AHMEDABAD, May 14: Under other circumstances, this new-found love for the lion would be music to environmentalists' ears. The Centre has directed that about 200 Asiatic lions from Gir in Gujarat be moved to Palpur Kuno in Madhya Pradesh, where an alternative site is being prepared for them. While Madhya Pradesh has started work on a war footing to welcome the animal, Gujarat has plain refused to let any out.

``Forget the lion, we will not even allow a cub to be shifted out of Gir,'' thundered Gujarat Chief Minister Shankersinh Vaghela at a meeting last month.But Vaghela is willing to concede some ground on the matter of survival of the breed. ``If wildlife experts really want to increase the number of cats, Gujarat can lend five or six lion families to Madhya Pradesh, but only for a limited period,'' he says.

Not to be left behind, Madhya Pradesh is working at a feverish pitch to develop 344.686 sq km of the Palpur Kuno sanctuary in Morena district. The Centre, for its part, has already promised Rs 80 crore for the project and sent a message to Gujarat on the coming translocation.

Vaghela, claims he hasn't received any intimation. ``The Centre may have decided on its own to form another sanctuary,'' he said.With the Chief Minister taking such a stance, the state Forest Department officers, a section of which supports the proposed translocation, remain tight-lipped on the subject.

Stressing it is important to distribute a species over a large area, V B Savarkar, wildlife faculty head at the Wildlife Institute of India (WII), Dehra Dun, sais that ``If a specie is concentrated at one place, it can be wiped out in case of an epidemic.''

The Kuno forest is very close to Gir's dry assiduous forest.

Knowing he has experts behind him, Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Digvijay Singh is unruffled by the controversy. ``Wildlife enthusiasts say the growth of lions in the Gir forest has stagnated and their number is not increasing. Experts believe the forest's capacity has been exhausted and thus it was necessary to shift the lions to a safe and similar habitation,'' he notes.As for Gujarat's protests, Singh points out that it was a Central Government plan to shift the lions to Madhya Pradesh. However, he adds: ``If the Chief Minister of Gujarat is unwilling, we will not make it an issue.''

The state, which is setting up the sanctuary has started rehabilitation in some parts.However, the actual translocation, if it happens, may take some years as care has to be taken before a specie is shifted, said Savarkar.

A similar attempt in the '60s to shift lions to Uttar Pradesh had failed.The shifting of the villagers will depend on funds released by the Centre.

Copyright © 1997 Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd.