The Hindu Editorial • September 01, 2026 • Read Original

India’s power infrastructure is emerging as a big threat to vultures

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The Hindu Read Original

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Analysis of editorial from The Hindu newspaper on September 01, 2026

Deadly span: On vulture safety in India, threat of electrocution

India’s power infrastructure is emerging as a big threat to vultures

Environment Vulture ConservationAvian ElectrocutionWildlife ProtectionDiclofenac BanPower Infrastructure

Sentences

Sentence 1 of 15

English Original

Whereas for many decades the chief concern about vulture safety was centered on chemical threats, the threat of electrocution posed by India’s expanding power infrastructure may supersede it.

Sentence Breakdown

Part 1

Whereas for many decades

Even though over a very long period of several 10-year spans

Part 2

the concern about vulture safety was centered on chemical threats,

The primary worry regarding the survival of vultures focused on toxic drug poisoning,

Part 3

the threat of posed by India’s expanding power infrastructure

The danger of fatal electric shocks caused by India’s growing network of power lines and electrical grids

Part 4

may it.

Might replace or become even bigger than the chemical threat.

Context and Background

Evolution of Vulture Conservation Threats in India

India’s vulture population historically collapsed due to poisoning from veterinary drugs like diclofenac. As strict chemical bans take effect, the rapid growth of overhead power grids and wind-solar power transmission lines across rural habitats has emerged as an urgent new threat due to bird electrocutions.

Sentence 2 of 15

English Original

In the 1990s, India’s vultures suffered one of the world’s worst population crashes, nosediving 99.5% by 2007 from a high of around four crore in the 1980s; the white-rumped, Indian, and slender-billed vultures were nearly wiped out.

Sentence Breakdown

Part 1

In the 1990s,

During the decade from 1990 to 1999,

Part 2

India’s vultures suffered one of the world’s worst population ,

India’s vulture birds went through one of the most severe drops in total numbers seen globally,

Part 3

99.5% by 2007 from a high of around four crore in the 1980s;

Falling steeply by 99.5% by the year 2007 from an earlier peak of approximately 40 million birds in the 1980s;

Part 4

the , Indian, and slender-billed vultures

Three primary vulture species native to the Indian subcontinent

Part 5

were nearly .

Were almost completely eliminated or pushed to near extinction.

Context and Background

India

During the 1990s and early 2000s, India experienced a catastrophic 99.5% drop in vulture numbers across three resident species: the White-rumped, Indian, and Slender-billed vultures. The rapid loss of these scavengers disrupted ecosystem balance, leading to carcass accumulation and a rise in stray dog numbers.

Sentence 3 of 15

English Original

The culprit was diclofenac, a painkiller for cattle that wrecks vulture kidneys.

Sentence Breakdown

Part 1

The was ,

The main reason or cause of the deaths was a chemical drug called diclofenac,

Part 2

a painkiller for cattle

A medicine given to cows and buffaloes to relieve physical pain and swelling

Part 3

that vulture kidneys.

Which completely destroys the kidney organs of vultures when they eat dead cattle.

Context and Background

Toxicity of Diclofenac to Vultures

Diclofenac is a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug commonly given to injured livestock. When vultures feed on carcasses containing traces of diclofenac, they develop acute renal failure and visceral gout, leading to death within a few days.

Sentence 4 of 15

English Original

The government banned the use of diclofenac, with additional bans in 2023 to mitigate threats posed by aceclofenac and ketoprofen, among some other NSAIDs.

Sentence Breakdown

Part 1

The government banned the use of diclofenac,

The central authorities legally prohibited the use of diclofenac medicine in animals,

Part 2

with additional bans in 2023

Along with introducing more legal bans in the year 2023

Part 3

to threats posed by and ,

To reduce the deadly risks caused by other veterinary painkillers named aceclofenac and ketoprofen,

Part 4

among some other .

As well as certain other non-steroidal anti-inflammatory painkiller drugs.

