60,000 sq km high-density corridor in western India used by endangered Lesser Florican for migration

 A recent study, published in Frontiers in Conservation Science, has mapped a broad migration flyway spanning about 206,000 sq km across India for the endangered Lesser Florican (Sypheotides indicus). 

The critically endangered Lesser Florican, the world’s smallest bustard, uses a high-density migration corridor of nearly 60,000 sq km across western and central India while remaining strongly dependent on grasslands.

The birds move through croplands and other open habitats, the satellite-tracking study has found.

“By linking fine-scale movement behaviour with landscape-scale patterns of land-use change and population decline, this study reinforces a central conclusion: the Lesser florican remains fundamentally a grassland specialist whose persistence is significantly constrained by the amount, configuration, and quality of remaining grassland habitat. 

While some behavioural flexibility exists through seasonal habitat shifts and divergent migratory strategies, this flexibility is unlikely to offset the ongoing trajectory of grassland loss, fragmentation, and agricultural intensification,” the study said, according to 'The Hindustan Times'. 

The study was authored by Principal Chief Conservator of Forests (PCCF) and chief wildlife warden of Gujarat, Jaipal Singh, lead researcher of the Gujarat forest department Mohan Ram, deputy director of The Corbett Foundation Devesh Gadhavi, along with Tahir Ali Rather, Vidhi Modi and Dushyantsinh Jhala of the Foundation.  

Researchers fitted Global Positioning System (GPS)-Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM) transmitters on 12 lesser floricans between 2020 and 2022 and tracked them until 2025. 

The birds were tagged at Blackbuck National Park in Velavadar in Bhavnagar district and the Kutch Bustard Sanctuary and adjoining Naliya grasslands in Kutch, sites separated by about 450 km.

The researchers described the 12 birds as the largest cohort of lesser floricans tracked through a single tagging effort in India. The tracking produced 160,166 location records, of which 150,147 GPS fixes were retained for analysis. 

The transmitters were active for a combined 4,466 days.

ends 

It's raining in Kohima ... Tenimiya word is - "Teirii" ::: My friends often say - "These days we only think of rains, who created it.. why God created it" :::: What about socio-political issues -- "Everyone seems to believe ... what is happening will keep happening; why bother much" !!

Fate can often give human being 'legendary' opportunities !!

My Naga friends - at least most if not all - these days, have given up talking about Politics and even general socio-economic problems. 

The counter argument is - What's the use ? "Everyone seems to believe ... what is happening will keep happening; why bother much"  !!

It's raining in Kohima ... Tenimiya word is - "Teirii"  ::: 

My friends often say - "These days we only think of rains, who created it.. why God created it" :::: Socio-political analyses and feedback have dried up.  

Dry Nagaland is hardly .. natural !! 

                         Photo - Facebook - H Tovihoto Ayemi

Politics easily give the kicks. Naga Politics is 'master' in that. I know a dozen military and civil officials who served in Nagaland decades back and yet taking interest in what's going around. 

The madness has smitten them too. My father, and even the siblings and lady wives of those military officers hardly appreciate the reason for the 'peg' and the kick. There is a sidelight story too. Often we end up arguing and then comes the scolding from the kitchen of the hosts - 

"... next time Dev sahab, do not come to my house if you have to argue with my retired oldie here on Naga politics".  

Worse part is ... dinner is cancelled !! 

My Angami friend : Hornbill Fest Star 

Talking about rains in Kohima and Zubza region; any old timer would remember the nightmare of landslides. Once I traveled with Late Vamuzo on that mythical highway and amid rains. Vamuzo was then the Leader of the Opposition.

A jovial person he was; he told me we (NPC) are going to do something in the Assembly and your chief minister (he meant his 'best friend' S C Jamir) will be nervous and angry".

Then he told me a story about Teirii and how rains can bring havoc. 

Within next 10-15 days; he moved a Private Member Resolution in the state assembly on Naga integration of the contiguous areas. It is a matter of fact, no Naga worth his salt could have said - we will not pass any such resolution. In fact, even before that such resolutions were passed. 

Jamir heading the Congress ministry found it tough to allow such a thing. Only a few months before, reportedly he was pulled up by the Home Minister S B Chavan on certain issues in Nagaland.  On his return from Delhi, Jamir addressed a meeting of officials including from police and central forces at the old Zonal Council Hall. 

At one point, Jamir thundered - "I had tough time with the Home Minister". (reported in The Sentinel, Guwahati). 

