Environmentalists Spot Spotted Deer in Dumas, Surat Forest Department Asleep at the Wheel

Surat : The Surat Forest Department is still deep in slumber, even as environmentalists share photos of spotted deer in Dumas’ Sultanabad district, which is just 15 km from Surat. On Monday, villagers in Sultanabad discovered the carcass of a spotted deer and alerted the forest authorities of the existence of a small herd.

Anand Kumar, Deputy Conservator of Forest (DCF), Surat Circle, is yet to recognise the presence of spotted deer in Sultanabad and defend their very life from wild animals and dogs on the hunt.

According to sources, the forest department took control of the spotted deer’s corpse and ordered an autopsy to determine the precise cause of death. However, villagers reported that there were cuts and bruises on the deer’s body, indicating that the animal was chased and killed by a wild animal in Sultanabad.

On January 10, 2023, an environmental activist in Dumas provided visual evidences of spotted deer pug markings to DCF Anand Kumar’s Whatsapp number. A forest officer was sent to the site described in the communication to investigate and discovered the pug marks and litter. The material was taken for further examination.

However, the Surat forest department showed no interest in locating the spotted deer in Sultanabad. On April 5, the environment activist again supplied proof in the form of images of deer in Sultanabad, but the DCF took no action.

In 2010, the Dang (south) division of the Forest Department and the Surat-based Nature Club Surat (NCS) worked on a deer breeding experiment in Vansda National Park. The goal was to reestablish the herbivore population in the forest and the natural environment.

It is unknown how the spotted deer ended up in Dumas’ coastal region.