Context and Background

Bans on Veterinary NSAIDs in India

After banning veterinary diclofenac in 2006, the Government of India banned the manufacture, sale, and distribution of ketoprofen and aceclofenac in July 2023. Aceclofenac quickly metabolises into diclofenac inside cattle, posing identical renal toxicity to scavenging vultures.

Sentence 5 of 15

English Original

The birds’ decline left carcasses exposed for longer, supporting feral dog populations and leading to rabies outbreaks; a 2024 study in American Economic Review estimated that human mortality thus rose 4% and the associated damages cost India $69.4 billion a year.

Sentence Breakdown

Part 1

The birds’ decline left exposed for longer,

The sharp fall in vulture numbers meant dead animal bodies remained unconsumed in open fields for greater lengths of time,

Part 2

supporting dog populations

Providing abundant food that allowed stray wild dog numbers to multiply rapidly,

Part 3

and leading to ;

And causing sudden widespread surges of the deadly rabies viral disease;

Part 4

a 2024 study in American Economic Review estimated that

A scientific research paper published in 2024 in a leading economics journal calculated that

Part 5

human thus rose 4%

Human death rates consequently increased by 4% in affected areas

Part 6

and the associated damages cost India $69.4 billion a year.

And the resulting health and economic losses cost the Indian economy nearly 69.4 billion US dollars every year.

Context and Background

Ecological and Economic Impact of Vulture Loss

A landmark 2024 study by economists Eyal Frank and Anant Sudarshan in the American Economic Review found that the collapse of vultures caused rotting livestock carcasses to multiply, boosting feral dog populations and spreading rabies. This led to over 500,000 excess human deaths and an estimated annual economic damage of $69.4 billion in India.

Sentence 6 of 15

English Original

While electrocution has not become as deadly as NSAIDs have been, the fragility of the vulture population and the proliferation of unsafe power infrastructure warrant early action.

Sentence Breakdown

Part 1

While electrocution has not become as as NSAIDs have been,

Although death by electric shocks has not yet killed as many vultures as toxic painkiller drugs did,

Part 2

the of the vulture population

The delicate and vulnerable state of India’s remaining vulture numbers

Part 3

and the of unsafe power infrastructure

Combined with the rapid spread of dangerous electricity lines and power equipment

Part 4

early action.

Demand and justify immediate preventive steps before the crisis worsens.

Sentence 7 of 15

English Original

One official survey reported in 2025 that vultures were nesting at only 50% of their historic nesting sites.

Sentence Breakdown

Part 1

One official survey reported in 2025 that

A formal government-backed wildlife study published in 2025 showed that

Part 2

vultures were nesting

Vulture birds were actively building nests and laying eggs

Part 3

at only 50% of their nesting sites.

In merely half of the cliff and tree locations where they traditionally used to live and breed.

Context and Background

Pan-India Vulture Nesting Survey 2025

A comprehensive pan-India assessment conducted by the Wildlife Institute of India (WII) and the Environment Ministry revealed that vultures have abandoned many traditional breeding grounds, with active nests found at only a fraction of their historical nesting cliffs and trees.

Sentence 8 of 15

English Original

It is no trivial detail that the raptors’ wide wingspans mean a large individual can contact two conductors at once.

Sentence Breakdown

Part 1

It is no detail that

It is a highly significant and important fact that

Part 2

the ’ wide mean

The broad wing length of these predatory birds causes a situation where

Part 3

a large individual can contact two at once.

A single large vulture can accidentally touch two live electric wires at the same time, triggering a lethal shock.

Context and Background

Mechanics of Avian Electrocution

Large birds like vultures have wingspans exceeding two meters. When taking off or landing on utility poles, their broad wings can simultaneously bridge two live phase wires (conductors) or touch an energized wire and a grounded steel cross-arm, completing an electrical circuit that causes fatal electrocution.

Sentence 9 of 15

English Original

They also have a habit of perching on elevated structures, are attracted to open landscapes, and have incentives to congregate where the availability of food is predictable, a risk enhanced by people dumping food waste around electrical installations.

