Zoologists fear rise in crocodile population

vadodara: the rains have ceased to lash the city. the water level in the swelling vishwamitri has gone down. but, nature-watchers and zoologists fear that the human-reptile confrontation in the river cutting through the heart of the city is set to intensify as the hatching season for crocodiles that nest in it is just over and the stretch is teeming with young crocs.the swelling vishwamitri led to crocodiles coming out of their nesting sites on the river and come face to face with humans settled along the banks when monsoons struck this year. now, with eggs hatching, a sharp rise in the number of crocodiles may lead to more confrontations, feel zoologists. "vadodara is perhaps the only city in the world that has a river running through its heart that harbours a scheduled i animal like crocodiles. it is a very unique situation," says rohit vyas, honorary wildlife warden, who leads a group of volunteers that work along the vishwamitri banks to save crocodiles being targeted by people. the volunteers are supported by the state forest department. "by rough estimates, the crocodile population of vishwamitri must be about 100, if we consider its entire stretch. and, if we consider that at least half the population comprise females, the number of eggs laid and the number of those hatched would take the total number of crocodiles now in the river to a phenomenal figure," says sandip diwan of baroda nature lovers, an organisation that has been associated with protection of crocodiles. "then, water bodies in and around the city like the ajwa lake, dams like the dev and sukhi dams, are also teeming with crocodiles. there has been quite a rise in the number of crocodiles, and it must have been aided by the good monsoons this year as they now have more places to nest and hide from predators," says diwan. according to diwan, the breeding period for crocodiles extends from january to march, when they mate and lay eggs. "the incubation period is about 90 days following which they begin to hatch. going by this cycle, the eggs must have hatched by now and the young crocodiles must be about one to one-and-a-half feet long now. however, even the good monsoons cannot help save the situation as the human settlements have come very close to the river," he adds. forest officials too fear that "humans have come too close to crocodile nesting sites for comfort." says deputy conservator of forests (wildlife division) sk mehta, "the crocodiles are where they have stayed for ages. it's the humankind that is encroaching into their habitat. the number of complaints of crocodiles attacking animals like dogs, pigs, goat and hen along the bank," says mehta. "we have prepared volunteers who have been working to minimise this confrontation. these volunteers are culled from the common people who have a love for animals. they are headed by an honorary wildlife warden. we provide them equipment to catch these crocodiles that stray away and get close to humans. we have also told people staying close to the banks to build protective walls," adds mehta.