Asiatic Lions (Ecology, Environment and Climate Change)
Asiatic Lions (Ecology, Environment and Climate Change)
Why In News:
A debate has surfaced whether Gujarat’s Barda Wildlife Sanctuary can genuinely serve as a “second home” for India’s Asiatic lions, or whether the Supreme Court-mandated translocation to Kuno National Park in Madhya Pradesh remains the only scientifically sound option.
Source: The Hindu, Page 7, 6 July 2026 - ‘India needs a second home for Asiatic lions’
Where Do Asiatic Lions Live?
Sole habitat: The Asiatic lion (Panthera leo leo) survives in the wild only in and around Gir National Park and Wildlife Sanctuary in Gujarat’s Saurashtra region, the last population of this subspecies anywhere in the world.
Population growth: According to the 2025 lion census, Gujarat’s population has grown to 891 individuals, up from 674 in 2020, with only about 394 lions residing within Gir’s core protected area.
Range expansion: The lion’s range expanded from about 30,000 sq km in 2020 to roughly 35,000 sq km in 2025, including a newly re-established population in Barda Wildlife Sanctuary, spotted there for the first time since 1879.
The Kuno vs Barda Debate
Supreme Court order: In April 2013, the Supreme Court ordered the translocation of some Asiatic lions from Gir to Kuno National Park, Madhya Pradesh, to establish a second, geographically distinct wild population as insurance against a single catastrophic event.
Gujarat’s resistance: Gujarat has consistently resisted this translocation, citing Kuno’s use for cheetah reintroduction under Project Cheetah, and instead developed Barda, only about 100 km from Gir, as an alternative “second home.”
Scientific concern: Wildlife scientists, including from the Wildlife Institute of India, argue Barda’s proximity to Gir means it cannot serve as a genuinely separate population for disease-outbreak insurance, since the same catastrophe could plausibly affect both sites.
Key Facts for Prelims
Conservation status: The Asiatic lion is classified as Endangered on the IUCN Red List, an improvement from Critically Endangered, but still a species of high concern.
Government scheme:Project Lion, announced in 2020 with an outlay of around ₹2,927.8 crore, aims to secure the long-term survival of Asiatic lions, including habitat improvement in Barda and other satellite sites.
Project Lion is administered by the Union Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change.