Sentence Breakdown

Part 1

They also have a habit of on elevated structures,

Vultures naturally tend to sit and rest on high towers, electricity poles, and buildings,

Part 2

are attracted to open landscapes,

Prefer open plains and countryside where they can scan the ground easily,

Part 3

and have incentives to

And have strong natural reasons to gather together in large flocks

Part 4

where the availability of food is predictable,

In places where finding animal carcasses or meat scraps is reliable and constant,

Part 5

a risk enhanced by people dumping food waste around electrical .

A hazard made worse when local residents dump animal carcasses and food garbage near electric substations and transformers.

Sentence 10 of 15

English Original

As The Hindu reported based on a recent study in the Journal of Threatened Taxa, “relocating a livestock carcass dump 2.4 km away from high-tension power infrastructure near Uttarakhand’s Dehradun may have saved these large scavengers from … electrocution”.

Sentence Breakdown

Part 1

As The Hindu reported

According to news coverage published by The Hindu newspaper

Part 2

based on a recent study in the Journal of Threatened Taxa,

Drawn from a scientific research paper published in the wildlife journal named Journal of Threatened Taxa,

Part 3

“ a livestock carcass dump 2.4 km away

“Moving an animal carcass dumping area 2.4 kilometres further away

Part 4

from power infrastructure near Uttarakhand’s Dehradun

From high-voltage electricity towers and grid lines situated close to Dehradun in Uttarakhand state

Part 5

may have saved these large from … electrocution”.

Likely prevented these massive waste-eating birds from suffering lethal electric shocks”.

Context and Background

Dehradun Vulture Carcass Dump Relocation Study

A study published in the Journal of Threatened Taxa documented that moving a major livestock carcass dumping ground 2.4 kilometres away from high-tension transmission towers near Dehradun in Uttarakhand successfully eliminated vulture electrocution incidents in that habitat.

Sentence 11 of 15

English Original

An assessment prepared for the State Climate Resilient Power System Development Project also noted an Egyptian vulture and some steppe eagles had been electrocuted on medium-voltage, rather than high-voltage, lines.

Sentence Breakdown

Part 1

An assessment prepared for the State Climate Power System Development Project

An official evaluation report conducted for a state electricity modernisation initiative

Part 2

also noted

Additionally pointed out and recorded that

Part 3

an Egyptian vulture and some steppe eagles

A bird belonging to the endangered Egyptian vulture species and several migratory steppe eagles

Part 4

had been electrocuted

Had suffered fatal electric shocks and died

Part 5

on , rather than high-voltage, lines.

Along local medium-power distribution cables instead of very high-tension transmission lines.

Context and Background

State Climate Resilient Power System Development Project

A major infrastructure assessment evaluated ecological risks from power grid modernisation, revealing that medium-voltage distribution lines (11 kV to 33 kV) are often more hazardous to large raptors like the Egyptian vulture and Steppe eagle than high-voltage transmission lines due to tighter conductor spacing.

Sentence 12 of 15

English Original

Research has noted that persistent mortality due to electrocution alone could render a local population extinct.

Sentence Breakdown

Part 1

Research has noted that

Scientific studies have observed and highlighted that

Part 2

mortality due to electrocution alone

Continuous bird deaths caused purely by electric shocks from power lines

Part 3

could a local population .

Could completely wipe out all resident vultures living in that geographical area.

Sentence 13 of 15

English Original

Avian electrocution is also likely under-documented in India since dead birds can be removed by humans or scavenged.

Sentence Breakdown

Part 1

electrocution is also likely in India

Bird deaths caused by electric shocks are probably underreported in official records across India

Part 2

since dead birds can be removed by humans

Because deceased bird bodies are often taken away or cleared by local people

Part 3

or scavenged.

Or eaten and dragged away by stray dogs and other carnivorous wild animals before surveys can count them.

Sentence 14 of 15

English Original

As the study indicated, one inexpensive solution is to separate vulture feeding sites from power infrastructure.

