Call of the hill myna...

Mother Earth is worth every attempt to save her

2012-01-11T19:12:00.001+05:30

I just can't stop admiring the tallest mountains standing above the oceans, each time I get a chance to fly near them. At the moment of making some of these images, I could see the rivers flowing through the fertile plains almost at sea level and at the other spectrum some peaks as high as our aeroplane's flying altitude - over 8km above mean sea level! And I have read about mountains nearly twice the height of the Everest rising from the Oceans' surface but still buried in them. Surely mother earth is worth every attempt to save it from her childrens' greed.

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As some one following Islam I need to believe that the earth was created in 7 days. I have a strong feeling Allah created the rest of the world in 6 days but took one full day to create the Kashmir Valley. The three pics below are of the flight from Jammu to Srinagar.

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Among the best domestic flights in India to enjoy the Himalayas is the Delhi to Guwahati via Bagdogra. The flight path converges with the Himalayas as it gets away from Delhi with the first landing near the Himalayan foothills at Bagdogra, giving a glimpse of the mountains around Darjeeling in northern West Bengal as well as Sikkim and even China. As the flight departs from Bagdogra one gets good views of these mountains inside Bhutan and a few of western Arunachal Pradesh's peaks as it nears Guwahati airport.

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Nepal's capital Kathmandu is an amazingly less expensive destination to fly from Delhi. Below are some pics of a flight from Delhi to Kathmandu. Some of the pics show how densely populated the Himalayan valleys are. Although humans benefit immensely from these mountains and their ecosystems, at the same time we are probably the biggest threat to them - from climate change to over exploitation of the resources like forests and their dependant wildlife.

Map on tigers around the world...

2010-11-22T15:11:00.000+05:30

A good map highlighting the issues affecting Panthera tigris (the tiger) and its sub-sepcies around the earth. Browse your cursor over a country to read the note and follow the link to get more information. (Courtesy: Facts about the tiger and tiger sub-species, WWF-International website http://wwf.panda.org/what_we_do/endangered_species/tigers/about_tigers/)

A kingdom welcomes its sultans

2010-09-19T14:50:00.001+05:30

Sultan in Hindi/ Urdu means a Prince and Pur is used to refer to a habitation/ village. Sultanpur, south-west of the NCR (National Capital Region), is the jewel of Haryana state's wildlife sanctuaries. This year's rains have broken records of the past few years resulting in nature blessing the wetland with the most precious of its bounties - water. The birds' kingdom is more than ready this year to welcome its winged princes & princesses. Above: A view of the seasonal jheel (wetland) in Sultanpur Park in August 2009

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Some images from my recent and last year's visits to the place:

Breeding waterfowl on one of the islands in September 2010.

A flock of Comb Ducks in Sep 2010.

Boards like these help common man understand the different birds inhabiting or visiting this place.

Haryana Tourism has its tourist complexes across the state named after birds. The one at Sultanpur is named after Rosy Pelican.

The restaurant. The place is clean and food is good.

A proud grazer with his herd of cattle in Aug 2009 on the Gurgaon - Basai - Sultanpur- Farukhnagar road.

Enjoying the fooder thanks to monsoons, in Aug 2009.

Available for free download 'Highlands of Central India'

2010-09-03T15:58:00.000+05:30

Dear nature lovers,

The bio-geographic region Central Indian Highlands covers parts of Madhya Pradesh, Chattisgarh and Maharashtra states. This region is home to some of India's best known forests and tiger habitats like Pench and Kanha, among others. These forests are the catchment for some of India's well-known rivers like Narmada, Chambal and Tapti. The Maikal hills here bridge the Satpura and the Vindhya ranges. It is here that the natural teak (Tectona grandis) forests from southern Peninsular India give way to natural sal (Shorea robusta) forests that are predominant in north India.

One of the earliest books to detail the region's wildlife was 'Highlands of Central India: Notes on their forests and wild tribes, natural history and sports.' It was penned by Captain J Forsyth of Bengal Staff Corps, who was the ACF (Asst Conservator of Forests) and acting CF of erstwhile Central Provinces. The book describes the region's various forests and their denizens - both human and wildlife, along with some of his hunts. Forsyth died at a young age of 33.

A copyright free version of the second edition of this book with map and illustrations, printed in 1872 is available for free download at

http://www.archive.org/details/highlandsofcentr00forsrich

Happy reading,
Ameen

The king is gone...for now

2010-08-29T15:56:00.089+05:30

In the summer of 2010, I had more than my share of the 'King' of fruits.

Engrained in childhood

For a vast majority of Indians, both urban and rural, mango is an integral part of their growing years. The fruit flowers in spring and is harvested in summer, which coincides with the summer holidays for kids in India. These holidays for many kids in India are a time to break free from the bondage of formal schooling. A time to holiday with fellows from their mohallas, go to vegetable markets with their parents, play (and fight) over sports like Cricket as well as enjoy street side eatables. Pic (above): Kids from Baiga tribe enjoying wild mangoes fallen due to winds of the first monsoon rains in Central India's Seoni District.

For the nearly 80% of these who live in non-urban and semi-urban areas, it also means exploring nearby woods, throw stones to bringdown fruits from avenue mangoe trees and for some (mis)adventurous souls, even stealing from some body else's orchard. Every year when the cold winds wane and the sun get harsher above my head forcing me look for shadows, I feel a strong carving for mangoes. I guess they are engrained in the summer part of my body's annual biological clock.

All in the family

I spent a few summers in Canada's Greater Toronto Area (GTA). Like the rest of North America, this is one of world's most eternally mangoe famine-stricken areas. All one can have here of mangoes, are a few glimpses of a couple of tasteless varieties supposedly brought in from Mexico, something hardly worth the buck. I bought a few, one summer, from Scarborough's well-known desi store 'Karachi Bazaar' located at Eglinton and Kennedy. But they were nowhere near what I had grown up eating back home in south India. Pic (above): Fruits from a farm being sold near Kingston City in Canada's Ontario province. I took this image during one of our summer outings to Presquille Provincial Park / bird sanctuary along Lake Ontario, in 2005.

My grandfather, apart from being a farmer, was also a mango merchant, leasing mango orchards in and around south India's Tumkur District in summers, hoping to make profit from the harvest. Although the family suffered heavy losses and my father's and his siblings' lives bordered on poverty, they got a fair understanding of different varities of mangoes. Our extended family got educated and left mango business (and poverty) behind for greener pastures in US and Middle East by the time I came into this world. But as a child, every summer I would still hear stories from my father of how he had relished his childhood summers with mangoes. How he would get to eat the occassional 'shaakh' / 'shaaqh' - a word in Deccani/ Dakkani dialect* for a mangoe that ripens naturally on the tree, unharmed by elements and fruit eating birds (*A coarse Urdu dialect spoken in the Old Mysore region, similar to Hyderabadi). He would remember the rare variety of mangoes he would get to eat once in a while while helping my grandfather sell the produce at different markets in times gone by. But he always rated mangoes from Uttar Pradesh (UP) state in north India as the tastiest.

