Forest Guards Train to Protect Endangered Hoolock Gibbon

Guwahati: Fifteen forest guards wrapped up a week of training on September 25 at the Gibbon Conservation Centre. The site sits inside the Hollongapar Gibbon Sanctuary in Mariani, Assam. This marks the first time staff from Assam, Meghalaya, and Nagaland joined forces to save the Western Hoolock Gibbon. The species remains India’s only ape.

Aaranyak organized the event with the Jorhat Forest Division. The Habitats Trust and the IUCN Primate Specialists Group provided support. Poaching and habitat loss threaten these primates. Dr. Dilip Chetry of Aaranyak opened the session on September 19. He encouraged the group to “actively engage in the training and apply their learning to biodiversity conservation, particularly efforts to protect Hoolock gibbons.”

Trainees spent five days tracking wildlife and practicing research skills. Experts from Assam Agricultural University and the University of Science and Technology Meghalaya taught the course. The curriculum spanned GPS use, wildlife rescue, and census methods. The program closed with participants receiving certificates, posters, and manuals to help their work in the field.