- From 1,260 birds across 11 states in 1969, the Great Indian Bustard has declined to fewer than 150 individuals across five states, now restricted mainly to two fragmented pockets in Rajasthan’s Thar Desert.
- Since 2019, Rajasthan’s recovery programme has successfully reared over 60 chicks in captivity, creating a secure “fixed deposit” but Gujarat’s demand for eggs from the centre could fragment resources instead of strengthening recovery.
- Human-imprinted captive birds face immense risks upon release, as suitable 30-40 km stretches of safe habitat are almost non-existent due to powerlines and limestone mining in GIB landscapes.
The recent news of Rajasthan refusing to share eggs of the great Indian bustard (GIB) with neighbouring Gujarat is being portrayed as an unkind move detrimental to the bird’s long-term conservation. However, this is not a “standoff”, but could well be a carefully considered decision by the Rajasthan government.
The Bustard Recovery Programme of the Government of India had already noted that every GIB range state should contribute to the species’ conservation. Yet none of the range states — Rajasthan, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, or Karnataka — currently offer promising wild habitats free from human pressures. In fact, states such as Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh have even de-notified large portions of previously protected areas, permitting developmental activities — one of the major drivers of the GIB’s population decline.
As independent landscape-level researchers working on the great Indian bustard outside protected habitats, we believe it may be premature, given the current knowledge and experience, to initiate conservation breeding programmes in other states. Rajasthan’s ongoing programme has already overcome numerous natural and biological challenges to reach its present stage, where a sizable captive population is ready for re-wilding experiments. Earlier, a breeding centre was proposed at Sorsan Wildlife Sanctuary near Kota, and even a tendering process was initiated. However, there has been no update on its status, despite the proposal being based on strong scientific grounds.
Handling with care
For the long-term survival and revival of the great Indian bustard, it is crucial to restore all habitats where the species has historically or recently been found. These areas must be included in habitat improvement plans, with a strong focus on community-level stewardship for holistic conservation. The GIB has never adhered to protected area boundaries — even in Rajasthan’s Thar Desert, only 10-20% of its current range lies within protected areas.
Ecologically, the goal should be to establish a metapopulation where individual groups can thrive and evolve independently. However, such a scenario has not yet materialised, making it premature to release hand-reared, human-imprinted birds. Alarmingly, much of the GIB’s current habitat is being targeted for renewable energy projects, while open-cast limestone mining and cement industries are emerging as additional threats in its current distribution area in Jaisalmer.
If every open space where GIBs persist or were present even five to eight years ago, comes under pressure from energy or mining sectors, conservation priorities must first be set clearly. Sustainable development does not push any critically endangered species to extinction. Conservation of any landscape-level wide-ranging species relies on the community conservation aspect. Based on two decades of landscape-level research in the Thar Desert, we strongly believe the species’ future lies in Open Natural Ecosystems (ONEs) — multi-use landscapes where local communities and wildlife can coexist.
Current GIB status
The heaviest flying bird in the world, the GIB prefers the ground to the air, taking only short, low flights. Its omnivorous diet includes small mammals, snakes, grasshoppers, spiders, scorpions, wild fruits, and even termites. A ground-nesting species, the GIB produces just one egg per clutch, and only in alternate years.
As a classic ‘K-selected’ species — an organism adapted to stable environments that produces a few offspring but invests heavily in their care — the GIB is slow to reproduce. Females begin laying eggs only after two to three years, and over a lifespan of 12-15 years may successfully raise just four to five chicks. These life-history traits, combined with mounting threats, have left the bird highly vulnerable. By 2018, fewer than 150 individuals were estimated to survive globally.
In response to this crisis, the Rajasthan government launched “Project Great Indian Bustard” in 2013, focusing on habitat protection and landscape-level population surveys. Around the same time, the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC) issued Bustard Recovery Guidelines, addressing the major drivers of decline and outlining recovery measures for all three native bustards: great Indian bustard, lesser florican, and Bengal florican. A tripartite agreement was also signed between MoEFCC, the Government of Rajasthan, and the Wildlife Institute of India to operationalise a bustard recovery programme, supported by CAMPA funds.
The past decade has highlighted both challenges and milestones. Powerlines, once flagged as an emerging threat, are now recognised as a major cause of mortality, referenced in Supreme Court judgements in 2021 and 2024. In 2020, India hosted the 13th Conference of Parties (COP13) of the Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species (CMS) at Gandhinagar, Gujarat, where the GIB — chosen as the mascot “Gibi” — was given global visibility. Following deliberations, it was included in Appendix I of the CMS, securing the highest level of international protection. This recognition placed the species’ survival as a shared responsibility of all range states, mandating strict safeguards, habitat conservation, and threat mitigation.
Renewable energy and other threats
Currently, the bird breeds only in two pockets of the far western Thar Desert, both in Jaisalmer district. These populations, separated by over 200 kilometres, are fragmented by high-tension powerlines, clustered solar farms, and series of wind turbines. Once widespread across 11 Indian states, the bird’s range has shrunk to just five, and its population plummeted from 1,260 individuals recorded in 1969 to barely 150 in 2018. Recognising its plight, the IUCN listed it as ‘critically endangered’ in 2011.
The GIB is a wide-ranging species, requiring vast, open landscapes for survival. Radio-tagging studies show individuals can use 22-30 sq. km. daily, much of it outside the enclosed Desert National Park. Yet these very habitats are now heavily transformed. Rajasthan alone had 22,398 MW of grid-connected renewable energy by 2023, followed by Gujarat with 19,436 MW, much of it ironically concentrated in “GIB Priority and Potential Areas.” Limestone mining has further degraded fragile grasslands.
Since 2019, a dedicated team has achieved unprecedented success in the conservation breeding of the bird, raising over 60 birds from wild-collected eggs through natural mating, captive laying, and artificial insemination — yet the “laboratory-to-landscape” challenge persists.
All captive-bred GIBs carry human imprints which is a necessity for raising chicks and ensuring breeding success. This, however, poses a daunting challenge for re-wilding them into natural habitats. Unlike their wild counterparts, which navigate landscapes through trial and error, constantly learning survival strategies as part of evolution, these hand-reared birds have grown up with a “silver spoon”: safe enclosures, no predators, and a steady supply of nutritious food.
Despite this, the conservation community has reached a crucial milestone. With over 60 captive birds, we now hold a “fixed deposit” equal to at least 50% of the estimated wild population of 2018. Once teetering on the brink since being declared ‘Critically Endangered’ in the IUCN Red List of Threatened species in 2011, the species now has a secure gene pool and a trained team to sustain the breeding programme.
The next step, rewilding, is daunting. Suitable habitats of 30-40 km stretches without looming transmission lines are almost non-existent, while limestone mining in recent years has further eroded fragile landscapes. Releasing these birds into the wild will therefore carry immense, unforeseen risks for their survival.
Sumit Dookia is the associate professor at the University School of Environment Management at the GGS Indraprastha University, New Delhi and the honorary scientific advisor at The ERDS Foundation. Mamta Rawat is the senior scientist and director at The ERDS Foundation.
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Banner image: Great Indian Bustards feed on termites in the soil. Image by Late Radheshyam Bishnoi.