Mango nation

Moving to Delhi in April last year (2009), the first thing I did after renting a place to live was to look out for wholesale vegetable markets to stock mangoes at home. I had to replenish my body that was still critically low on mangoes due to the mango drought I endured in Canada. My search took me to Okhla Mandi in south Delhi and Asia's largest vegetable market the Azadpur mandi in North Delhi. Beyond these, my official trips to Sundarbans Delta and Siliguri in West Bengal gave me my first taste of Hemsagar and Malda varieties of mangoes. Some of these were lucky to fly back with me to Delhi : )

Mangoes of UP begin to arrive in Delhi's market in early June. The earliest of these are the untasty Safedas. These are followed by Dushheris. There are the usual Dushheris that are grown in the Saharanpur - Rampur - Moradabad belt of Uttar Pradesh. The ones grown in the Mallihabad belt near Lucknow strike your taste buds like nothing else before. Together with Alphonso these are probably the tastiest mangoes on earth! In July you have the langras (Lang 'da) and the very tasty Chausa hitting the streets. By the month end these disappear. I saw Golu variety in first couple of weeks of August this year and the mango season ended there.

Mangoes this year
With my previous year's knowledge of the mango season and mango markets of Delhi, I didn't waste much time in getting my acts better this year. My mango adventures started early this year.

I had my quota, from the mangoes bought for the family by my dad, flown to Delhi with a family friend in April. The share of Malghobas, Baeganpalli and Badami (Alphonso) I received, accompanied me and made the picturesque drive up to Dhanaulti hill station near Mussorrie in the foothills of the Himalayas tasty as well. The drive back to Delhi was equally tasty as we had the first taste of season’s Dushheri along the roads besides the mango orchards surrounding Sahranpur village.

The next drive to UP and into Uttarakhand was on official purpose to Chuna Kham forest center near Ramnagar town / Corbett Tiger Reserve in mid-June. During the drive back to Delhi we first stopped by at a mango orchard south of Ramnagar Territorial Forests along the Ramnagar – Kaladhungi road. I picked up Dushheris, got the season’s first Chausas and Langras plucked from trees, got some of a desi (local variety) which were a little bigger than apricots, apart from Kalia, which I was eating for the first time ever.

We pulled off the Moradabad – New Delhi highway further up, just after Brijgad village, along the banks of River Ganga. I got to see the Saroli and Zafran varieties for the first time ever at the fruit stall of Mr. Salim Ahmed. Mr. Ahmed said he sourced the mangoes from the orchards of one Khan Sahib of the royal family of Hasanpur near Amroha town in Uttar Pradesh. Apparently Khan Sahib was found of experimenting new varieties of mangoes and the Zafran variety was his contribution this year. This particular mango was very tasty, nothing like I had ever tasted before. Mr Ahmed said he had bought two harvests this season from an orchard measuring 120 bighas for 1.2 million.

During this drive alone, I got to see seven different varieties of mangoes - four for the first time ever. This is a reflection of the diversity in India’s horticulture, something that is hardly found in other countries. With our economy booming and industrialisation as well as development at greater odds than ever against our farm land, we need to protect this diversity for our future years as well as generations.

Farm fresh mangoes being sold at an orchard along Ramnagar - Kaladhungi road in Uttarakhand state

A desi local variety mango a little bigger in size than an apricot

Mangoes being plucked for us

Mr. Saleem Ahmed with his fruit stall near Brijgad along Moradabad - New Delhi national highway

The tasty Zafran variety of mangoes

Birding (and wildlifing) with a spotting-scope

2010-07-01T15:29:00.010+05:30

There are many amateur birders who use binoculars to pursue birding. Some of you might have also seen serious birders watching birds with spotting scopes.

The amount of light reflected by a subject to the eye, through the lenses of a scope, is far greater than the regular birding binoculars of, say, 8x40 dimension. This translates to far better visibility of a bird when seen through a scope, under comparable lighting. I personally feel seeing a bird with a spotting scope is the next level of experience in birding. I would never see a bird through binoculars, if I can see the same through my scope.

With improved technology and production on a bigger scale,
a) the prices of optics like spotting scopes have gone south.
b) modern day spotting scopes are far lighter (mine weighs less than 2 kilos).
c) many recent scopes allow one to fix a pocket digital camera (or even DSLRs) to the scope's eye-piece. This converts the scope into a fixed focal length, long-range tele-lens. Although the quality of images might be nowhere near prime tele-lenses, the images are good for IDing birds, publishing them on blogs/ website or even using them for your or your kids' projects. The technique is referred to by many as 'digiscoping'.

Some of my own digiscoped images are on this page. All were taken by simply inserting my Canon A95 (5mp) camera's lens hand-held) into the scope eye-piece (fixed on a tripod).

There are many different types of binocs and scopes to suit you. Scopes start around US $200 with products from manufacturers like Celestron being among the least priced. As you go up there are others like Kowa, Bushnell and others at the lower end. I personally have been using the Celestron Ultima 80. Please see
http://www.astronomics.com/main/product.asp/catalog_name/Christophers/category_name/6KBA9F8JS8L88PS948KSF174T4/product_id/CU80

I paid a little more than Rs. 10,000 to buy this in Canada, a couple of years ago. It is light weight and easily accompanies me as my cabin baggage during my travel to the field, on work.

You might want to use the following sites as reference on pricing and greater details:

For scopes:

http://www.escience.ca/telescopes/RENDER/5/1023/1040/W1040.html
For bonocs: http://www.escience.ca/telescopes/RENDER/5/1020/1033/W1033.html

I would suggest those of you:

1) who are into serious birding.

2) who can afford to raise at least INR 10k (plus a couple of thousand for a tripod).

3) ideally have some one visiting you from US/ Canada...to go for one.

Birding is fun for many of us. Doing so with a scope takes the fun to the next level.

Disclaimer: The products and manufacturers/ companies mentioned above are for reference purpose only. I DO NOT in any way vouch for the quality or price of any product or manufacturer. Please do your own research carefully before investing your hard earned money in any product.

