Gir (Gujarat) [India], March 3 (ANI): Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday said that there have been significant deliberations and outcomes during the meeting of the National Board for Wildlife held in Gir, Gujarat.
“There have been significant deliberations and outcomes during the meeting of the National Board for Wildlife held in Gir today, which is also World Wildlife Day! This includes: Laying the foundation stone of a National Referral Centre for Wildlife at Junagadh. The announcement of the 16th Asiatic Lion Population Estimation is to be conducted in 2025. Establishment of Centre of Excellence to deal with Human-animal conflict at SACON, Coimbatore. Allocation of over Rs. 2900 crore for all aspects of lion conservation over the next decade,” PM Modi posted on X. 
The Prime Minister further said that they also discussed ways to minimise forest fires and human-animal conflicts and also leverage technology, including AI, in this endeavour.
“We are also going to work on Project Gharial to overcome the challenge of their dwindling population and on Project Indian Sloth Bear,” he added. 
PM Modi said that community participation is what makes any wildlife conservation effort successful.
“In this context, we deliberated on ways to boost involvement of local communities and also expressed delight on the rise in community reserves,” he said.
The Prime Minister said, “It would make every Indian happy that the report of the first-ever riverine dolphin estimation was released in which we not only got the estimate of the dolphin population but also got valuable insights on how to make their habitats even more secure in the times to come.”
The Board also discussed conservation efforts for dolphins and Asiatic lions and the establishment of the International Big Cats Alliance.
The Prime Minister emphasised the importance of awareness on dolphin conservation by involvement of local population and villagers in the areas. He also advised organising exposure visits of school children in dolphin habitat areas.
After the meeting, the Prime Minister also flagged off motorcycles for enhanced mobility of frontline forest staff.
He also interacted with field level functionaries at Gir which included frontline staff, eco guides and trackers. (ANI)
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