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| Location | Ecosystem Type | Conservation Type | Area(hectare) | Legal status |
| Aligarh, Uttar Pradesh | Wetland | Ecosystem Conservation | 50 | Village Commons |
Amakhera village falls in Gopi taluka of Aligarh district in Uttar Pradesh. Situated 40 km away from Aligarh city, it is accessible by jeep/taxi. This wetland habitat is typical of the Gangetic plains. The CCA is 0.5 sq km and each year attracts about 7000 birds belonging to 70 species like Indian skimmer and the threatened bar-headed geese. The legal status of the protected land is village commons.
The entire village, mostly comprising of the Hindu Jat community, is involved in the protection of these birds. The village has a population of around 3,000 and mainly sustains itself on agriculture and could be considered average economically.
This wetland lies very close to the village and has been traditionally used by the villagers for irrigation as well as fishing purposes. It is not known whether there is any active community participation of the community in the protection of the birds, although all inhabitants see to it that no one kills or disturbs birds. The village panchayat is believed to be involved in the process.
The wetland is now facing siltation as well as pollution due to chemical run-off from the adjoining agricultural fields, which use chemical fertilizers and pesticides.
Students from the Aligarh Muslim University regularly visit the area for studies on waterfowl and their habitat. This is a good opportunity for the university to make some positive interventions based on their research and for the villagers to benefit from the results of these studies. True to this, the fishing practice has been discontinued by the people on request from the Centre for Wildlife Studies, Aligarh Muslim University, as it was causing disturbance to the birds.
| This case study has been contributed by Afiffullah Khan of Wildlife Society of India in 2001, based on information provided by H.S. Yahya, Dept. of Wildlife Sciences, Aligarh Muslim University. |
Pradhan,
Amakhera village,
Aligarh,
U.P.
Afiffullah Khan
Wildlife Society of India
Department of Wildlife Sciences,
Aligarh Muslim University
Aligarh - 202002
Ph&fax: 09411862686 / 9897180092
Email: [email protected], [email protected]
This case study was part of the Directory on Community Conserved Areas (2009), published by Kalpavriksh. The directory can be downloaded here.
To provide more information, please click on the link at the top right corner of the page.
Creating space for community-based conservation initiatives (CBCLs) in conventional academics
This research paper is an attempt to hypothesize bridging of the gap between scientific world and ground realities in India in the domains of conservation biology, natural resource management and environmental sciences.
People in Conservation- Community Conserved Areas in India
A brochure on CCAs in India by Kalpavriksh.
Community Conserved Areas in South Asia: Understanding Conservation with Livelihood Security Values
A 2012 national report on CCAs in India by Kalpavriksh
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