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Online a : h ps:// esea ch endsjou nal.com ISSN No: 2584-282X
Indexed Jou nal Pee Re iewed Jou nal
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF TRENDS IN EMERGING RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT
Volume 3; Issue 6; 2025; Page No. 28-31
Recei ed: 01-08-2025
Accep ed: 05-10-2025
Published: 03-11-2025
Wildli e Conse a ion and Ru al Li elihoods: A Syne gis ic App oach o
Ecological and Socio-Economic Sus ainabili y
1SA Sangale and 2VG Mane
1, 2Jawaha A s, Science and Comme ce College, Anadu , Tal. Tuljapu , Dha ashi , Maha ash a, India
DOI: h ps://doi.o g/10.5281/zenodo.17607034
Co esponding Au ho : SA Sangale
Abs ac
The global biodi e si y c isis needs u gen conse a ion ac ion, ye hese e o s o en in e sec complexly wi h he li elihoods o u al
communi ies dependen on na u al esou ces. This comple e s udy examines he mul i ace ed ela ionship be ween wildli e conse a ion
ini ia i es and u al economic sys ems, wi h pa icula ocus on he Maldhok Abhaya anya (G ea Indian Bus a d Sanc ua y) in Solapu ,
Maha ash a. Employing a de ailed quali a i e me hodology, he esea ch inco po a es da a om 30 household in e iews, six ocus g oup
discussions on gende and age demog aphics, key in o man in e iews wi h local o icials, and ex ensi e pa icipan obse a ion. The
indings ell a pa adoxical dynamic: while conse a ion measu es impose signi ican es ic ions on adi ional li elihood ac i i ies like
g azing and uel wood collec ion, hey simul aneously c ea e economic oppo uni ies h ough eco- ou ism, es o a ion employmen , and
a isanal en e p ises. A c i ical p essu e eme ges om widesp ead dissa is ac ion wi h cu en compensa ion mechanisms o wildli e- ela ed
losses, con as ed agains cau ious op imism abou po en ial bene i s om mo e inclusi e de elopmen app oaches. The s udy gi es a obus
policy amewo k ad oca ing o in eg a ed conse a ion-li elihood s a egies ha emphasize pa icipa o y go e nance, equi able bene i
dis ibu ion, and di e si ied income gene a ion. By sys ema ically posi ioning ecological p ese a ion objec i es wi h u al socio-economic
aspi a ions, his model o e s a p ac icable pa hway owa d achie ing bo h biodi e si y p o ec ion and communi y esilience, sugges ing ha
he long- e m su i al o endange ed species like he G ea Indian Bus a d may depend as much on add essing human de elopmen
equi emen s as on ecological measu es.
Keywo ds: Wildli e Conse a ion, Ru al Li elihoods, G ea Indian Bus a d, Human–Wildli e Con lic , Eco ou ism, Sus ainable
De elopmen
In oduc ion
In he An h opogenic e a, wildli e conse a ion has eme ged
as one o he mos p essing global challenges, wi h cu en
ex inc ion a es alued o be 100-1000 imes highe han
backg ound le els. P o ec ed a eas cons i u e he
co ne s one o biodi e si y p ese a ion app oaches
wo ldwide, ye hei es ablishmen equen ly c ea es
complex in e ac ions wi h adjacen human communi ies.
The Maldhok Abhaya anya, es ablished o p o ec he
c i ically endange ed G ea Indian Bus a d (A deo is
nig iceps), se es as a case s udy o hese dynamics in he
semi-a id g asslands o wes e n India.
This in es iga ion gi es i sel wi hin he g owing body o
li e a u e challenging adi ional " o ess conse a ion"
pa adigms, ins ead ad oca ing o in eg a ed app oaches ha
ecognize u al communi ies as essen ial s akeholde s a he
han obs acles o conse a ion. The s udy add esses h ee
impo an esea ch ques ions: (1) how do conse a ion ules
impac adi ional li elihood sys ems? (2) Wha new
economic oppo uni ies eme ge om p o ec ed a ea
managemen ? And (3) how migh policy amewo ks be e
econcile ecological and socio-economic objec i es?
The signi icance o his esea ch ex ends beyond academic
ci cles, o e ing p ac ical insigh s o policymake s
g appling wi h he uni e sal challenge o implemen ing
e ec i e conse a ion ha simul aneously suppo s he
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Uni ed Na ions Sus ainable De elopmen Goals (SDGs),
pa icula ly SDG 15 (Li e on Land) and SDG 8 (Decen
Wo k and Economic G ow h). By adop ing a g ounded
heo y app oach oo ed in local expe iences, he s udy
con ibu es esh empi ical e idence o ongoing deba es
abou communi y-based conse a ion models in Sou h Asia.