Experiencing Kanha's first monsoon showers

2010-06-20T08:25:00.003+05:30

The first monsoons are always special, more so if they happen in a wilderness. I experienced this year's first while travelling to Kanha National Park and Tiger Reserve, in mid-June. It so happened that we were the last to enter the park and all of the tourists we encountered were scurrying back to their resorts and leaving the park in a hurry to beat the rains. But we were there to enjoy the rains and it was a soul-stirring feeling. The dark monsoon clouds changed the shades of the skies and the earth from light to dark grey. The parched earth laughed with joy as it welcomed the rain drops. The animals looked undisturbed by the frequent lightening around. And only we were there to witness this and no one else around us for miles...

Below are some images (with captions) of this visit of mine, particularly of the first rains...

A date with rural Kathmandu

2010-06-18T20:01:00.005+05:30

I visited Kathmandu, capital of Nepal, for the first time ever in early June, to attend a WWF workshop. We stayed at Godavari resort in rural Kathmandu. There were interesting things learnt at the workshop and experiences shared by fellow WWF folks from India, Nepal and Bhutan. The bonus was the sights and scenery of Himalayas from the resort, post the early monsoon rains while we were there.

I particularly composed the following on the evening the workshop ended.

"Workshop done. Sitting in the patio overlooking a small fertile valley. Looking at the farmer women and men making using of the monsoon rains. Gently sloping Himalayan foothills on the three sides. An old Nepali man in conversation with his wife to the backdrop of slow, soothing old Nepali and Hindi songs. Alternatively working on the notebook and sipping chai. Birds singing all around and cool air caressing face. The sun slowly travelling to another part of the world. Wish she was here too...Enjoying an evening a Saturday evening at Godavari village near Kathmandu : ) "

Sharing some images...

Dhanaulti - A quaint, enchanting hill station in the Himalayan foothills

2010-06-01T17:07:00.005+05:30

The bamboo cottages at Dhanaulti, amidst dense pine forests of Mussoorie forest division, Uttarakhand state, Himalayas

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May, 2010: Delhi has been terribly hot of late, as it usually does in summer. This mid-May there were a couple of days where the temperature crossed 48 degrees centigrade. I could find no better reasons to drive my wife and her siblings who were visiting us from Bangalore, up the Himalayas.

I had many options. Among the thoughts was to take a week off from work and drive up to Khardung La pass from Kulu-Manali and then into Ladakh. But work load and the fear of snow blocking the passes into Ladakh made me change my mind and think of driving up some where more near.

I had a long time desire and invitation to visit my friend Santhosh Gubbi, an IFS officer at Forest Research Institute, Dehra Dun, beyond which lies Mussorie. When asked, my colleague Samir Sinha, an IFS officer of Uttarakhand cadre advised me to visit Dhanaulti as it was more serene than places like Mussoorie which get very crowded in summer.

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A view from the cottage of the forest covered foot hills of Himalayas

I took Samir's advice and drove up to Dhanaulti, halting at the well-maintained forest department bamboo huts for a couple of nights. Dhanaulti is a small hamlet whose economy relies heavily on tourists. The ambience of the place is very good. It is less crowded as there are few tourists, probably due to the lack of good connectivity by public transport. The pace of life is extremely relaxed with nature being the main attraction. There is a well maintained eco-park where the DFO, Mussoorie has done a good job putting up hoardings depicting various birds and setting up a bird trail, apart from wooden trail signs that carry quotes from various sources on conserving environment.

It was a full moon night and the setting was perfect for a great holiday

The temperature was just perfect during our stay, neither too cold nor too warm. On the first night there was a big hail storm. While the rain of hail stones left more than a few small dents in the bonnet as well as the top of my compact car, it also brought the temperatures down. These small 'ice cubes' lay strewn in the shade of the pine trees in front of our bamboo cottage even late into the morning.

The lightnings frequently lit the dark night skies and the accompanying hail storm created a ruckus

A view of the bamboo huts early morning

Relaxing amidst nature in the morning

The proverbs on the sign posts along the different trails are inspiring

This is a great place for birding. There is a birding trail set up by the forest department with hoardings to help new birders.

The eco-park has many saplings with tree-guards naming the planters. Here, a Mistle thrush (Turdus viscivorus) perches on one such tree guard.

A view from one of the many view points in the eco-park

I have attempted to answer some FAQs based on the emails I have received from the people who have seen my pics online.

>How was your experience of staying there? It's a government's accommodation hence we were unsure of selecting the same place for stay.

- We found the place neat and well maintained. It's worth a stay.

>Can you please guide us for selecting an accommodation? Was bamboo hut's location good as per your judgement?

- The bamboo hut's location is excellent. It is amidst a natural forest and just a couple of minutes walk from the road, which sees less traffic. We also saw a few hotels while driving up to Dhanaulti village, where other tourists were staying. They looked decent from outside but honestly I wouldn't know how they are inside.

>What about food and warm cloths provision?

- We were provided clean blankets that were enough to let us have a comfortable sleep. Food is made to order from one of the restaurants above the bamboo huts. On request, the care takers supplied the same to our room as well.

>Can you suggest anything else? What about about the activities in Dhanulti? I have read that theres an eco-park and a temple to visit...

We found this place far less crowded than some of the known hill stations like Nainital or Mussoorie. It meant us enjoying our stay without worrying much about privacy. One of the positives was the absence of touts. Occasionally, we would be invited to buy tea or take a horse ride, but they were non-pushy, humble 'pahari' folks wanting to serve you and earn their bread in the process. There are some hiking and horse riding trails. The eco-park is worth a visit and is across the road from the bamboo huts. We didn't get to see any temple.

Amaranth Yatra: The spectacular views en route

2010-05-02T01:04:00.010+05:30

The Amarnath Yatra (pilgrimage) is an important event for Hindus. The annual event, usually held in July, draws in thousands of people every year from all over India.

There are two approaches to yatra venue - the Amarnath cave. One is from the town of Pahalgam in the south, while the other is from north from Srinagar via Baltal. The yatra approach from Baltal is a few km off the Srinagar - Leh National Highway No: 1D. The route passes through some spectacular landscapes of Kashmir Valley. After the picturesque Sonamarg hill resort, we drove straight on the National Highway. Splitting from the yatra route at Baltal, we ascended the Zojilla pass and drove to Drass town and ahead to Kargil town. The sprawling yatra premises is visible very well as one climbs the mountains towards the Zojilla Pass.

Meadows in a valley beyond Sonamarg hill resort.

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The peaks get taller as one moves away from Sonamarg.

One of the many glaciers that we came across on the drive.

There are no human habitations beyond Sonamarg, as the road to this hill resort is cut off from the state's capital Srinagar, every winter, due to snow.

The view as one deviates from the yatra route at Baltal and drives up to Zojilla Pass towards Kargil.