Sentence Breakdown

Part 1

As the study indicated,

As the research paper pointed out and proved,

Part 2

one solution is

One highly affordable and low-cost preventive remedy is

Part 3

to separate vulture feeding sites from power infrastructure.

To relocate animal carcass dumping grounds far away from electricity towers and power lines.

Sentence 15 of 15

English Original

Other measures to protect raptors, and even other birds, especially near settlements, include insulating conductors, increasing the gap between energised and grounded components or otherwise preventing a bird from bridging them — non-trivial considering vulture wingspans — and installing safe perches.

Sentence Breakdown

Part 1

Other measures to protect raptors, and even other birds, especially near settlements,

Additional preventive steps to safeguard birds of prey and other bird species, particularly near human villages and towns,

Part 2

include conductors,

Consist of covering exposed live electric wires with protective non-conducting plastic or silicone coatings,

Part 3

increasing the gap between and components

Widening the physical space between live electric cables and earthed metal poles or cross-arms

Part 4

or otherwise preventing a bird from them — non-trivial considering vulture wingspans —

Or taking other steps to stop a bird from touching both parts simultaneously (a challenging task given that vultures have exceptionally broad wings),

Part 5

and installing safe .

And fixing safe resting platforms or wooden perches high above dangerous live wires.

Context and Background

Avian-Safe Power Line Engineering

Technological solutions to prevent bird electrocutions include retrofitting utility poles with silicone conductor insulation sleeves, increasing the separation distance between live wires to at least 1.4 to 2.5 metres, installing bird flight diverters, and fixing bird-safe perches above live cross-arms.

Sentence 1 of 15

Sentences Breakdown

Editorial Summary

5-Point Summary

1 While chemical toxicity historically caused a catastrophic 99.5% decline in India’s vulture population, expanding power infrastructure now poses a major electrocution threat.
2 Government bans on diclofenac, aceclofenac, and ketoprofen helped counter chemical poisoning, which had triggered rabies outbreaks and massive economic losses.
3 With vultures nesting at only half of their historical sites, electrocution from wide wingspans contacting electrical conductors risks local population extinction.
4 Recent studies and assessments highlight that moving carcass dumps away from power lines and addressing medium-voltage hazards can significantly reduce deaths.
5 Implementing affordable safety measures like insulating conductors, increasing component gaps, and installing safe perches is essential to prevent avian electrocution.

Tone of the Editorial

Analytical

Why this tone?

The editorial examines the emerging threat of electrocution to India’s recovering vulture population alongside past chemical hazards. It presents scientific data, economic findings, and field evidence to objectively evaluate the risks and recommend practical infrastructure solutions.

Sentence 1 of 15

Whereas for many decades the chief concern about vulture safety was centered on chemical threats, the threat of electrocution posed by India’s expanding power infrastructure may supersede it.

Sentence Breakdown

Part 1

Whereas for many decades

Even though over a very long period of several 10-year spans

Part 2

the chief concern about vulture safety was centered on chemical threats,

The primary worry regarding the survival of vultures focused on toxic drug poisoning,

Part 3

the threat of electrocution posed by India’s expanding power infrastructure

The danger of fatal electric shocks caused by India’s growing network of power lines and electrical grids

Part 4

may supersede it.

Might replace or become even bigger than the chemical threat.

Sentence 2 of 15

Sentence Breakdown

Part 1

In the 1990s,

During the decade from 1990 to 1999,

Part 2

India’s vultures suffered one of the world’s worst population crashes,

India’s vulture birds went through one of the most severe drops in total numbers seen globally,

Part 3

nosediving 99.5% by 2007 from a high of around four crore in the 1980s;

Falling steeply by 99.5% by the year 2007 from an earlier peak of approximately 40 million birds in the 1980s;

Part 4

the white-rumped, Indian, and slender-billed vultures

Three primary vulture species native to the Indian subcontinent

Part 5

were nearly wiped out.