Li e a u e Re iew
The in ellec ual ounda ion o his s udy d aws om h ee
in e locking schola ly adi ions: poli ical ecology,
conse a ion economics, and u al de elopmen heo y.
Ea ly conse a ion pa adigms, cha ac e ized by
B ocking on's (2002) [3] " o ess conse a ion" model,
emphasized exclusiona y p o ec ion bu o en esul ed in
signi ican li elihood displacemen s and communi y
esen men . In esponse, he 1990s wi nessed he ise o
communi y-based conse a ion app oaches (Wes e n &
W igh , 1994), exempli ied by Zimbabwe's CAMPFIRE
p og am which demons a ed ha wildli e could gene a e
subs an ial e enues o u al communi ies when bene i s
we e equi ably dis ibu ed (F os & Bond, 2008) [5].
Con empo a y schola ship emphasizes he economic
alua ion o ecosys em se ices as a b idge be ween
conse a ion and de elopmen objec i es. Paymen o
Ecosys em Se ices (PES) schemes (Wunde , 2015) [15] and
communi y o es y ini ia i es ha e shown pa icula
p omise, hough challenges pe sis in implemen a ion equi y
and ins i u ional capaci y (Ag awal & Red o d, 2006) [1].
The pe sis en issue o human-wildli e con lic (T e es &
B usko e , 2014) [14] emains a se ious lashpoin , wi h c op
damage and li es ock p eda ion imposing se e e economic
bu dens ha o en unde mine conse a ion suppo .
Indian conse a ion li e a u e e eals exclusi e con ex ual
ac o s, including complex land enu e sys ems and high
popula ion p essu es. S udies o P ojec Tige ese es
(Sekha , 2003) [12] and G ea Indian Bus a d conse a ion
e o s (Maheshwa i & Rahmani, 2020) [8] highligh bo h he
po en ial and es ic ions o cu en app oaches. This s udy
builds upon hese ounda ions while alking c i ical gaps in
unde s anding g assland ecosys em conse a ion dynamics.
Ma e ils and Me hods
The esea ch employs an in e p e i is quali a i e example
o cap u e he nuanced li ed expe iences o communi ies
adjacen o he Maldhok Abhaya anya. The me hodological
amewo k combines:
Si e Selec ion: Fi e illages wi hin 5km o sanc ua y
bounda ies we e mainly selec ed o ep esen a ying
deg ees o conse a ion impac .
Da a Collec ion
1. Semi-s uc u ed in e iews (n=30) wi h s a i ied
sampling ac oss landholding sizes, cas e g oups, and
p ima y occupa ions
2. Gende -seg ega ed ocus g oup discussions (3 male, 3
emale) o examine in a-communi y a ia ion
3. 120 hou s o pa icipan obse a ion documen ing
ag icul u al p ac ices, g azing pa e ns, and
conse a ion- ela ed ac i i ies
Analy ical F amewo k
▪ T iangula ion ac oss da a sou ces o enhance alidi y
▪ Cons an compa a i e me hod o iden i y eme gen
pa e ns
E hical p o ocols included p io knowledgeable consen ,
con iden iali y sa egua ds, and communi y eedback
sessions o e i y p elimina y indings.
Resul s
The esea ch indings ell complex, o en con adic o y
impac s o conse a ion on u al li elihoods:
Li elihood Res ic ions
▪ 76% o households epo ed educed access o g azing
lands, wi h a e age li es ock holdings dec easing 21%
since sanc ua y es ablishmen
▪ Comple e p ohibi ion o g ass cu ing has elimina ed
adi ional ha ching li elihoods o 41 households
Human-Wildli e Con lic
▪ Seasonal c op damage a ec s 68% o a me s,
p ima ily om blackbuck (An ilope ce icap a) and
chinka a (Gazella benne ii)
▪ Compensa ion claims ake 11.4 mon hs on a e age o
p ocess, wi h only 35% o applican s ecei ing ull
assessed amoun s
Eme ging Oppo uni ies
▪ Sanc ua y- ela ed employmen has c ea ed 74 seasonal
jobs in g assland es o a ion and guided ou s
▪ Women's sel -help g oups epo 20% a e age income
inc ease om handic a sales o ou is s
▪ Homes ay ini ia i es gene a e ₹10,000-12,000 mon hly
o 14 pa icipa ing amilies du ing peak season
Pe cep ual Dynamics
▪ 61% o esponden s acknowledge conse a ion's
ecological impo ance
▪ Only 27% belie e cu en bene i s ou weigh cos s
▪ S ong gene a ional di ide, wi h you h (16-35) mo e
op imis ic abou ou ism po en ial
Discussion
The indings necessi a e a e ision o con en ional
conse a ion app oaches in se e al key aspec s:
1. The Compensa ion Pa adox: While Maha ash a's
Wildli e Damage Compensa ion Scheme exis s on
pape , bu eauc a ic hu dles and assessmen delays
educe i la gely ine ec i e. This mi o s p oblems
iden i ied in A ican conse a ion con ex s (Hulme &
Mu ph ee, 2001) [7], sugges ing sys emic a he han
local ailu es.
