To secure the trans-boundary cooperation for vulture conservation delegates from India and Nepal came together for a joint stakeholder workshop in Indo-Nepal Transboundary Vulture Conservation Issues on 22th April 2019 in Dehradun, India. The workshop was organized by the Doon University, Uttarakhand in collaboration with Uttarakhand State Biodiversity Board; and was attended by experts, researchers, senior officials from concern authorities, drug department, electricity department of Uttarakhand, Bombay Natural History Society, India and representative from Department of National Park and Wildlife Conservation, Government of Nepal, Bird Conservation Nepal and National Trust for Nature Conservation. 

The chief guest Dhananjai Mohan chairman of Uttarakhand State Biodiversity Board said that conservation of threatened birds like vulture is vital for the environment. “Protecting the vulture is the need of the hour, though we need to bring all stakeholders within and outside the country together to facilitate this,” he said.

Hari Bhadra Acharya, ecologist, Department of National Park and Wildlife Conservation, Government of Nepal said, “Vultures and other wildlife are not restricted by any national and international boundaries and can freely move from one nation to another, thus, protecting a global species like vulture becomes the responsibility of its range countries. Highlighting the movement of one satellite tagged White-rumped Vulture from Nepal to Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Himanchal Pradesh up to the Pakistan he added that “It’s survival is only can secure through our strong transboundary collaboration”.

Krishna Prasad Bhusal from Bird Conservation Nepal presented on the Vulture Safe Zone in Nepal and trans boundary collaboration. He said, “To eliminate all the possible threats like poisoning due to veterinary NASIDs in the range countries, we must initiate and strengthen collaborative efforts in order to protect them. Vulture Safe Zone is landscape conservation approach covering the part of neighboring countries. Considering this as well we should exchange the idea, information among us and need to make strong coordination, collaboration and cooperation."

Former professor of Wildlife Institute of India, BC Choudhury, said that veterinary drugs like diclofenac were responsible for the severe decline in vulture population in the recent decades. “However, if we see the mortality of existing vulture population due to electrocution in the last few years in Uttarakhand state, it can be the only major reason behind the loss of these charismatic species in upcoming years.” Khima Nand Balodi, PhD scholar and coordinator of this workshop presented that the stakeholder collaboration and participatory conservation approach is really important for the vulture conservation. He said that “the involving the skinners in vulture conservation and change to the safer carcass disposal site preventing the electrocution mortality up to 85-90 percent in the Doon valley”. Other experts and officials also expressed their views on the occasion.