Details

Written by: Bilal Bashir Bhat

Category: ENVIRONMENT

Published: 20 February 2017

 [“Did you know that three to five Tibetan Antelopes Also called chiru are killed to make one Shahtoosh Shawl also written shahtush, a Persian word meaning "king of fine wools"? These Animals are on verge of Extinction level, because of our Fashion. Our increasing fashion will lead these animals to extint. These animals have equal right to live on earth as we have, so please boycott such Animal products to preserve national Heritage.”]

The Tibetan antelope or chiru (Pantholops hodgsonii) is a medium-sized bovid native to the Tibetan plateau. Endemic to the Tibetan Plateau, the Tibetan antelope inhabits open alpine and cold steppe environments between 3,250 and 5,500 m (10,660 and 18,040 ft.) elevation. They prefer flat, open terrain, with sparse vegetation cover. They are found almost entirely in China, where they inhabit Tibet, southern Xinjiang, and western Qinghai; a few are also found across the border in Ladakh, India. Today, the majority are found within the Chang Tang Nature Reserve of northern Tibet. The first specimens to be described, in 1826, were from Nepal; the species has apparently since been extirpated from the region. No subspecies are recognised.

Tibetan antelope feed on forbs, grasses, and sedges, often digging through the snow to obtain food in winter. Their natural predators include wolves, lynx, and snow leopards, and red foxes are known to prey on young calves.

Tibetan antelope are gregarious, sometimes congregating in herds hundreds strong when moving between summer and winter pastures, although they are more usually found in much smaller groups, with no more than 20 individuals. The females migrate up to 300 km (190 mi) yearly to calving grounds in the summer, where they usually give birth to a single calf, and re-join the males at the wintering grounds in late autumn.

Fewer than 75,000 individuals are left in the wild. The endangered antelope Called chiru are found in some of the harshest regions of Tibet and China, it is a highly shy creature that cannot be captured or tamed.  So, it is hunted down and its hair, a kg of which can fetch up to Rs. 60,000, is woven into shawls, whose magical warmth has enslaved women down the ages. In the 1790s, Queen Elizabeth wore one to Prince Edward's wedding, and the actress, Mrs. Julia Roberts, to the premiere of ``Runaway Bride''. India's rich and famous are said to possess shahtoosh shawls, also written shahtush, a Persian word meaning "king of fine wools" despite a ban on their trade since 1991, though the chiru was placed on the red list by the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species and the Indian Wildlife Protection Act a good two decades before that.

The merciless butchery continues, and keeping this on is Kashmir, where weavers create exquisite shawls that still command a global market. The State Government says that it can neither label the chiru endangered nor stop the buying and selling of its hair. For that will harm ``Kashmiri interests''. Perhaps, the region is about the only place in the world where such business is still legal.

The killing of this endangered species (Chiru) will attract a fine and jail sentence of up to seven years. But who cares?  All over people and government are corrupted and such endangered species becoming extint. Surely, the humble Kashmiri weaver should not be burdened with the cross of guilt. Surely, the shahtoosh shawl cannot appear blemish less, tainted as it is with the blood of the chiru. Surely, it cannot cloak shame and sorrow.

 

Our increasing fashion will lead these animals to extint. These animals have equal right to live on earth as we have, so please boycott such Animal products and make people aware about the negative consequences of such acts to preserve national Heritage……………………….