Kumble to bat for wildlife safety

Former cricketer and wildlife enthusiast Anil Kumble will use his brand image to appeal to tourists and locals in around protected forest areas  to reduce the threat of forest fires

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Kumble, the vice chairman of the State Wildlife Board, will send out a message through posters on the threats caused by forest fires to wildlife habitats. While scores of small animals, insects, reptiles and birds perish in such fires, there is a threat of losing valuable humus that collects on the forest floor.

Forest fires are also known to increase the man-animal conflict because of the loss of natural food sources for wildlife. The drier patches of Nagarhole, large parts of Bandipur, Kudremukh National Park, Dandeli, Bhadra and Ranebennur are most vulnerable to forest fires. As part of its outreach programme, the State Wildlife Board has designed around 10,000 posters in both English and Kannada, for distribution in villages in and around national parks and sanctuaries.

The posters, which have been printed at a cost of around Rs 1.2 lakh, will be released by Forest Minister C P Yogeeshwara on Tuesday. The Board has roped in a few local NGOs which will help distribute the posters.