Drying up water bodies in the Aravalli range in Gurgaon and Faridabad will be replenished through tankers this summer by the Haryana forest department to prevent wild animals from straying into human settlements in search of water.
The forest department has taken this initiative after noticing that many wild animals, including leopards, are straying into human settlements to quench their thirst.
The officers of the forest department said they recently spotted a leopard and two cubs in a private golf club in Gurgaon.
"The water bodies in Aravalli generally dry up in June but with the temperature continuously hovering over 40 degrees Celsius, water levels are going down. Therefore, we have decided to supply water through tankers to fill pits," MD Sinha, Conservator of Forest (Gurgaon) range, told PTI.
Some natural water bodies exist in the Aravalli range but water levels have dipped in them.
Tankers will be used to replenish the water bodies frequented by wild animals.
"We have chosen 40 places in Aravalli where natural or man-made pits exist. These places have been identified on the basis of pug marks and dung of wild animals," Sinha said.
Mining has taken a toll on the water bodies, he said, citing the example of Badkhal and Damdama lakes in Faridabad and Gurgaon's Sohna.
The natural water channel opening into Badkhal lake has been blocked at Bania Khan village, notorious for illegal mining in the past.
Some wild animals had made their dens and shelters near these water bodies but were forced to move out after they too started drying up.
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