World's first Asian King Vulture Conservation and Breeding Centre inaugurated in Uttar Pradesh

Category : State Published on: April 12 2023

Share on facebook

Uttar Pradesh has set up a state-of-the-art Jatayu Conservation and Breeding Center (JCBC) for the critically endangered Asian king vulture, the first of its kind in the world.
It is located in the Maharajganj district of Uttar Pradesh and is spread over 1.5 hectares.
The JCBC is designed to maintain a sustainable population of Asian king vultures by breeding them in captivity and releasing them into the wild.
The Asian king vulture is protected under the Wildlife Protection Act and is listed as critically endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List.
Asian king vulture is critically endangered and protected under the Wildlife Protection Act.
The red-headed vulture (Sarcogyps calvus), also known as the Asian king vulture, is localized primarily to northern India. In 2004, the species was uplisted to ‘near threatened’ from ‘least concern’ by the IUCN. In 2007, it was uplisted to‘critically endangered’ in the IUCN Red List.
The widespread use of the NSAID diclofenac in veterinary medicine in India has caused its population to collapse in recent years. Veterinary usage of diclofenac has been banned in India.