In a rare inter-state wildlife chase, the state Forest Department has launched an extraordinary rescue expedition into neighbouring Rajasthan to retrieve an endangered gharial that has strayed far from its natural habitat in the Beas.It is being suspected that the gharial has travelled from the Harike wetland area in Punjab to Bikaner through the Indira Gandhi Canal. Upon being sighted in Bikaner, the Rajasthan Wildlife Department tipped off their Punjab counterparts.The Rajasthan Wildlife Department in coordination with the Punjab wildlife wing is regularly monitoring the movement of the reptile. After it was sighted on Wednesday, it is being tracked now. Punjab’s Chief Wildlife Warden Basanta Raj Kumar confirmed the sighting of the gharial. “We are in contact with our Rajasthan counterparts to rescue the reptile,” he said.Explaining the complicated rescue mission, officials said gharials are known to migrate and can enter an extensive canal network. They can be rescued once they stabilise in a given area.According to a survey conducted by the Department of Forests and Wildlife Preservation in collaboration with World Wildlife Fund-India from March to April 2025, a total of 37 gharials had been sighted across 22 distinct locations in the Beas.From December 2017 to December 2021, a total of 94 juvenile gharials were reintroduced in five batches into the Beas. They were translocated from the Gharial Breeding Centre at Deori, Morena, Madhya Pradesh.To evaluate the success of the initiative and study habitat use and distribution patterns, annual pre- and post-monsoon monitoring is conducted jointly by the department and the WWF-India.Officials said in the wake of the excess water being released from the dams, resulting in flooding of the Beas last year, the Punjab Wildlife Department has been trying its best to keep a track of the aquatic wildlife in the river.The Beas has also recorded the presence of dolphins. This is an indication of the health of the Beas ecosystem, which is also home to other rare species like the smooth-coated Indian otter.