125 students of Bengaluru international school adopt a young sloth bear

Bengaluru: As part of Orchids - The International School's on-going effort to bring awareness regarding endangered species conservation in India, students from Orchid's Vijayanagar branch have adopted an 11-year-old sloth bear named Hamsi from the Bannerghatta zoo. The school has collaborated with Wildlife SOS, one of the largest Wildlife organisations in South Asia for this initiative and have recently completed all necessary clearances to adopt the sloth bear.

While speaking on the occasion, JeevaRekha, Principal of Orchids – The International School, Vijayanagara branch said, "We are delighted to share that our branch took this noble initiative of animal adoption in collaboration with Wildlife SOS. The project has been completely driven by the students; from collecting funds to coordinating with the officials.

"OIS students actively participated in a community service event at Bannerghatta Rescue Center. They cleaned the premises, painted the surroundings and planted saplings.The Senior Mobilization Officer of Wildlife SOS, Puja Deb said, "Wildlife Conservation ensures that future generations can enjoy our natural world and the incredible species that live within it."India has 90% of the world's sloth bear population.

The sloth bear is listed in Schedule I of the Indian Wildlife Protection Act, 1972 which provides for their legal protection. The government of India has banned the use of sloth bears for entertainment under the 'Sloth Bear Welfare Project'. According to the International Union for Conservation of Nature, there are around 6,000-10,000 sloth bears in India.