In a first, Assam forest department to conduct leopard counting census in Kamrup

An exclusive leopard counting census in Assam’s forest and non-forest areas has been initiated by North Kamrup Forest Division in leopard density areas of Amingaon in Kamrup district.

The Assam Forest department has taken up an initiative to conduct a leopard counting census.

For the first time, an exclusive leopard counting census in Assam’s forest and non-forest areas has been initiated by North Kamrup Forest Division in leopard density areas of Amingaon in Kamrup district that will kick off from January 31.

Divisional Forest Officer (DFO) Sunnydeo Choudhary said that the counting will be done through a camera trapping method with 50 cameras that will be installed in Sila Reserve Forest, Changsari, NIPER, AIIMS etc. surrounding Amingaon area.

The DFO further said that the camera trapping will be done for a period of 24 weeks and data from each camera will be extracted at an interval of every seven days.

“A one week execution program has been planned by North Kamrup Forest Division for conducting the census that will involve verifying camera traps, study of maps, in-depth discussion with senior forest officials, volunteer participation plan, field survey and target location selection. During the week-long program, the officials of the division will discuss various aspects of the camera trapping mission with various stakeholders including district administration, police, village and education institutions heads and media in a detailed manner,” Sunnydeo Choudhury said.

Assam Forest Minister Parimal Suklabaidya tweeted, “The 24-week camera trapping census will be the first of its kind in Assam! Sustainable development remains our commitment with priority to wildlife conservation too!”