department, was not sighted from the park and its adjoining areas since 1984. The sighting of the wild pig in Dachigam after a gap of about 30 years however proves that it still survives in Dachigam, a 2018 research paper says.(KINS)
