Days Before Markhor Census, Poaching Video Sparks Outcry and Deepens Conservation Anxiety in Kashmir | Kashmir Life

SRINAGAR: Just days ahead of the start of the annual census of the rare and near-threatened Kashmir markhor, the emergence of a disturbing video allegedly showing the killing of the protected animal inside Kazinag National Park has triggered outrage, renewed scrutiny of wildlife governance, and heightened fears about the species’ survival in its last Indian stronghold.

The 53-second video, first reported by The Wire, shows two men severing the head of an Astore markhor (Capra falconeri) with an axe in a snow-covered forest landscape identified as the Mithwain area of Kazinag National Park in north Kashmir. The footage has prompted civil society groups to demand an independent and time-bound probe into what they describe as a grave ecological crime.

The controversy has surfaced at a critical moment, as Jammu and Kashmir’s wildlife authorities, in collaboration with conservation organisations, prepare to begin the 2025–26 markhor census across Kazinag National Park, Hirpora Wildlife Sanctuary and Tatakuti Wildlife Sanctuary. The census is conducted during winter when heavy snowfall pushes the animals to lower elevations, making sightings more reliable.

A senior wildlife department official, quoted by The Wire, said the video dates back to February 2022 and claimed the incident was misrepresented as poaching. According to the official, the carcass was discovered after what appeared to be leopard predation, and the skull was removed for research purposes and preserved at Dachigam National Park. A fact-finding inquiry at the time, the official said, ruled out poaching and a report with photographic evidence was submitted to senior officers.

However, the video’s public release for the first time has raised uncomfortable questions. It shows a wildlife official striking the animal’s neck repeatedly with an axe while another person holds the horns. At least three individuals can be heard conversing, with one instructing that the carcass should “vanish”.

Civil society organisations, including the Jammu and Kashmir RTI Movement and Forest Rights Coalition, Jammu Kashmir, have rejected official explanations and called for an independent investigation. In a joint statement reported by local media, the groups expressed “deep shock and grave concern” over allegations that individuals linked to the wildlife department and conservation programmes may be involved in the killing or concealment of evidence.

“If substantiated, this is not just a criminal offence under the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972, but an ecological crime against the people of Jammu and Kashmir,” the statement said, demanding a Special Investigation Team, a comprehensive audit of markhor conservation funds, and accountability of officials and partner organisations.

The Astore or Kashmir markhor, listed as Near Threatened on the IUCN Red List and protected under Schedule I of Indian wildlife law, is India’s largest wild goat and now survives almost entirely in the Kazinag landscape near the Line of Control. Once thought extinct in India, it was rediscovered in the early 2000s through surveys led by the Wildlife Trust of India (WTI).

According to Greater Kashmir, the upcoming census will be conducted by WTI in collaboration with the Department of Wildlife Protection, Kashmir, and is expected to take around two weeks. The last census in 2023 recorded 221 markhors, the bulk of them in Kazinag National Park, while numbers in Hirpora remained low and scattered.

“Most of the markhor population in J&K is now confined to the Kazinag corridor,” Wildlife Warden for North Kashmir Intesar Suhail told Greater Kashmir, adding that habitat loss and fragmentation have limited the species’ spread elsewhere.

Beyond alleged poaching, conservationists warn that habitat degradation poses an equally serious threat. Heavy summer grazing by migratory livestock during the breeding season has been identified by wildlife officials and WTI as the primary pressure on the fragile Hirpora population. “Livestock occupy the same slopes used by markhor for breeding and feeding, and constant human presence disturbs them at a critical stage,” an official monitoring the species told Greater Kashmir.

Wildlife authorities say enforcement has been stepped up, with anti-grazing camps and prosecutions under wildlife laws. However, some activists dispute the emphasis on grazing, arguing that road construction, power projects and blocked wildlife corridors—particularly along the LoC—have caused far greater damage.

The stakes are high. Globally, only about 5,000 markhor are believed to survive, with an estimated 250–300 in Jammu and Kashmir. Conservationists say the current controversy underscores the fragility of institutional trust at a time when scientific monitoring and public confidence are crucial.

As field teams prepare to fan out across snowbound slopes to count one of India’s rarest mammals, the haunting images from Kazinag have cast a long shadow, raising a troubling question: can the markhor be saved if those entrusted with its protection are themselves under suspicion?