The welcoming mountains and skies.

In the heart of the valley is the setup for the yatra piligrims.

A closer look at the huge congegration.

The tents fade from view as one ascends the Himalaya mountains.

Green cover one side and denuded part on another side of the same mountain

A bird's eye view of the piligrim tents and the route that leads to the Amarnath cave.

One last view of the yatra gathering before we disappear into the mountain passes.

The narrow mountain path leading to Zojilla pass.

The road is barely wide for two vehicles at most places.

To continue along this journey, please click here
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Drive through the 'golden meadow'

2010-04-21T13:44:00.004+05:30

Of the many famous 'marg's (meadows) of Kashmir valley, Sonamarg (or Sonmarg) is among the best known. 'Sona' refers to gold. Since we were here in July much of the grass was still green and was yet to turn golden. But the place still provided a 'being in heaven' feeling.

You can feel the tall mountains getting closer and surrounding you as you near Sonmarg.

Fresh crystal clear streams gush out through the mountain passages.

The Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) Government tourism boards remind me of the neat, clear and boldly printed boards for tourists, in the western countries.

The air was clean and pure. The place neat and clean. No rubbish or garbage strewn. The feel was truly heavenly.

A view from the hotel opposite the Thajiwas glacier.

The inviting meadows...straight out of a school book illustration of a fairyland.

The meadows on the way to the glacier are popular with tourists who want to ride horses.

The locals are very helpful and mindful of tourists.

Glimpses of Kashmir valley's beauty

2010-04-18T00:05:00.007+05:30

Life rarely gets more beautiful than this...

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One of the biggest advantages of visiting a tourist destination high up the mountains is the clean air and the minimal presence of dust. The tall mountains with streams flowing down in the valleys between them add to the beauty. Throw in near clean skies in the back drop, paste the slopes green with hundreds of thousands of trees, crown the mountain peaks with pure white snow, dot the entire landscape with pretty little villages and prettier people...you end up having the vale of Kashmir.

The beauty of Kashmir valley elevates photography to another level. I had my share of indulgence when I flew into Srinagar and drove to Sonmarg hill station on the way to Kargil town via Zo Jilla pass. This was in June last year (2009) when I was there to witness WWF-India's Snow Leopard work. Fortunately I took time off on the weekend to process some of the images. Below are the ones of my drive from Srinagar to Sonmarg, which is a part of the Srinagar - Leh national highway. Some of these images were taken from the moving four wheeler including the fornt wind-shield.

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A community amidst paddy fields

One of the many streams found along the drive

The human population decreases mid-way, from Srinagar to Sonmarg

A road being repaired besides a stream

Picturesque houses dot the hill slopes

Crossing pine forests and approaching glaciers

A 'picture perfect' village

There's snow even in peak summer

It seems even the rivers are smiling...

A glacier fed stream and a village below it

The mountain passes welcome as if with open arms as one nears Sonmarg

The gushing waters besides the highway

One of the many mountain stream islands

Above: Only pictures? No money?

(Below): The Border Roads Organisation takes great pains to maintain the roads. And they do a decent job in ensuring the tourists have good roads to drive on.

From Jog falls to the 'green seas' of south-east Asia

2010-04-02T17:17:00.007+05:30

I fell in love with rain-forests the first time I saw them on the drive to Jog Falls in Western Ghats. This was in early 1983, with my immediate family. These continue to awe me. The most recent being in south-east Asia.

First impression, always the best

It was spring (early-April) of 1983. I guess I was in Grade 3 or 3rd Standard as we call it in Karnataka. I was visiting North Karnataka in a hired Ambi (Hindustan's Ambassador brand car) with my parents, my extremely naughty elder bro and kid sis. I had an aunt living with her Doc hubby and kids in Hubli, Dharwar District. We drove to Hubli, from hometown Tumkur, on the Bangalore - Mumbai National Highway 4. Those were the days when we crossed more trees than trucks through the drive. I still remember the neatly lined, fruit-bearing avenue trees. There were Jamun trees till near Kalambella village before the erstwhile Mughal provincial headquarters of Sira Town. From there on tamarind trees bordered the highway all along till Hubli. We ate our packed breakfast and lunch below these tamarind trees. There were many flower bearing trees - I remember Gulmohar and Jacaranda, inter-spread amidst the above two species. Oh yes, the landscape was sprinkled with banyan trees too. But they were few, mainly in the water fed troughs in the gentle valleys below the many 'keres' or 'talaabs' - man-made wetlands as they are known in the regional language Kannada and Deccani Urdu dialect respectively. The Bangalore - Hubli railway line cut through the highway at many points and made us wait at the manned-level crossings. But the trees were always there to give us the shade.

From Hubli, my father decided to drive us back to Tumkur through the beautiful jungles of Dharwad, Uttara Kannada and Shimoga...
We left Hubli early in the morning and I got my first birding lessons when Abba (father) showed us the occasional 'Junglee murgee'(in Deccani Urdu) or Grey Jungle Fowl feeding on the forest edges besides the road and scurrying back below the canopy on being approached. Jog Falls is not as pretty a sight in the summer as it is during the monsoons. But the nearly 1,000 feet steep drop left a lasting impression on my mind. Back towards Tumkur, from Sagar town, it was then a little bigger than a village, we drove on the cemented road. I had heard that this road was laid around independence when these districts were a part of the old Mysore state.

Getting hooked big time

I visited Jog Falls again with family, in early August of 1989, when the monsoons had converted the region into magical green. But as compared to 1983, I found more humans around, so was the agriculture - at the cost of forests.

Beyond Jog, I got my taste of the less disturbed rain-forests of Dakshina Kannada and Hassan district when I crossed the Ghats on my trips to Dakshina Kannada district in the south-west monsoon (July) of 1994 ('less' meaning no dams). In the same year, entering a professional course meant a less spying middle-class father, who was half done with his share of raising a male kid in this traditional part of South Asia (the other half is when the boy gets a good job to settle down in life, marry etc). It meant taking more freedom to sneak back into these green seas, some thing that was to become an addiction soon. The giant trees inside overshadowed and humbled me every time I stood before them. There were miles and miles of these in front of my eyes, more disappearing than appearing in the monsoon clouds. I began roaming the length and breadth of the ghats extending far south to Shendurney wildlife sanctuary in Kerala, through the Bisle-Pushpagiri belt, Talakaveri-Sampaji stretch, Mukurti - Silent valley, Anamalai and Idukki-Periyar. I did so - paying homage to these at Makutta Reserve Forest (above picture) between Brahmagiri and Talakaveri sanctuaries, even a couple of weeks before immigrating to Canada in Oct 2002.

