Jaisalmer: Project Great Indian Bustard (GIB) recorded a milestone in the fourth year of its captive breeding programme with the birth of two chicks born at the Conservation Breeding Centre in Sam, Jaisalmer. One chick hatched through natural breeding on March 10 and the other through artificial insemination on March 12, taking the total number of birds conserved in captivity to 70.Union minister of environment, forest and climate change Bhupendra Yadav shared the development Friday on social media, calling it an important step in the conservation efforts for the species. He said some chicks born this year would be released into the wild through soft release, describing it as a new and challenging beginning for the project. He also congratulated officials of the Rajasthan forest dept for the achievement.Officials said the hatching of the first two chicks of the 2026 breeding season marked a significant milestone in India’s efforts to conserve and restore the population of the critically endangered bird.DCF, Desert National Park, B M Gupta said the births reflected the success of efforts to increase the GIB population in the region.Officials said this approach of artificial insemination would help in creating a sperm bank and increasing the population of the species. Scientists from the Wildlife Institute of India (WII) received training from the International Fund for Houbara Conservation in Abu Dhabi.The development was described as a significant step under the ‘Bustard Recovery Program’, a key project by the state and central govt to conserve the endangered species through artificial breeding.
