Seijosa, 26th August 2024: A one-day event on Asiatic black bear monitoring was organised by the Wildlife Trust of India (WTI), Centre for Bear Rehabilitation and Conservation (CBRC), in collaboration with Pakke Tiger Reserve and the Department of Environment, Forest, and Climate Change, Arunachal Pradesh on 26th August 2024.

Hosted in Seijosa, West Bank Pakke Tiger Reserve, the workshop aimed at enhancing the capacity of biologists in applying monitoring techniques for Asiatic black bears in tropical forests of Northeast India.

Satyaprakash Singh, IFS, DFO, Pakke Tiger Reserve inaugurated the program, which was led by a team of experts including Chandan Ri, Biologist Pakke Tiger Reserve, Dr. Panjit Basumatary, Manager & Head, CBRC, Subhasish Arandhara, Ecologist, CBRC, Dr. Samrat Sengupta, Asst. Professor, DR College, Golaghat, Dr.  Dipankar Borah, Assistant professor, Kaliabor College, Ajit Malik and Jehuwa Natung, Animal Keepers, CBRC.

30 participants attended the workshop on Asiatic black bear monitoring | Photo by PTR team

Participants had the opportunity to delve into the ecological research principles and gain a thorough understanding of occupancy modelling. The program covered aspects of data collection, analysis, and interpretation. The program included comprehensive training on data collection, analysis, interpretation, and management, with a particular focus on using key software for occupancy studies.

The program was attended by 30 individuals, including Forest range officer biologists, field assistants and data operators from Arunachal Pradesh. Additionally, students with a wildlife background from several institutions participated, including Guwahati University, Cotton University, Arunachal University, Assam Don Bosco University, Guwahati, Koiliabor College Nagaon, DR College Nagaon, and Bodoland University of North East India.

Dr. Panjit Basumatary, gave an overview of CBRC and bear release and monitoring techniques | Photo by PTR team

Satyaprakash Singh, IFS, DFO, Pakke Tiger Reserve, lauded the officials of WTI and the Range officer for planning and organising the training workshop, which would help the participants understand the ecology and distribution of Asiatic black bears in Pakke and its adjoining landscape. He encouraged the participants to be more interactive with resource persons to gain maximum benefit from the workshop. Dr. Panjit Basumatary, Manager & Head, CBRC, stated that this program aimed to motivate young people to explore these species more thoroughly and understand the crucial role they play in our ecosystem.

The Centre for Bear Rehabilitation and Conservation (CBRC) is the only facility in India, dedicated to hand-raising and rehabilitating orphaned bear cubs. To date, over 60 bear cubs have been successfully rehabilitated and released back into their natural habitat in Arunachal Pradesh.