From south Asia to south-east Asia

The rain-forests of south-east Asia have fascinated me for long. I had read about them in books and seen pictures of them. Cable television images of the Borneo rain-forests, particularly the devastating forest fires that ravaged the region in 1998-99, increased my curiosity. I wondered how extensive these forests might be, as fires in them - something that we see so often in India's forests every summer, sent entire countries in prayers for rains.

I got a chance to see a glimpse of these when I visited Malaysia's capital Kuala Lumpur (KL) to attend a meeting with my communication colleagues in WWF's tiger network, in Nov 2009. I stayed at Eastin Hotel in Petaling Jaya a few km from down town KL. KL is a beautiful city. It is clean and green, just like my previous home city Toronto in Canada. The view from the hotel was very interesting and showed the city's green cover.

My return flight was late in the evening on Sunday, 14 Nov. Ms.Shuba fromWWF-Malaysia was kind enough to drive me to FRIM (Forest Research Institute of Malaysia). Located about 15 km from the city centre of Kepong, FRIM is a 600 hectare forested campus that has numerous trails for nature walks and birding. It was late in the morning as we entered the campus. We were very keen on one thing - walking on the the rain-forest canopy walkway, among the prime attractions here. The walkway was a vigorous 20 minute ascent through a nature trail amidst the rainforest. It was not the best of times for birding, but I followed a similar sounding sound to track a Rackettailed Drongo on one of the branches along the path. The walk reminded me of the trek from Beedhalli hamlet (at the eastern entrance of Pushpagiri Wildlife Sanctuary) to Kumaradhara/ Pushpagiri peaks. The ever green trees were similarly tall and their girth as well as shape was similar too.

At the entrance of the walkway, there were many school kids ahead of us and we had to wait for our turn. Suspended 30 meters above the ground, on a hill slope, the walkway offered an excellent feel of the rain-forest canopy in which it is located. This, apart from panoramic views of the rain-forests around, as well as the distant tree covered neighbourhoods of KL.

Having a similar one in India, particularly in the Western Ghats, will attract many nature lovers to see the secrets of these 'green seas'. This will also inspire an entire generation to protect our last remaining rainforests.

Of unforgettable and the forgotten wonders

2010-03-20T23:47:00.006+05:30

India is a land of immense creativity. From the pre-Islamic India temples of Khajuraho (Central India) to the last of Mughal era structures of Safdarjung tomb (Delhi), through ages, even a small period of peace in a kingdom/ region resulted in architectural master pieces. Even the British invested considerable resources in building the Viceroy's House - the present day Rashtrapati Bhavan (President of India's house).

Above: The Hoysala period temple at Mosale village, near Hassan City, west of Hassan - Mysore state highway in Karnataka.

But there are so many architectural and geological wonders in India that...
it is simply impossible for the Governments (state and central/ federal) alone to maintain these. While the Governments use their meagre resources to take care of the famous ones, the less fortunate ones remain hidden, at the mercy of time and often, vandals.

Click on image above to read details on it.

While in Canada , we went on a trip to study 'Bleasdell' boulder. For some one who doesn't have knowledge of rocks or geology, this might seem another rock. But the locals have put enormous efforts to protect this rock and highlight its importance - the largest Glacial erratic of Ontario and among the largest in North America. Also it is highlighted as among the oldest rocks in Canada , with an age of 2.3 billion years. But guess what? In India the rocks belonging to Archean gneisses (gneiss is pronounced 'nice') are equally old.

These man-made and natural structures - temples, forts, mosques, geological relics, belong to the nation, to us. It is imperative of the successful people of our society - the businesses, the celebrities to come forward and contribute to saving these. It is important that locals living near these structures take care of them as the legacy left behind for them, by the ones who lived before them.

My fascination for Central India's forests

2009-11-18T14:19:00.007+05:30

As a high school student, in late 80s, I had a keen interest in geography, particularly the different states of India. One state that marvelled me, because of its size and the amount of forests it had, was Madhya Pradesh (MP). During one of those years, I accessed a full spread map of Madhya Pradesh tourism. I don't remember if it was of my father or I got it as a supplement in one of the national dialies. But, I remember going through it keenly and reading its notes on the state's different parks and sanctuaries.

A view of Central Indian forests from train, on the Delhi - Bengaluru journey

In 1993-94, ...
I bought a TTK book-map on India's wildlife, one of the best ever produced, to date. The book map showed the location of various PAs (protected areas) in MP. The map increased my curiosity of the state further, particularly the cluster of PAs at the junction of south-eastern MP (now Chattisgarh), northern Andhra Pradesh and eastern Maharashtra. The eastern part of MP had some parks that were greater than 1000 Sq. KM (Indravati & Sanjay NPs). Despite the best of my efforts, for the next few years I could not travel to that beautiful part of India, due to lack of financial resources as a student.

In 1996, I made my first trip north of Hubli and Bellary of Karnataka. I travelled to Delhi to attend a one-day seminar on 25 January, on wildlife, organised by Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF), Government of India. I could see the rich and beautiful forests of MP for the first time in my life, on the return train journey by the Bangalore-bound Karnataka express. I enjoyed these forests again, on my train journeys to Delhi in the next few years, in different seasons.

In April 2009, to report to my new job in WWF-India at Delhi, I drove from Bengaluru to Hyderabad and beyond to Nagpur. From Nagpur, I drove diagonally north-east to Bhopal. The journey was through the beautiful forests of the newly constituted Satpura Tiger Reserve. Beyond this, I drove through Narasinghad Sanctuary and up to Gwalior through Guna. But the lack of time meant I had to rush through these forests without breaking my journey (Read more here).

I made my first stop to actually see these forests when I visited Kanha National Park and Tiger Reserve to attend WWF-India's landscape coordinators meet in Oct 2009 (Read more here).

Though this completed me seeing much of Madhya Pradesh's forests, I still had not touched the present day Chattisgarh state. I did this, when I flew into Raipur with my colleagues from WWF-Netherlands on 7 Nov 2009. We drove, for three days, through Achanakmar Tiger Reserve (Read more here) and the corridors that connect Kanha Tiger Reserve to it. After that I drove from Kanha's Mukki gate to Kisli gate and then Khatia gate. From there I travelled south through Pench National Park (Madhya Pradesh) and then further south through Pench National Park (Maharashtra), on the drive from Seoni town to Nagpur City.

From the Delhi train-journey in Jan 1996 to the drive through Central India in Apr 2009 to this latest drive from Raipur to Achanakmar to Kanha and then to Nagpur, through the two Pench parks, is a long way for me. It completed my dream of seeing the beautiful forests of MP (well...almost, except for the Bastar and Bijapur districts of Chattisgarh and Panna park in north-east MP).

