Chitwan, August 2

Seventy-two-year-old Sher Bahadur Gham, of Jagatpur in the buffer zone of Chitwan National Park, is worried about illegal poaching of wild animals.

Having retired as major from the army, he has now devoted his life to the national park’s drive against wildlife poaching.

Besides Gham, 16 other former Nepali Army personnel are actively participating in conservation of wildlife at the national park. A 16-member ex Army Poaching Control Network led by Gham has been formed for the purpose.

The network tips the concerned national park authority about any unwanted activity in the buffer zone area, besides patrolling the national park when the need arises. As an ex-army personnel, Gham has six years of experience in the field of wildlife conservation at the park.

Commenting on his initiative, Gham said he was willing to capitalise on his experience for the sake of wildlife conservation and forest protection, which he calls the assets of Nepal. “As of now, we have the poaching control network only in Chitwan. We’re thinking of expanding our network to Nawalparasi, Makawanpur and Parsa in the days to come,” he said.

He also called on other ex-army personnel to join the initiative for conservation of wildlife sanctuaries. Network secretary Dil Kumar Shrestha said he was happy about his decision to give himself to the noble cause. “Mine is a small effort to contribute to the ongoing conservation with whatever experience I have gained while working as part of Nepali Army for two years in Chitwan National Park,” said Shrestha.