MoU signed to conserve black softshell turtle

• A major temple in Assam has signed a memorandum of understanding with two green NGOs, for long-term conservation of the rare freshwater black softshell turtle (Nilssonia nigricans).
• A vision document 2030 was also launched after Turtle Survival Alliance India and Help Earth signed the pact involving the Hayagriva Madhava Temple Committee.

• The temple, revered by both Hindus and Buddhists, is at Hajo, about 30 km northwest of Guwahati.
• The black softshell turtle was thought to be ‘extinct in the wild’ and confined only to ponds of temples in northeastern India and Bangladesh.

‘Critically endangered’

• The International Union for Conservation of Nature had in 2021 listed the turtle as ‘critically endangered'.
• But it does not enjoy legal protection under the Indian Wildlife (Protection) Act of 1972.
• It has traditionally been hunted for its meat and cartilage, traded in regional and international markets.

• Various temple ponds in Assam such as that of the Hayagriva Madhava Temple harbour various threatened species of turtles.

• Since, turtles are conserved in these ponds only based on religious grounds, many biological requirements for building a sustainable wild population have long been overlooked.

• This multi-stakeholder association (conservation pact) aims to restock the wild with viable, self-sufficient and genetically pure threatened turtle populations in the region.