Two decades after toxic veterinary drugs cleared India's skies of its ultimate scavengers, vultures are making a comeback with more than 700 birds bred in captivity and phased wild-release programmes turning protected tiger reserves into their new safe havens.

Led by the Bombay Natural History Society (BNHS) and state governments, the recovery initiative for the critically endangered white-rumped, long-billed, and slender-billed vulture species has entered a vital new phase with experimental releases across Haryana, West Bengal, Maharashtra, and Assam, BNHS director Kishor Rithe said.