Alibag, Sep 15 (PTI) To revive the population of vultures in the region, a `food centre' is being set up at the Phansad wildlife sanctuary in coastal Maharashtra's Raigad district.

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The sanctuary, about 140 km from Mumbai, used to have more than 30 vultures until seven years ago but most of the birds have now migrated to other areas due to lack of food, said range forest official Tushar Kalbhor.

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Vultures mainly feed on carrion which has become scarce, said another official.

Kalbhor, alongwith the Green Works Trust, a non-profit organization, decided to set up a food centre as part of the vulture conservation project undertaken by the sanctuary.

The authorities have written to gram panchayats in the area asking them to inform about any death of cattle, he said.

Once a cattle death is reported, members of the Green Work Trust will carry the carcass to the food centre which is expected to attract vultures.

The sanctuary, spread over nearly 7,000 hectares, is home to more than 160 species of birds, at least 30 species of reptiles and 17 species of mammals.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)