Viral Video Of Tourists Chasing Tibetan Wild Asses in Ladakh Upsets Internet

A video of tourists in Ladakh recklessly chasing a group of Tibetan Wild Asses has drawn widespread condemnation on social media. The video, shared on Twitter by Indian Forest Service officer Susanta Nanda, shows a speeding car chasing a herd of Tibetan Wild Asses, which were desperately fleeing from the approaching vehicle. Nanda accompanied the video with a caption expressing his disgust at the tourists’ unacceptable behaviour. “Tourists chasing Tibetan wild ass in Ladakh. Disgusting,” he wrote.

The video has garnered over 44,000 views and still counting. Social media users expressed their anger and called for severe actions against the individuals involved. One user demanded a lifetime ban for such tourists saying, “Tourists like these should be banned for lifetime.”

Another user pointed fingers at travel operators stating, “The Travel Operators who arrange such travels must be booked without any mercy. Then only other Travel Operators (pan India) will not dare to do such things.”

Several users also advocated for penalties, including the cancellation of the driver’s license and a ban on visiting wildlife destinations with one user saying, “These tourists should be penalized and the driving license of the driver of the vehicle must be cancelled forever. All of them should be banned for life time entry in any wildlife destination Pan India.”

The Tibetan Wild Ass, also known as the Kiang, is the largest of all African and Asiatic Wild Asses. It is an endangered species restricted to the Changthang area of Ladakh. The animal is listed in the ‘Red Data Book on Indian Animals,’ published by the Zoological Survey of India, and is protected under the Indian Wildlife (Protection) Act 1972 and CITES Appendix II. The Red Data Book estimates a population of over 2,000 Kiangs in Ladakh.

In a similar instance, a safari vehicle’s close encounter with a cheetah caused uproar online. The video from Namibia raised concerns about tourists’ behaviour when interacting with wild animals. The video shows the safari jeep driver engaging in provocative behaviour, enticing the cheetah by instructing it to say “miau” (meow) if it desired food.

Surprisingly enough, the cheetah obliges and climbs onto the vehicle’s door, standing tall on its hind legs.