Chitwan National Park has released 103 gharial crocodiles into the Rapti River from its Gharial Breeding Center. These crocodiles have been released in phases since the month of Shrawan. One is a male, while the rest are females.
According to the park’s information officer, Abinash Thapa Magar, the gharials released this year were hatched in 2020. In the last fiscal year, 105 gharials were released into the river. The process involves collecting crocodile eggs from riverbanks, hatching them at the breeding center, and later releasing the grown crocodiles into the rivers.
So far, a total of 2,060 gharials have been released into various rivers, including the Rapti and Narayani. However, their survival rate remains very low. A survey conducted last year found 152 gharials in the Rapti River and 113 in the Narayani River. Currently, there are 697 gharials at the breeding center.
Gharial crocodiles are a critically endangered reptile species. In the past, they were found in countries like Pakistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, and Myanmar, but now they are only found in Nepal and India. After the establishment of Chitwan National Park, a gharial breeding center was set up in Kasara in 1975. At that time, the total number of gharials in the country was estimated to be less than 100.
According to information officer Thapa Magar, increasing human activity in rivers, extraction of river materials, pollution, and fishing have made the natural habitat of gharials unsafe. Floods also pose a problem, as they can wash crocodiles across borders. Despite the annual release of gharials into the rivers, their population has not increased as expected.