 

 

                    Why Guns have say :  somewhere in eastern sector - Blogger  

Is it possible to learn from history ? How did Americans feel around 250 years when British troops were sent to Lexingston ? 

Jamir allowed passing of the resolution.  But he took a dig at Vamuzo and had quipped : "Mr Speaker sir, Vamuzo is very smart. He was chief minister for sometime. He never brought such a resolution then. His Naga patriotism rises whenever he is in the opposition". The debate went on for a while and the resolution was adopted. 

We journalists were keeping fingers crossed whether Congress high command would express displeasure or whether Raj Bhavan will make any statement. But within days of the resolution - there were problems in Imphal valley. 

We media persons started joking - 'Vamuzo bomb' exploded in Kohima and its impact was all around Imphal.  

But these are more than more than jokes. Some leave lifelong impact -- the 'unforgettable experiences', as they put it.

The nineties were Congress days. A party which knew how to adjust with being in power and run the show. Perhaps, the BJP is also learning the trick fast. 

But the 'party with a difference' runs shows now in both the states - Nagaland and Manipur. In the latter stage; elections are round the corner. 

But poll boycott may be a clarion call soon in some hills and valleys. 

Former Manipur CM N Biren Singh: Already pushed NRC card 

The NSCN-IM (Hebron) has reportedly directed its local unit commanders in Ukhrul to furnish "details" about area of Kuki militants, ZUF (Zeliangrong) or any other militant camps in the hills of Manipur.

Generally, the Cock gets upper hand and the Lotus agrees. That's Nagaland. 

In Gujarat and other states such as Manipur - Lotus is not just a docile flower.  

The Lotus-related protagonists can easily throw up words of wisdom: "We must learn to be good neighbours".  

It is always good to take those 'advisories' will all seriousness. 

We just had football season globally. About the game - it is often said - England invented the sport; but it never made any impact on world football. 

'Politics of gun' is not football. If someone is toying the roadmap left behind by the legacies of S C Jamir and Vamuzo; poor Y Khemchand Singh will have to pull up his sleeves. 

Khemchand with surrendered Meitei Militants : Aug 18, 2026 

ends  

Memories matter ::: Dec 20, 2012 -- when Modi proved his detractors wrong and fought back the adversaries .... ::: Same spirit may be in parts can help him sail post-CJP protest polity

 

There were two - headlines 

'India Today' headline was specific - 

"Delhi calling? Narendra Modi performs a hat-trick in Gujarat, looks set for the bigger role".

"Gujarat election result: Narendra Modi pulls off hat-trick, will it be Rahul vs him in 2014?", - said 'Times of India'.

These defined advent of new politics. 

Dec 20, 2012 -- when Narendra Modi proved his detractors wrong and fought back the adversaries .... ::: The 'same spirit' may be in parts can help him sail post-CJP protest polity of circa 2026.  

Take the clock back -- 

June 2013 -- the BJP was yet to finalise things. Some senior leaders were drawing plans, the likes of Arun Jaitley - of course - backed Narendra Modi. 

It was only at much later stage Late Manohar Parrikar (then Goa CM) initiated a move.

The then BJP chief Rajnath Singh was also convinced of 'power' of the gun-powder called Moditva.

First, Rajnath went out to name Modi as the 'chairman of the election campaign committee' in June 2013 in Goa. Likes of L K Advani were not happy. 

And then on Sept 13, 2013, he was named PM-candidate.

The JD(U) under an angry Nitish Kumar had already walked out of the NDA. 

In fact, the journey from being just ‘Modi’ to the ‘Moditva phenomenon’ has been a tough fight; often the struggle of a loner, and that of a man who vanquished adversaries at virtually every stage.

Namo turned disadvantage into advantage. 

Besides dealing with detractors in Congress who wanted to nail him in 2002 riots, Modi also overcame hurdles posed by party colleagues.  

Dealing with all that requires more than assertiveness, and Modi has shown that single mindedness and the right synthesis of Hindutva inclined nationalism punctuated with development.

He marketed it in a typical 'new generation' corporate style. 

A leader India was waiting for. 

In Gujarat - sloganeering boys would accompany him even up to the then BJP headquarters at the Ashok Road -- "Dekho Dekho kaun aya ... Gujarat ka sher aya".

A leader – whom millions wanted to see as a ‘messiah’ – who can perhaps solve all their problems.

The birth of a ne slogan - 'Acchey Din Ane Waley haen'.  

A girl of a boy who is now 17-18 and formed the part of the shouting crowd of July 20-21 (2026) was just five or six years old then.  