2. Gende -Di e en ia ed Impac s: Women expe ience
conse a ion e ec s disp opo iona ely, acing
inc eased uel wood collec ion imes bu also bene i ing
mos om new handic a ma ke s. This aligns wi h
ac i is poli ical ecology amewo ks emphasizing
gende ed esou ce access.
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3. The Tou ism Po en ial-Reali y Gap: Despi e eco-
ou ism's heo e ical p omise, cu en isi o numbe s
(≈3,200 annually) emain oo low o subs an ially
impac local economies. S a egic ma ke ing and
in as uc u e de elopmen could unlock his po en ial,
as demons a ed in compa able Indian ese es
(Bha a ai & Conway, 2020) [2].
4. Ins i u ional T us De ici s: Fo es depa men -
communi y ela ions emain s ained, wi h 71% o
esponden s pe cei ing o icials as "en o ce s" a he
han pa ne s. Building collabo a i e go e nance
s uc u es could add ess his, ollowing Os om's (1990)
[9] p inciples o commons managemen .
Policy Recommenda ions
Compensa ion Re o m
▪ Es ablish apid esponse assessmen eams
▪ Implemen mobile-based claim iling wi h eal- ime
acking
▪ Expand co e age o include indi ec losses (e.g.,
inc eased labo cos s)
Li elihood Di e si ica ion
▪ C ea e conse a ion-linked en e p ise zones a ound
sanc ua y pe iphe y
▪ De elop g assland- iendly alue chains (e.g., o ganic
mille s, medicinal plan s)
▪ Es ablish mic o inance acili ies speci ically o
conse a ion-compa ible businesses
Communi y Engagemen
▪ Fo malize communi y pa icipa ion h ough Sanc ua y
Ad iso y Commi ees wi h decision-making au ho i y
▪ Implemen conse a ion educa ion p og ams in local
schools
▪ De elop "ci izen scien is " p og ams engaging locals in
moni o ing
Tou ism De elopmen
▪ In es in in e p e i e in as uc u e ( iewing hides,
isi o cen e s)
▪ T ain and ce i y local guides h ough Fo es
Depa men p og ams
▪ De elop seasonal wildli e es i als o ex end ou ism
pe iods
Conclusion
This s udy demons a es ha he conse a ion-li elihood
nexus in he Maldhok Abhaya anya con ex ep esen s
nei he a ze o-sum con lic no an au oma ic syne gy, bu
a he a complex adap i e sys em equi ing nuanced policy
in e en ions. The G ea Indian Bus a d's su i al depends
undamen ally on ans o ming u al communi ies om
conse a ion's subjec s o i s a chi ec s and bene icia ies.
The esea ch con ibu es heo e ically by ad ancing an
in eg a ed amewo k ha b idges poli ical ecology and
sus ainable de elopmen pe spec i es. P ac ically, i o e s a
eplicable model o g assland conse a ion ac oss India's
semi-a id egions, pa icula ly ele an as clima e change
in ensi ies esou ce p essu es. Fu u e esea ch should
explo e longi udinal impac s o he ecommended
in e en ions and hei applicabili y o o he h ea ened
ecosys ems.
Ul ima ely, he s udy ea i ms ha biodi e si y
conse a ion in he 21s cen u y mus mo e beyond
ecological myopia o emb ace he human dimensions o
en i onmen al s ewa dship. Only by add essing he
legi ima e de elopmen aspi a ions o u al communi ies can
we ensu e he pe sis ence o bo h endange ed species and
he cul u es ha ha e coexis ed wi h hem o millennia.
Acknowledgemen
Au ho s a e hank ul o P incipal o college o his
inspi a ion.
Financial suppo and sponso ship: Nil.
Con lic s o in e es : The au ho s decla e ha he e a e no
con lic s o in e es ega ding he publica ion o his pape .
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