I thank God...I guess I am more learned now : )

Beyond the tiger show - the hidden treasures of central Chattisgarh

2009-11-18T13:48:00.007+05:30

A quiet road running through Achanakmar Tiger Reserve in Central India's Chattisgarh state

The state of Chattisgarh was carved out of Madhya Pradesh a few years ago. The state is rich in forests and minerals. Though the state has been in news of late due to naxalism - organised political violence, the central and northern parts of the state still make for a safe destination for tourists. Inherting the tourist infrastructure of the Madhya Pradesh Government, Chattisgarh still has many pretty and picturesque rest houses amidst natural scenery.

The famous Kanha Tiger Reserve, in Madhya Pradesh, is not to be seen in isolation. For, it is connected with many other tiger reserves through forested corridors. These corridors are critical for the tigers of the whole of Central India's Satpura Maikal landscape (SML) as they allow the big cats to freely move and disperse to the more safe and prey-loaded parks. Among these tiger reserves is Achanakmar. The forests of Achanakmar and its corridors are pristine and mostly untouched by development...

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They accommodate the dispersing tigers of Kanha tiger reserve. WWF-India is doing some excellent work led by Shivaji Chavan, coordinator of WWF-India's Central Indian Satpuda - Maikal landscape (CISML).

We flew into Raipur, the capital of Chattisgarh state on early morning of 7 Nov and drove through Bilaspur to the southern part of Achanakmar Tiger Reserve. We halted at Amarkantak village, surrounded by dense forests on all side.

Below are some pictures from the drive from Raipur to Amarkantak through Achanakmar Tiger Reserve.

A road block on the drive from Raipur city north to Bilaspur town. Chattisgarh is a new state and the infrastructure is being developed. The state's capital city Raipur doesn't reflect the hall marks of neighbouring state capitals like Bhopal. But with its rich minerals, it might well turn out to be a city with good infrastructure in the next couple of decades, provided there is political will.

A hoarding inside Achanakmar Tiger Reserve. In the background is a human settlement. There are many villages inside the tiger reserve that are being relocated. Although none in the corridor are being done so.

A hoarding inside the tiger reserve

Farmland and a settlement inside the tiger reserve. There are many villages inside the tiger reserve that are being relocated. Although none in the corridor are being done so.

A langur in the forest

Fewer tourists means less feeding hands for these langurs. Hence, they are well behaved than their cousins in the better known parks across India.

When the jackals came calling in Kipling's Mowghli-land

2009-10-29T16:59:00.013+05:30

Souvenirs at a shop near a entrance gate of Kanha Tiger Reserve

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Rudyard Kipling is said to have written 'The Jungle Book' based on his stay in India and his imagination of the Central Indian forests. His story 'Hunting-Song of the Seeonee Pack' is based on the jungles around Seoni town, that include Pench Tiger Reserve.

I visited the well-known Kanha Tiger Reserve in Central India from the 19 to 24 of this month to attend a WWF-India meeting and also to see our work there. Flying in to Jabalpur from Delhi on Monday, we drove through the beautiful forests of Satpura - Maikal landscape. The forests are of teak as one drives from Jabalpur on the highway to Raipur City (Chattisgarh), through Jabalpur and Mandla territorial divisions. The teak slowly gives way to sal as one crosses the Narmada River at Mandla Town. About 40 km south-east of Mandla is Kanha Tiger Reserve...

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During the week we managed to get into
the park a couple of times. Tourism here is very visible unlike many of the parks down south like Dandeli or Mudumalai. There are hordes of Maruti Gypsy vehicles lined up at the entrance to the park, as early as 5 AM, waiting for their chance to enter the forest. All seems organised and well-oiled until you meet this guy driving a Gypsy towards you and says where they saw a tiger a few minutes ago. Your driver races down the dirt track and as you near the site where the tiger was sighted, you see tens of Gypsies lined up along the road to catch a glimpse of the King. Hyper-excited kids, childish adults, awe-struck videshis...a wide spectrum of the audience awaits you, much of which is noisy.

As tourism is important to the economies of many small villages and towns around Kanha and since Kanha is one of 'The' places to see a wild tiger, the forest department is under tremendous pressure to cater to the needs of different sectors. Despite these factors, the forest department and the Government of Madhya Pradhes have done an excellent job in protecting Kanha and its wildlife. I guess some one up the chain needs to be firm and restrict the number of gypsies approaching a tiger. Till then it's literally a rat race, even in Kipling's Jungle Book country.

We drove back the same way to Mandla from Mocha village near Kanha park on Friday evening. On early Saturday morning we started the drive back to Jabalpur. The landscape was stunning with the early morning sun giving a golden hue to the yellow paddy fields and the forests behind them. The sun rays pierced through the early winter fog and the many different rivers and streams besides the highway glistened. There were few vehicles on the road and we saw a jackal near Ghughra water fall, in the forests of the Mandla Territorial Divison.

The Jabalpur Airport looked like a military aircraft runway converted to a civilian airport. Like many of the cities in Central India, Jabalpur is surrounded by forests. The airport is located about 15 km from the city centre and is situated amidst forest. Naseeb, my driver explained that one could see "all wildlife except tiger" in these forests. I didn't doubt him.

We boarded the small 40-seater aircraft and as it was speeding on the runway, the captain abandoned the take off. There was a surprise in store as he announced that he 'rejected' the first take-off as he saw 'jackals on the runway'. It was an exciting begining of the end to this journey of mine to Central India.

An Azerbaijani proverb says, 'the forest can't be without its jackals'. Surely there used to be a forest on where the runway stood today, not long ago. I guess the jackals were there to say that to us : )

Near roof of the world: Panzi La

2009-09-08T15:45:00.014+05:30

'Penzi La' or 'Pensi La', at 14,000 feet, is the highest point along the Kargil - Padum road in India's Jammu and Kashmir state. The word 'La' in Ladakhi language means pass. The pass overlooks the Drang-drung glacier.

The scenic drive from Rangdum to Penzi La takes about an hour.

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The route ascends up and one runs into many glaciers.

Buddhist prayer flags form the foreground to a panoramic vista of the landscape around Penzi La.

Cattle grazing amidst glaciers and snow-capped peaks around Penzi La.

Looking back at the road from Rangdum from Penzi La, surrounded by towering glaciers and barren mountain bases.

View of the Drang-drung glacier through the vehicle's wind shield.

Approaching the Drang-drung glacier.

Drang-drung is the most formidable of all the glaciers along the Kargil - Padum road journey. The melting ice feeds the Indus river that runs into Pakistan.