The new Gen Z in 2026 almost dusted the glorification era vis-a-vis the Moditva phenomenon and their parents and elders. 

Way back in 2021 - Modi was a leader who will give Hindus their lost prestige.  

Does all that still remain in August 2026 and beyond ?

Modi needs to recapture the public imagination and especially the youths. 

A leader – who could not be wrong even for taking away their legitimate currency notes.

A leader who will anchor the toughest military challenge like surgical strikes against Pakistan and also unleash the true economic potential of the world’s largest democracy.

Many may still unhesitatingly laud his image of a mystic Indian – a yogic in meditation, a worshiper taking dip in Ganga but yet someone who connected so well with millions via video conferences and Twitter.  Something was amiss. Modi himself plunged into a new world of 'selfie videos'. 

He set aside Mitron salutation albeit temporarily and used the sale-able term 'friends'.  

 

Blogger 

Around 2021, there were some adverse reports. Some of them could be exaggerated and misguided by western prisms. But some were true.

India’s poor have become poorer over the years with the bottom half comprising over 600 million Indians sharing just 6 percent of the nation’s wealth, hinting at widening inequality. (2021) 

“India stands out as a poor and very unequal country with an affluent elite,” says France-based World Inequality Lab in its latest global report penned by its co-director Lucas Chancel and coordinated by French economist Thomas Piketty.

The top one percent of Indians owned more than one fifth of the total national income in 2021.

Hence, the bottom half earned just 13.1 percent, said the report.

The findings may be taken with a pinch of salt.

But they were in contrast to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s popular slogan “Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas” promising to take along and ensure development for all, which helped him come to power in 2014.

Modi generated great hope among ordinary Indians then. 

But the picture of 2021 painted in the World Inequality Report was gloomy.

“If the middle and neo-middle classes were wondering why things haven’t improved despite the hype around Modi’s promised ‘Acchey Din,’ this report makes it crystal clear now,” said Ramakanto Shanyal, an educationist from West Bengal.

He pointed out a plethora of problems that had caused the economic governance model of the country to fail over the years.

Well; India has to produce at least 10 million new jobs every year. 

This is not happening. 

A large section of the population is engaged in the informal economy while more than 60 percent of the middle class are unsure about keeping their jobs and earning in the next six months or so.

Some were more caustic. One Trinamool Congress leader in Asansol Jhantu Chakravarty said on the eve of 2026 polls - 

“Modi’s act of demonetizing certain currency units [removing and replacing them as legal tender in 2016] proved disastrous. India’s unemployment rate had risen to a 35-40 year high.”  

Naga voters : Still may not trust a Hindutva-party 

Modi was the chief minister of Gujarat from 2001 to 2014 and is said to have accommodated business captains like the Ambani brothers and Gautam Adani. But such allegations are political in nature and cannot be proved.

A BJP leader dismissed the allegations of nepotism as unfounded but admitted that compared to other Indian states, Gujarat and Mumbai city in the west provided friendly working and business atmosphere.

These are a few bitter facts of India’s economic governance that have contributed to widening the gulf between the rich and poor.

ends 

Jammu and Kashmir important part of India: US envoy Sergio Gor's big remark in Srinagar :::: Imran Khan meets wife, sister after 9 months following Pak Supreme Court order

"It is a pleasure to be here... This is an important part of India. I am here, visiting for the first time. It is an incredibly beautiful place," 

- US envoy Sergio Gor said. 

The remark by Gor is being seen as a big shout-out to India's stated position that J&K is an inalienable and integral part of the country amid Pakistan's repeated misadventures in the region.  

It is a strong endorsement of India's longstanding position on Jammu and Kashmir.

Gor's big remark came after he met J&K Chief Minister Omar Abdullah, marking the first trip by a US envoy to the Union Territory since the abrogation of Article 370 and after the Pahalgam attack.  

The US envoy, known to be close to US President Donald Trump, also asserted that the US would reconsider downgrading its strict J&K travel warning. Presently, the US has a level 4 "do not travel" advisory for J&K due to terrorism concerns.

"We will be looking at whether the travel warning that is imposed, which is recommended by the United States, is something that should be downgraded... have made some incredible steps to keeping this area safer and making it more safe," Gor further said.   

In a post on X, Gor said the talks focused on Abdullah's "priorities" for Kashmir and ways to deepen economic collaboration.