Were almost completely eliminated or pushed to near extinction.

Sentence 3 of 15

The culprit was diclofenac, a painkiller for cattle that wrecks vulture kidneys.

Sentence Breakdown

Part 1

The culprit was diclofenac,

The main reason or cause of the deaths was a chemical drug called diclofenac,

Part 2

a painkiller for cattle

A medicine given to cows and buffaloes to relieve physical pain and swelling

Part 3

that wrecks vulture kidneys.

Which completely destroys the kidney organs of vultures when they eat dead cattle.

Sentence 4 of 15

The government banned the use of diclofenac, with additional bans in 2023 to mitigate threats posed by aceclofenac and ketoprofen, among some other NSAIDs.

Sentence Breakdown

Part 1

The government banned the use of diclofenac,

The central authorities legally prohibited the use of diclofenac medicine in animals,

Part 2

with additional bans in 2023

Along with introducing more legal bans in the year 2023

Part 3

to mitigate threats posed by aceclofenac and ketoprofen,

To reduce the deadly risks caused by other veterinary painkillers named aceclofenac and ketoprofen,

Part 4

among some other NSAIDs.

As well as certain other non-steroidal anti-inflammatory painkiller drugs.

Sentence 5 of 15

Sentence Breakdown

Part 1

The birds’ decline left carcasses exposed for longer,

The sharp fall in vulture numbers meant dead animal bodies remained unconsumed in open fields for greater lengths of time,

Part 2

supporting feral dog populations

Providing abundant food that allowed stray wild dog numbers to multiply rapidly,

Part 3

and leading to rabies outbreaks;

And causing sudden widespread surges of the deadly rabies viral disease;

Part 4

a 2024 study in American Economic Review estimated that

A scientific research paper published in 2024 in a leading economics journal calculated that

Part 5

human mortality thus rose 4%

Human death rates consequently increased by 4% in affected areas

Part 6

and the associated damages cost India $69.4 billion a year.

And the resulting health and economic losses cost the Indian economy nearly 69.4 billion US dollars every year.

Sentence 6 of 15

While electrocution has not become as deadly as NSAIDs have been, the fragility of the vulture population and the proliferation of unsafe power infrastructure warrant early action.

Sentence Breakdown

Part 1

While electrocution has not become as deadly as NSAIDs have been,

Although death by electric shocks has not yet killed as many vultures as toxic painkiller drugs did,

Part 2

the fragility of the vulture population

The delicate and vulnerable state of India’s remaining vulture numbers

Part 3

and the proliferation of unsafe power infrastructure

Combined with the rapid spread of dangerous electricity lines and power equipment

Part 4

warrant early action.

Demand and justify immediate preventive steps before the crisis worsens.

Sentence 7 of 15

One official survey reported in 2025 that vultures were nesting at only 50% of their historic nesting sites.

Sentence Breakdown

Part 1

One official survey reported in 2025 that

A formal government-backed wildlife study published in 2025 showed that

Part 2

vultures were nesting

Vulture birds were actively building nests and laying eggs

Part 3

at only 50% of their historic nesting sites.

In merely half of the cliff and tree locations where they traditionally used to live and breed.

Sentence 8 of 15

It is no trivial detail that the raptors’ wide wingspans mean a large individual can contact two conductors at once.

Sentence Breakdown

Part 1

It is no trivial detail that

It is a highly significant and important fact that

Part 2

the raptors’ wide wingspans mean

The broad wing length of these predatory birds causes a situation where

Part 3

a large individual can contact two conductors at once.

A single large vulture can accidentally touch two live electric wires at the same time, triggering a lethal shock.

Sentence 9 of 15

Sentence Breakdown

Part 1

They also have a habit of perching on elevated structures,

Vultures naturally tend to sit and rest on high towers, electricity poles, and buildings,

Part 2

are attracted to open landscapes,

Prefer open plains and countryside where they can scan the ground easily,

Part 3

and have incentives to congregate

And have strong natural reasons to gather together in large flocks

Part 4

where the availability of food is predictable,

In places where finding animal carcasses or meat scraps is reliable and constant,

Part 5

a risk enhanced by people dumping food waste around electrical installations.

