GS PAPER II: Conservation, environmental pollution and degradation, environmental impact assessment.

Context: Eight captive-bred pygmy hogs, the world’s rarest and smallest wild pigs, were released in the Manas National Park of western Assam. 

Pygmy Hog Conservation Programme (PHCP)

• This is the second batch to have been reintroduced into the wild under the Pygmy Hog Conservation Programme (PHCP) in a year.
• The PHCP is a collaboration among Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust of UK, Assam Forest Department, Wild Pig Specialist Group of International Union for Conservation of Nature and Union Environment Ministry and is currently being implemented by NGOs Aaranyak and EcoSystems India.
• The reintroduction programme began in 2008 with the Sonai-Rupai Wildlife Sanctuary (35 hogs), Orang National Park (59) and Barnadi Wildlife Sanctuary (22).
• By 2025, the PHCP plans to release 60 pygmy hogs in Manas.

Pygmy hog

• The pygmy hog is one of the very few mammals that build its own home, or nest, complete with a ‘roof’.
• It is an indicator species.
• Its presence reflects the health of its primary habitat, the tall, wet grasslands of the region.
• One of the main reasons for its plummeting numbers is grassland degradation.
• It is a suid native to alluvial grasslands in the foothills of the Himalayas at elevations of up to 300 m (980 ft).
• Today, the only known population lives in Assam, India and possibly southern Bhutan.
• As the population is estimated at less than 250 mature individuals, it is listed as Endangered on the IUCN Red List.
• The pygmy hog is designated as a Schedule I species in India under the Wildlife Protection Act, 1972, and offences against them invite heavy penalties.

https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/other-states/rare-pygmy-hogs-released-in-assams-manas-national-park/article34909685.ece?homepage=true

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