Flying high: 2nd 'jumpstart' Great Indian Bustard chick survives critical stage in Gujarat

Ahmedabad, Jul 9 (PTI) A second Great Indian Bustard (GIB) chick born in Gujarat's Kutch district through a novel conservation technique called 'jumpstart' has successfully crossed the critical 40-day survival stage, Union Environment Minister Bhupender Yadav announced on Thursday. He hailed the development as a major boost to efforts aimed at reviving the critically endangered bird species. Yadav shared the update after reviewing the progress of 'Project Great Indian Bustard' during the 91st meeting of the Standing Committee of the National Board for Wildlife held at Coimbatore. "It is heartening to know that the second 'jumpstart' attempt executed in Naliya (Kutch district), Gujarat has succeeded and the chick born on May 21, 2026 has passed the critical stage of around 40 days of survival," the minister said in a post on X. The success comes nearly three months after the first GIB chick born in Gujarat through the same conservation method went missing in April, with forest officials fearing it had fallen prey to wild predators. The first chick had hatched in the Naliya grasslands on March 26 after a fertilised egg was transported about 770 km by road from Rajasthan to Gujarat under the country's first inter-state 'jumpstart' initiative for the species. The project was launched because only three female GIBs are believed to survive in the grasslands of Kutch, leaving virtually no possibility of natural breeding in the wild. According to Yadav, the captive breeding programme has also made significant progress in Rajasthan, with the total number of chicks born at the conservation centres in Sam and Ramdevra reaching 98. He said the GIB project would soon enter the rewilding phase, with teams from the Wildlife Institute of India and forest departments of Rajasthan and Gujarat working together to prepare for the next stage of conservation. "Besides this, the total number of chicks born in captivity in Rajasthan at Sam and Ramdevra have reached to 98. The project will soon be entering into rewilding phase for which efforts are on. The team of @wii_india and State forest departments of Rajasthan and Gujarat are leaving no stone unturned to make the project successful." he added. The 'jumpstart' technique involves placing an incubated fertile egg from the captive breeding programme in the nest of a wild female so that she incubates, hatches and raises the chick in its natural habitat, thereby improving the bird's chances of adapting to life in the wild. The GIB, one of the world's heaviest flying birds, is listed as critically endangered, with its remaining population largely confined to Rajasthan and a handful of birds surviving in Gujarat's Kutch region. PTI PJT PD RSY