Rangdum, its landscape and wildlife

2009-09-08T15:16:00.012+05:30

Rangdum is a small hamlet inhabited by a handful of Ladhaki families. The place lies along the Kargil - Padum road and is a favourite halting place for many who travel along the road. Located, as it is, near glaciers the temperatures are freezing at night even in summer. Access to the place by road is blocked in winter due to the snow.

A rock formation near Rangdum. The Himalayas are considered to be relatively young mountains. According to plate tectonics theory, they were formed by the clash of the Indo-Australian plate with the Eurasian plate.

Early morning view of the glaciers and peaks surrounding the Rangdum tourist bungalow

Rangdum offers sweeping views of the tall valleys and peaks.

The area around Rangdum thrives with wildlife. The area is rich in birdlife like this Horned Lark.

Among the many birds that breed in the meadows around Rangdum are the Yellowheaded wagtail.

The Longtailed Marmots (top most image of this post) are the most visible wildlife in the region. They bask in the sun early morning and late-evening and hide in burrows when approached. Hundreds of them adorn the landscape here.

The drive to glacier country

2009-09-08T14:48:00.010+05:30

Green pastures besides the road to Parkachik village from Tangole village. Beyond Parkachik village, the road ascends steeply into glacier country.

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Grazing in a sub-alpine meadow near Parkachik village. This is also the site of sub-alpine camping by Dept of Tourism, Jammu and Kashmir Government.

Rangri glacier originates below Nun peak and lies just besides the road. It melts into River Suru.

The steep, rugged road beyond Rangri glacier towards Rangdum.

Melting glaciers feed a stream of River Suru beyond Rangri glacier.

Beyond Shafat Glacier the valley gets wider and one can see sweeping views of the mountains.

A view of Shafat glacier.

Grazing horses besides the road on the drive up to Rangdum.

Along the way, the road passes through many beautiful sub-alpine meadows.

The road is narrow at many places and cuts through boulders.

Wide valley and tall cliffs along the road to Rangdum.

A signpost indicating the distance to Rangdum.

The sun sets over the tourist bungalow and huts at Rangdum

Beyond Paradise: Villages in Kargil Dist's upper Suru Valley

2009-08-18T14:02:00.013+05:30

A handful of small villages and hamlets are located in the upper part of the Suru River valley. The Nun-Kun peaks over look much of Upper Suru valley and together with the many glaciers form a spectacular backdrop to these habitations - Tai Suru, Panikhar, Tangole and Parkachik among others.

Below are some images of the drive from Purtikchay to Tangole - the village that provides climbers access to Nun - Kun.

A gushing stream fed by snow-capped peaks (above).

The valley suddenly opens vast vistas at Purtikchay village (above).

From Purtichay the first clear view of the Nun-Kun peaks (above).

Nun-Kun peaks dominate the landscape in the Upper Suru valley (above).

A Government primary school amidst the Himalayas (above).

The landscape is simply spectacular and some of the views hit your sense very hard. These views are too hard to forget and hang-over of the trip lingers on in a visitor's mind for years. A barley field with the backdrop of Parkachik glacier seen in the above and below picture.

A glacier fed stream beyond Panikhar village, before it joins the Suru River (above).

Plantations besides road with the back drop of glaciers (above).

Villagers farming below glaciers along Panikhar - Tangole stretch of the road (above).

Panikhar village as seen from the Panikhar - Tangole road (above).

Upper Suru valley & Panikhar village as seen from the Panikhar - Tangole road (above).

The Nun-Kun massive as seen from the Panikhar - Tangole road (above).

Upper Suru valley & Panikhar village as seen from the Panikhar - Tangole road (above).

A wooden bridge over Suru River at Tangole village (above).

A view of glaciers feeding farmland around Tangole village (above).

A panoramic view of Upper Suru valley & villages of Panikhar and Tai Suru, as seen from the Tangole - Tai Suru road (above).

Looking back at Parkachik Glacier along the Tangole - Tai Suru road (above).

Another panoramic view of Upper Suru valley & villages of Panikhar and Tai Suru, as seen from the Tangole - Tai Suru road (above). Beyond this is the Parkachik village and the views are of glaciers as one ascends to Rangdum beyond Parkachik.

The road south from Kargil town

2009-08-13T16:01:00.013+05:30

There are two roads that lead away from Kargil as one enters this sleepy town from Srinagar via Drass. The one south-east leads to Leh and is a very popular one, with many people these days driving or riding from Leh to Srinagar or vice versa. There is another road that goes south and then turns east and south again. That road leads to Padum, an important town in Ladakh region.

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For most part of the drive south, the road is along the banks of Kargil River. The River Suru is a tributary of River Indus and dominates much of Kargil District's landscape. The road is not as winding as roads generally are in the mountains untill it turns east into the Upper parts of the Suru Valley. The soil is loose and it might have helped the authorities in building the roads easily. All along the river bank are a string of small hamlets, that extend till it gets very cold up in the mountains. The lower valleys are cultivated while the peaks are permanently capped with snow.

Below are images of the drive from Kargil village till Khar Pokhar hamlet, which lies a little before the Kunore basin/ flood-plains in the above google map.

Drive from Zojilla Pass to Kargil Town

2009-08-10T18:29:00.011+05:30

I visited Kashmir Valley and Kargil district, Ladakh region, in Jammu and Kashmir state from July 6 - 11.

The landscape of Ladakh is totally different from that of Kashmir Valley. The drive below is through some spectacular landscape. The landscape is dotted with 'Bakarwals', the nomadic grazers of Kashmir, as well as picturesque villages with the backdrop of glaciers and snow capped peaks. Along the way one can also see Tiger Hill, which was scene of fierce war between two subcontinent neighbours in 1999.

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The state of Jammu and Kashmir is vast and diverse. Even a week was not enough for me to capture the beauty of even its tiny part.

Below are pictures taken during the drive from Zojilla Pass (where the Kashmir Valley ends) to Kargil town. If you observe, I have captured the town of Kargil both under sunlight and moonlight. Hope you enjoy the images as much as I did taking them.

In conservation,

Ameen

Friends of Ranthambore

2009-07-17T11:30:00.015+05:30

Residents of Dungri Village, Dist Sawai Madhopur, Rajasthan.

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WWF-India has been working for quite a few years now with people around Ranthambore Tiger Reserve. It has been helping wean people of marginal communities from depending on forest resources. There have been many positive results with many villagers willing to walk with WWF-India to conserve Ranthambore's forests.

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A large number of people enter Ranthambore National park every day, mainly for religious purposes.

Outside the park a large no: of people are dependant on it mainly for fuel wood. Seen here is a view in Dungri village, Khandar Tehsil, Sawai Madhopur District.