"We discussed ways to deepen economic collaboration and create opportunities that would mutually benefit both of our nations," Gor tweeted. Previously, while speaking to the media, Abdullah did not attach much importance to the visit, underlining that "Washington won't solve Kashmir's problems". 

 Imran Khan meets wife, sister after 9 months following Pak Supreme Court order

Imran Khan met his wife Bushra Bibi and sister Noreen Niazi at Adiala Jail after around nine months, hours after Pakistan's Supreme Court ordered his transfer to Shifa International Hospital for a medical examination. The court also directed weekly family meetings and phone calls with his sons amid concerns over his health and access to medical care.

India Reaffirms Support For Palestine, Backs Negotiated Two-State Solution :: Both sides discuss new areas of cooperation

 India reaffirmed its consistent support for the Palestinian people and a negotiated two-state solution for the region during talks between Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) Secretary (Consular, Passport and Visa, and Overseas Indian Affairs) Sripriya Ranganathan and Palestine's Minister of Foreign Affairs Varsen Aghabekian Shahin. 

Ranganathan, who is on an official visit to Palestine, called on Shahin on Tuesday and discussed the full range of India-Palestine relations, with a focus on developments in Gaza, humanitarian needs and India's longstanding development partnership with the Palestinian people.

The meeting marked Ranganathan's first engagement during her official visit to Palestine.

The Indian Representative Office in Ramallah, in an official statement, said that the two sides discussed India-Palestine relations, the situation in Gaza, humanitarian assistance and India's development partnership with the Palestinian people.

"Secretary reaffirmed India's consistent support for the Palestinian people and negotiated two-State solution," the statement said.

Ranganathan also conveyed India's concern over the "grave humanitarian situation in Gaza" and stressed the need for the "safe, sustained and unhindered delivery of humanitarian assistance" to civilians.  

"She reiterated India's support for efforts towards peace and stability and for a lasting political resolution of the conflict through dialogue and diplomacy," the statement added.

The two sides also reviewed India's development and humanitarian assistance to Palestine, including ongoing initiatives in health, education and capacity-building.

They discussed new areas of cooperation where India's development experience could help address the needs of the Palestinian people.  

During the meeting, Shahin recalled Ranganathan's first visit to India in January this year and expressed appreciation for India's continued support through development projects, capacity-building programmes, scholarships, humanitarian assistance and contributions to Palestinian institutions and UN agencies.

"Progress on the Government of India-funded Palestinian Institute of Diplomacy and the anticipated cooperation with the Sushma Swaraj Foreign Service Institute came in for special attention during the discussions," the statement further said.

Modi Govt destroys ISI-backed terror group Shahzad Bhatti Network ::: A mega win for 'zero tolerance' policy towards cross-border terrorism

In a major breakthrough security agencies have carried a major multi-state crackdown against the ISI-backed Shahzad Bhatti Network (SBN) ahead of Independence Day and busted its terror syndicate. 

Officials say under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the guidance of Home Minister Amit Shah, as many as 253 people were detained across 14 states.  

Independent sources say Bhatti operates from the UAE, used social media as a recruitment ground.

He tracked those who liked or commented on his posts and then would reach out to some of them and initially offered small amounts of money for seemingly simple tasks. 

There were over 80 FIRs and 200+ arrests recorded against SBN as part of the 'zero tolerance' policy towards cross-border terrorism.

In a post on X platform, Home Minister Shah said 

“the Modi govt destroyed the ISI-backed terror group Shahzad Bhatti Network ahead of Independence Day and thwarted its plans for subversive attacks by arresting more than 200 operatives. 

"Indian security forces ripped apart the network by launching coordinated operations across different locations in 14 states upholding a brilliant example of India's zero-tolerance towards terrorism. 

Substantial recoveries, including IEDs, grenades bearing Pakistan Ordnance Factory markings, pistols, live cartridges, and CCTV cameras used for espionage, were made from the ISI-funded group. The network was involved in several terrorist activities.”

Shahzad Bhatti Network (SBN), a Pakistan-based, ISI-backed terror syndicate linked to grenade, IED and petrol bomb attacks and targeted killings across India. 

SBN has also been paying local conduits to recce police, defence and religious sites, and to install CCTV cameras for espionage.

To counter SBN-linked disruptions planned around Independence Day, a coordinated multi-state operation was carried out on August 12 using a real-time intelligence-sharing system with State Police forces. 

