Thousands of Blackbucks catch PM Modi’s attention, leaves him in awe of natural beauty

A large herd of Blackbucks crossing a road in unison caught the attention of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, leaving him fascinated with the beauty of nature. PM Modi shared a video tweeted by the Gujarat Information Department showing a sea of Blackbucks in thousands crossing a road one after the other in a unique fashion and wrote “Excellent” in his post. This is not the first time that PM Modi has expressed his enthusiasm and love for nature. While running the Gujarat state for more than a decade, the then Chief Minister of the state Narendra Modi was a regular attendee of Safaris and visits to various Wildlife sanctuaries and National Parks in the state. PM Modi has also featured in world popular show Man vs Wild with host Bear Grylls living a day in the bounties of nature.

The video shared by PM Modi was shot in Gujarat’s Velavadar Blackbuck National Park in Bhavnagar Gujarat where about 3000 Blackbucks were seen crossing the road in a breathtaking sight. What catches the attention of the viewer is the speed at which the species are crossing the road one after the other appearing like a glowing stream of water crossing the road. While most Blackbucks are seen running at a brisk speed, several of them are also seen hopping the whole section of the road and descending on the other side. The coordination and unwavering motion of thousands of Black Bucks in a single direction running into the horizon of grasslands is truly heaven-like.

Excellent! https://t.co/9xxNLllQtP

— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) July 28, 2021

Otherwise seen in stationary Zoos in a lethargic mode, Blackbucks or the Indian antelopes are considered to be one of the fastest running species on the planet. The species which inhabit the grassland ecosystem are found in other countries of the Indian subcontinent as well including Nepal. In India, the species is found in good numbers in Gujarat, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Tamil Nadu among others.

Over 3000 blackbucks were seen crossing the road at Bhavnagar’s Blackbuck National Park.

pic.twitter.com/ddjsAU6bMH

— Gujarat Information (@InfoGujarat) July 28, 2021

While the International Convention for Union of Nature(IUCN) has classified the species under ‘Least Concern’ which means that there is no imminent threat to the survival of the species, the Indian Wildlife Protection Act, 1972 accords the highest protection to the species by putting it under schedule 1 of the act. Threats to the species include habitat fragmentation, deforestation, illegal poaching among others.