The Environmental Implications of the Rohingya Refugee Crisis in Bangladesh

Purpose: The main focus is to find out the environmental challenges that Bangladesh is dealing for the huge influx of Rohingya refugee people to Bangladesh. The research also aims to assess the dynamic situation of the crisis, identify the roles of Bangladesh government, NGOs as well as the International Organisations’ for Rohingya refugee crisis. Methodology: This study is context-dependent on information and an inductive data analysis. The paper uses a descriptive qualitative approach case study design that focuses on primary and secondary data showing the real ground of crisis. Data has been collected from the interviewees and experts. This research sets multiple methods of data collection including documents, policy, and historical analysis. Findings: Environmental imbalance occurred due to allocating 1,000 acres forest land for providing shelters to the refugees. Reserve forest has been destroyed endangering wild elephants. And it is causing landslides in the area, soil erosion, water scarcity, extreme heat wave, extreme rainfall, drought, deforestation, air pollution, and so on. Conclusion: This research leads to identifying the areas which have already been affected. The plans that need to work on to overcome the problems and that could provide necessary and sustainable solutions for Rohingya refugee. This study also could let people know the catastrophe Bangladesh is dealing and the impacts which can cause the ecological imbalance and failure the biodiversity of the areas in a greater way. This paper could bring benefit to society and make people conscious about the environment and also make them raise voices for the conservation of environment.

Rejuvenation of Reserve Forest by Forest Interventions (Species and Different Plantations)

Eco-restoration is a technique for rejuvenation of degraded ecosystem to their near original state. It also helps to control soil erosion, develop microbial ecology, enhance biomass production and socio-economic development. The present study was focused on a new approach called Rejuvenation Technology for less forest area. India is bestowed with the rich diversity of flora and fauna due to diverse environment. Global warming and consequent impending danger of climate changes has necessitated to arrest deforestation. The species diversity has also helped in the selection of appropriate native species to enhance the ecological functions of urbanizing landscapes. Adoption of monoculture plantations though the region appears green, but fulfilling the vital ecosystem functions such as groundwater recharge, food and fodder to dependent biota, etc. Forest Rejuvenation Action Plan was prepared for each Reserve Forest Block with forestry activities like Reserve Forest boundary deep trench, fencing, Plantations of Gacchakaya on trench mounds along the periphery of the Reserve Forest boundary having interface with Revenue Land to protect the forest from biotic interference. Further Soil & Moisture Conservation works were proposed to improve moisture regime. Silvicultural operations like Cultural operations & removal of invasive species were proposed for better natural regeneration & growth of existing root stock. It was further supplemented with plantations like Block plantations, fruit bearing plantations, Yadadri Model plantations, Grassland development in 0.0 - 0.10 canopy density forest area. Further plantation activities like Gap planting, Medicinal herbs & Shurbs, plantation inside and on the mounds of SCT, Bamboo plantations along nalas/Streams were proposed to improve three tier canopy in the Reserve Forest in 0.1 - 0.40. These Forestry Interventions help to improve the forest cover, biodiversity, Carbon sequestration, Water Argumentation etc to meet the required results as per National & Global Commitments. To demonstrate this technology, plantation of seedlings of 5 different canopy density. Block plantation. Yadadri Model Plantations, Grass lands, Forest Fruit bearing Plantations was carried out in a village community degraded land located in Medhal district in Telangana State. This study developed spatial definitions of the Rejuvenation of reserve forest. Keywords: Rejuvenation, Reserve forest, Plantation models, canopy, Soil & Moisture Conservation

MANAGEMENT RECOMMENDATIONS OF WILD BOAR IN SUB-TROPICAL CHIR PINE FOREST IN SIRAN FOREST DIVISION, TANGLAI RESERVE FOREST, DISTRICT MANSEHRA, KHYBER PAKHTUNKHWA

The current study was conducted in May & June 2021 in Tanglai State Forest which is a Sub-Tropical Chir Pine Forest Type, the key species are: Common Leopard (Pathera pardus), Wild Boar (Sus scrofa), Jackals (Canis aureus), Rhesus Monkey (Macaca Mulatta), Kalij Pheasant (Lophura leucomelanos), Flying Squirrels (Pteromyini). In KPK, Wild Boar is found mostly in the west of Indus around Peshawar, Mardan Bannu, D.I Khan etc. In this paper it is recommended that the presence of Wild Boar and the way they may affect their habitat should be monitored because its population multiplies so fastly having high reproduction potential i.e. reaching sexual maturity as early as six (06) months of age, therefore, it is required to be managed in the habitats, the aim of such control should be to bring Wild Boar population into balance on particularly sensitive sites or in response to disease control. Moreover, this work is also aimed to suggest wild boar management to the authorized department, these approaches of management will be profitable to mitigate its adverse damages to the agricultural crops, forest crops, human beings, livestock i.e. wildlife conflicts.