A hazard made worse when local residents dump animal carcasses and food garbage near electric substations and transformers.

Sentence 10 of 15

Sentence Breakdown

Part 1

As The Hindu reported

According to news coverage published by The Hindu newspaper

Part 2

based on a recent study in the Journal of Threatened Taxa,

Drawn from a scientific research paper published in the wildlife journal named Journal of Threatened Taxa,

Part 3

“relocating a livestock carcass dump 2.4 km away

“Moving an animal carcass dumping area 2.4 kilometres further away

Part 4

from high-tension power infrastructure near Uttarakhand’s Dehradun

From high-voltage electricity towers and grid lines situated close to Dehradun in Uttarakhand state

Part 5

may have saved these large scavengers from … electrocution”.

Likely prevented these massive waste-eating birds from suffering lethal electric shocks”.

Sentence 11 of 15

Sentence Breakdown

Part 1

An assessment prepared for the State Climate Resilient Power System Development Project

An official evaluation report conducted for a state electricity modernisation initiative

Part 2

also noted

Additionally pointed out and recorded that

Part 3

an Egyptian vulture and some steppe eagles

A bird belonging to the endangered Egyptian vulture species and several migratory steppe eagles

Part 4

had been electrocuted

Had suffered fatal electric shocks and died

Part 5

on medium-voltage, rather than high-voltage, lines.

Along local medium-power distribution cables instead of very high-tension transmission lines.

Sentence 12 of 15

Research has noted that persistent mortality due to electrocution alone could render a local population extinct.

Sentence Breakdown

Part 1

Research has noted that

Scientific studies have observed and highlighted that

Part 2

persistent mortality due to electrocution alone

Continuous bird deaths caused purely by electric shocks from power lines

Part 3

could render a local population extinct.

Could completely wipe out all resident vultures living in that geographical area.

Sentence 13 of 15

Avian electrocution is also likely under-documented in India since dead birds can be removed by humans or scavenged.

Sentence Breakdown

Part 1

Avian electrocution is also likely under-documented in India

Bird deaths caused by electric shocks are probably underreported in official records across India

Part 2

since dead birds can be removed by humans

Because deceased bird bodies are often taken away or cleared by local people

Part 3

or scavenged.

Or eaten and dragged away by stray dogs and other carnivorous wild animals before surveys can count them.

Sentence 14 of 15

As the study indicated, one inexpensive solution is to separate vulture feeding sites from power infrastructure.

Sentence Breakdown

Part 1

As the study indicated,

As the research paper pointed out and proved,

Part 2

one inexpensive solution is

One highly affordable and low-cost preventive remedy is

Part 3

to separate vulture feeding sites from power infrastructure.

To relocate animal carcass dumping grounds far away from electricity towers and power lines.

Sentence 15 of 15

Sentence Breakdown

Part 1

Other measures to protect raptors, and even other birds, especially near settlements,

Additional preventive steps to safeguard birds of prey and other bird species, particularly near human villages and towns,

Part 2

include insulating conductors,

Consist of covering exposed live electric wires with protective non-conducting plastic or silicone coatings,

Part 3

increasing the gap between energised and grounded components

Widening the physical space between live electric cables and earthed metal poles or cross-arms

Part 4

or otherwise preventing a bird from bridging them — non-trivial considering vulture wingspans —

Or taking other steps to stop a bird from touching both parts simultaneously (a challenging task given that vultures have exceptionally broad wings),

Part 5

and installing safe perches.

And fixing safe resting platforms or wooden perches high above dangerous live wires.

Reading Comprehension

Practice questions based on this editorial

Reading Comprehension - Vulture Safety and Electrocution Threats in India

Practice reading comprehension questions based on the editorial about electrocution threats to India’s vulture population and necessary infrastructure safeguards.

7 Questions Passing: 50%

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