It led to 253 detentions across 14 states — 

Uttar Pradesh (62), 

Haryana (52), 

Delhi (51), 

Punjab (44), 

Rajasthan (15), Maharashtra (8), Uttarakhand (5), Karnataka, Gujarat and Bihar (3 each), and Telangana, Himachal Pradesh, J&K and Kerala (2 each) — with fresh FIRs registered in Delhi and Karnataka.

 Recoveries include IEDs, grenades bearing Pakistan Ordnance Factory markings, pistols, live cartridges and espionage CCTVs — confirming the network’s direct cross-border links.

Security agencies reaffirm Govt of India’s zero tolerance for cross-border terror and continued coordinated action to dismantle SBN’s networks nationwide.   

Shahzad Bhatti is a Pakistani gangster backed by ISI.

He reportedly has the kind of social media following usually associated with influencers. 

Around 2.5 lakh people follow him on Instagram, and more than 4.5 lakh on Facebook. 

The Pakistani gangster was using online reach for something sinister — finding young men in India and allegedly drawing them into a network involved in bombs, explosives and espionage.

'Dimagi Naxals' consider "fragrance of Indian soil inferior"... they believe Machiavelli is superior to Chanakya and Shakespeare to Kalidasa : BJP leader Vinay Sahasrabuddhe

In a hard hitting article, senior BJP leader Vinay Sahasrabuddhe has said:

"They (Dimagi Naxals) do not recognise Indian traditional knowledge systems, but take pleasure in pooh-poohing it. Talking about heritage and traditions amounts to backsliding in their view".   

He also says: "Machiavelli is superior to Chanakya and Shakespeare to Kalidasa. They relish describing Ganga as Ganges and Hanuman as monkey-god. They care two paise for India’s ancient culture, much less for Ramayana and Mahabharata. 

"If you eulogise these epics, they would brand you as sectarian", writes Sahasrabuddhe in his column to 'The New Indian Express'.  

He also diagnosed that though difficult to pin-point, a large numbr of them have entered media and academia.  

Thus he wrote: "Unlike the mostly-forest-dwelling Naxals who openly espoused violence, urban Naxals and dimagi Naxals provide intellectual arsenal. 

Whether it’s the Congress, the BJP, or any regional party in power, they oppose government systems—openly or clandestinely. They try to be seen as anti-establishment even when they themselves take advantage of the establishment at times.

"The PM’s word of caution is timely, too, as Naxals and their sympathisers are increasingly getting frustrated. But though the reference hit a chord, like urban Naxals, it’s not easy to identify 'dimagi Naxals' —a term that may be loosely translated as ‘thought anarchists’. 

Many such people have made deep inroads into media, academia and intelligentsia."  

Dr Vinay Sahasrabuddhe, who also served as the President of the Indian Council for Cultural Relations (ICCR) from 2018 to early 2024, further says:  

"The first and the most dreadful symptom is an oblique acceptance of violence and anarchy as pathways towards revolution. 

They may not openly indulge in violence, but somewhere down the line, they also don’t entirely reject violent ways. 

Naxals indulge in open violence and dimagi Naxals try to theorise on it. 

They believe violence is essential to establish deterrence. It was Charu Mazumdar’s conviction that “he who has not dipped his hands in the blood of class enemies is not worthy of being called a communist”. 

Former Rajya Sabha MP 

He further notes:

"Destruction is the key to this so-called revolution. 

Dimagi Naxals believe in abiding by what B R Ambedkar described as the “grammar of anarchy”. 

In a passionate appeal at the last meeting of the Constituent Assembly, Dr Ambedkar had said, “Now that we have constitutional methods at our disposal, we must use them to obtain the socio-economic objectives set for our country.” 

"Yet, while proclaiming themselves as parts of the civil society, dimagi Naxals turn a Nelson’s eye on many things uncivil and indecent. According to some of them, the more aggressively one uses cuss words, the greater revolutionary he or she is."  

 

The former Rajya Sabha MP defines quite accurately - 

"All those who consider patriotism a bad word essentially belong to the category. 

They are even more set against the notion of cultural nationalism because, in the Indian context, the mainstream of our culture flows parallel to Hindu ethos." 

Dr Sahasrabuddhe is also quite candid in his observations.

"To many who belong to the category, India is a conglomeration of many nations. Many of them believe that states like Jharkhand and Chhattisgarh should be considered nations by themselves. To them, India became united thanks only to British rule." 

"Many of them are hell-bent upon stretching diversity to give fillip to divisiveness and fragmentation-ism. The Indian Army, to them, is an oppressive force. 

"They are convinced that holding candles and marching along the Indo-Pak border will help withering away the frontier."

ends