State of Conservation (SOC)

18COMIX
Link to the decision

Keoladeo National Park (India)

The Committee recalled that this site was inscribed on the World Heritage List because of its importance as a wintering ground for the Siberian crane. At the time of inscription in 1985, there were 41 cranes which wintered in Keoladeo National Park. The Committee was informed that in 1994, no Siberian cranes wintered in Keolodeo; it was thought that due to hunting along their migratory routes in Afghanistan and Pakistan the population which used Keoladeo for wintering appears to have been extirpated. The Committee therefore requested that the Centre write to the Indian authorities expressing its concern and requesting that the status of the Siberian crane population be monitored for another year. The Committee noted that in the event that there are no signs of the return of the species to Keoladeo in 1995, then it might consider the prospect of delisting this site. In that case the Committee would request IUCN to make a detailed presentation on the subject at its next session.