(From left) Vijay Jung Thapa, Sharad Saxena, Roshan Tamang and Saibal DasSome traditions never die, they merely get uglier. Hunting fits that definition well. Once the pursuit of maharajas, the shikar was like some machismo sport. As the saying those days went, "Three leopards before breakfast." With wildlife unlimited the hunts were legal orgies of destruction.The British at least insisted that a strict code of conduct be put in place. Females were never killed and only species specified in the permit could be shot.That code is dead. Instead, as the recent Salman Khan episode demonstrates, a new breed of shikaris has emerged. As our cover story reveals, they could be IAS officers, farmers, industrialists or politicians. None of whom gives a hoot for the law for hunting has long been illegal. Travelling in jeeps, they kill more than they can eat and shoot anything in sight. As a result several species are being pushed on to the endangered list.A huge collective effort was required to put together the cover story. Reporters from our bureaus in Jaipur, Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Bhopal, Chandigarh and Guwahati interviewed old shikaris and new hunters. In Delhi, Special Correspondent Vijay Jung Thapa, who wrote the story, met wildlife activists. The hunters turned out to be an audacious breed..preferred-source-banner{ margin-top: 10px; margin-bottom:10px;} In Dehra Dun, wealthy farmers organised a mock-shikar for Correspondent Roshan Tamang and Senior Photographer Sharad Saxena. Some were even more brazen. A group of hunters in Rajasthan took Senior Correspondent Rohit Parihar and Senior Photographer Saibal Das on a hunt and then to their dismay felled two cranes in front of them. Says Parihar, "I was stunned, after all we were journalists and recording the incident." For men who flout the law with impunity, the press was clearly irrelevant.Published By: AtMigration Published On: Nov 2, 1998--- ENDS ---
