25 Nilgais culled in Bihar's Nawada

Nawada (Bihar), Dec 24 (PTI) Authorities have culled 25 'Ghodparas', popularly known as Nilgai (blue bulls), in Bihar's Nawada district in the last three days to protect crops from the animals, officials said on Wednesday.

The culling was carried out in Mahuli panchayat area following complaints from the mukhiya (village headman).

Speaking to PTI, Nawada District Forestry Officer (DFO) Shreshth Kumar Krishna said, "Twenty-five Nilgais have been culled in the last three days in Mahuli panchayat area as per provisions of the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972." The decision was taken by the mukhiya, with the Environment, Forest and Climate Change Department only being the facilitator, he said.

Mukhiya has been appointed as the nodal authority to identify and allow the killing of Nilgais and wild boars with the help of professional shooters outside the protected area, the official said.

The mukhiya concerned can only allow the killing of blue bull and wild boar by the hired shooters on the basis of complaints received from farmers of his/her respective area in coordination with the officials of the department, he said.

The mukhiya identified 40 Nilgais for culling, he said, adding that out of those, 25 have been culled.

"Nilgais and wild boars move in herds and destroy acres of crops. Farmers sit out all night to protect their ripening crops from these animals. Both Nilgais and wild boars can be killed with laid down procedures," the DFO said.

As per government official records, as many as 4,279 blue bulls have been culled in the state in 2024.

"Around 4,279 Nilgais were culled in different districts in the state in 2024-25 (till February 2025). The drive to cull Ghodparas is launched in response to requests from various corners as they cause damage to crops on farmlands even far away from forest areas," said another department official.

The majority of the blue bulls were culled in the worst-affected districts that include Vaishali (3,057), Gopalganj (685), Samastipur (256), Muzaffarpur (124), Sitamarhi (71), Munger (48), Saran (18), Begusarai (14) and Nalanda (6), he said.

The official, however, did not give out the number of wild boars killed by the authorities concerned in the state. PTI COR PKD ACD