Community, conflict and conservation: response of mammalian fauna to ecological and anthropological correlates ‒ a critical habitat in Indo-Bhutan transboundary landscape urges multiagency cooperation

The impacts of conflict on nature are devastatingly adverse but differ widely in different socio-political regimes. Armed conflict often facilitates illegal plunder and unsustainable use of natural resources, variously by rebel groups and impoverished or displaced people challenged with limited subsistence options. We studied the response of mammals in Ripu Reserve Forest (Assam) that suffers prolonged anthropogenic pressure due to armed conflict instigated by social unrest. We used standard single-season (spatial-dependence) occupancy models using sign survey to assess the factors affecting the space use of mammals and subsequently build capacity of conservation volunteers for long-term sustenance of Ripu. Our study revealed that Ripu has a high proportion of occupied area by prey species of large carnivores. Asian elephant, barking deer, and wild pig occupied most of the habitat, whereas gaur, sambar and spotted deer restricted themselves to selected patches within the Ripu. Common leopards found to be positively associated with prey occupancy. The studied mammals responded variably to different ecological and anthropological covariates and urge for species-specific management alongside landscape scale conservation approach. Our ground effort to strengthen community patrolling and operational execution of various alternative livelihood has helped to empower the economic condition of patrolling staff. Strategic implementation of law enforcement could support dispersal of tigers from Phibsoo WLS (Bhutan), potentially linked with the larger tiger and elephant landscape far west (Buxa Tiger Reserve) in the Terai region of India. Community-based conservation initiatives required continuous support from various agencies, including national, international, and local bodies, to restore this critical habitat.

Feeding and Breeding Habits of Mangrove Kingfisher (Todiramphus Chloris) In the Sundarbans Reserve Forest, Bangladesh

not available Bangladesh J. Zool. 49 (2): 347-351, 2021

In-silico ADMET predicated Pharmacoinformatics of Quercetin-3-Galactoside, polyphenolic compound from Azadirachta indica, a sacred tree from Hill Temple in Alagarkovil Reserve Forest, Eastern Ghats, INDIA

Quercetin (3,3′,4′,5,7-Pentahydroxyflavone) is the one among the bioactive secondary metabolite (BASM) in neem seed of Azadirachta indica A. Juss. Quercetin (Que) and its derivatives hold promising pharmacological effects. Antidiabetic, anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, antimicrobial, anti-Alzheimer’s, antiarthritic, cardiovascular, and wound-healing effects of Que have been extensively investigated, recently lot of work has been carried out on its anticancer activity against different cancer cell lines. Recently, in silico/ in vitro studies have demonstrated that Que interferes with different stages of coronavirus entry and replication cycle (PLpro, 3CLpro, and NTPase/helicase). Due to its pleiotropic effects in human health and disease and lack of systemic toxicity, Que and its derivatives could be tested for their efficacy on human target system in future clinical trials. In the present study, an attempt has been made to evaluate the physicochemical, druggable properties of Que from A. indica to prospect its ADMET properties. Keywords: NEEM; Azadirachta indica; Quercetin; Pharmacoinformatics; ADMET; Drug-Likeness; Toxicology

Identifying the Spectral Signatures of Invasive and Native Plant Species in Two Protected Areas of Pakistan through Field Spectroscopy

Globally, biological invasions are considered as one of the major contributing factors for the loss of indigenous biological diversity. Hyperspectral remote sensing plays an important role in the detection and mapping of invasive plant species. The main objective of this study was to discriminate invasive plant species from adjacent native species using a ground-based hyperspectral sensor in two protected areas, Lehri Reserve Forest and Jindi Reserve Forest in Punjab, Pakistan. Field spectral measurements were collected using an ASD FieldSpec handheld2TM spectroradiometer (325–1075 nm) and the discrimination between native and invasive plant species was evaluated statistically using hyperspectral indices as well as leaf wavelength spectra. Finally, spectral separability was calculated using Jeffries Matusita distance index, based on selected wavebands. The results reveal that there were statistically significant differences (p < 0.05) between the different spectral indices of most of the plant species in the forests. However, the red-edge parameters showed the highest potential (p < 0.001) to discriminate different plant species. With leaf spectral signatures, the mean reflectance between all plant species was significantly different (p < 0.05) at 562 (75%) wavelength bands. Among pairwise comparisons, invasive Leucaena leucocephala showed the best discriminating ability, with Dodonaea viscosa having 505 significant wavebands showing variations between them. Jeffries Matusita distance analysis revealed that band combinations of the red-edge region (725, 726 nm) showed the best spectral separability (85%) for all species. Our findings suggest that it is possible to identify and discriminate invasive species through field spectroscopy for their future monitoring and management. However, the upscaling of hyperspectral measurements to airborne and satellite sensors can provide a reliable estimation of invasion through mapping inside the protected areas and can help to conserve biodiversity and environmental ecosystems in the future.