Camel carts on a road adjoining the park boundaries.

A women's self help group in Dungri village, Khandar Tehsil, Sawai Madhopur District. The group makes paper bags from used newspaper and sells it to newarby market. This way they save some money to use for domestic purpose. Earlier they used to cut fuelwood from forest and sell it to make money. Also, they are planning to buy subsidised LPG cooking stoves and cylinders with the money they make from the paper bags. Currently they use fuelwood for their fuel needs.

A beaming Guddi Yogi, a leading contributor to this self-help group proudly shows off her work.

Noori has been among the ones to encourage her fellow villagers to start the alternative livelihood.

Lima Rosalind, has been heading the livelihood project of WWF-India in Sawai Madhopur District for a long time now. Here she is with Guddi Yogi, a self-help group member of Dungri Village.

A family that wants to shift to horticulture from agriculture to prevent crop depradation. WWF-India will be helping these villagers to fence their farm land till the trees are mature and can withstand crop raids by wild herbivores.

WWF-India staff inspecting a farmland whose owners are being helped.

The WWF-India team visiting the field. From left: Diwakar Sharma, Ameen Ahmed, Sukeerti, Pradeep Singh. In the back ground are the forests of Sawai Mansingh Wildlife Sanctuary.

With temperatures around 45 degree centigrade, an effective way to prevent sun stroke is to cover one self from head to toe and leave little for sun to directly sap the heat.

The 'Khush Haar' women's self help group at Falodi village in Sawai Madhopur District is doing excellent work again. These women were also earlier dependant on the forests of Ranthambore Tiger Reserve adjoining their village. Now they make cloth bags, small mats, table clothes, cushion covers and ropes which are marketed to tourists visiting Sawai Madhopur Town. Seen above is Begum, a leading member of the group.

Begum at work

Begum, proudly displaying fruits of her hard work.

Another product by the self-help group of Falodi village.

Of Ranthambore's Monitor Lizards and Crocodiles

2009-07-05T17:43:00.007+05:30

Apart from tigers and birds, there are many things that can be seen with ease in summer in Ranthambore National Park. Like, Crocodiles and Monitor Lizards. Below are some images of the same.

Some birds of Ranthambore

2009-07-05T15:21:00.004+05:30

Although Ranthambore National Park is known world over for its wild tigers, the park is also a haven for birds. Many of the birds here can be seen and photographed from close distances. This is particularly true in summers around water holes.

Rolling for love...or death?

2009-07-03T12:16:00.009+05:30

Black Drongos (Dicrurus macrocercus) are known for their pugnacity. I have seen them scare away all and sundry who approach their nests, once even a Brahminy Kite. But I never knew they were actually serious about fighting till I bumped into this pair last week, right in the middle of a game road in Ranthambore National Park.

We observed them from our rented Gypsy for nearly 6 minutes. All along, these two birds had locked their beaks, were rolling over and over and screaming at the top of their voice.

Many safari vehicles had to take a detour off the game road as these determined birds refused to budge.

I though this was a very intense battle, the likes of which I have rarely witnessed in birds of the same species.

We had to leave the place as I had non-birders in my vehicle. But at that point I some how felt that one of them might have been been fatally wounded by the other. This was until I forwarded the above picture series to different emailing groups.

Is this war...or love?

Well-known birder Shyamal.L, who is the person behind the wonderful software Birdspot forwarded me the following note from the Journal of Bombay Natural History Society (JBNHS). Shukkur,EAA & Joseph,KJ (1978). "Breeding biology of the Black Drongo". J. Bombay Nat. Hist. Soc. 75 (4): 1212-1226.

"... signs of courtship. Such pairs indulge in duetting and vigorous pursuit flights. ...... A nesting pair indulges in vigorous courtship activities. Such birds chase each other in flight and bring their bills and wings into contact as though in sham fight. In the course of this their wings get interlocked and the pair may fall to the ground."

This is more weirder than the acts of them fighting intense duels for someone from the opposite sex. There is no way I can tell if the birds involved in the action I captured were of the different sex. If they were, then boy, these are not only fighters but some real 'bloody' love making birds as well!

My tryst with the Tiger

2009-06-27T10:38:00.015+05:30

Photo Credits: Ameen Ahmed / Diwakar Sharma / WWF-India

I sighted my first tiger one summer afternoon in south-interior India's Bandipur Tiger Reserve, I guess in 1981 - 82. This was from an elephant back during a trip with my immediate family. I was 6 or 7 then and the tigress was with its cubs at a waterhole.

Ever since, I have occasionally seen tigers in the wild. But I never got close with a camera, like the one below. On 25 June this year, I made my decent use of this oppurtunity, 27 - 28 years later at Ranthambore National Park and Tiger Reserve in North India's state of Rajasthan. I was there with my colleague of WWF-India Dr.Diwakar Sharma.

We were able to sight and photograph 'T17', a friendly tigress that roams just behind the entrance gate to the safari area in Ranthambore National Park. She is said to be the daughter of 'Machili', a widely known and photographed tigresses in this park.

We were lucky to observe her behaviour for more than half an hour during a game/ safari ride into the forest.

Tigers are usually shy animals and normally hunt in night (nocturnal behaviour). But in many parks of India they are not that shy and venture out boldly even during the day. Ranthambore is among the parks where tiger can be seen in broad daylight.

When we first saw her, she was sleeping on a rock behind the bushes besides the game ride in Zone 2.

She slowly woke up and scanned the surroundings.

Then she moved towards us. A tiger looking into your eyes has to be seen to be believed.

Tigers are found of water. Summers in this part of the world are harsh. The temperature shoots up to 47 deg celsius many times in June. To add to this are the stones that absorb and radiate the heat. Under this situation, it is invariable for the tiger to visit the water.

She cooled off in the water taking her own sweet time.

Though we got many closeup images of this beauty, I feel the radio-collar adds an element of artificiality to this animal.

'T17', new queen of a territory in Ranthambore National Park, looks over her domain.

She decided to walk off after a few minutes.

'T17' is among the most camera friendly tigers of Ranthambore National Park. Here she is, posing for the tourists.

One of the interesting beahaviour of tiger that can be photographed is it marking its territory. It sprays its urine all along the path it walks. Any other tiger that enters this territory finds out that there is already another tiger in this area.

The tiger surveys its territory frequently to see if there are any intruders, other tigers, in it.

Here it is, spraying again on a stone along the forest path. It is observed that female tigers have smaller territories than male tigers. Also the female territories overlap with male territories. Male tigers can mate with more than one female which occur in its territory.

Ranthambore Park is among the best places in the world to sight tigers. It did not disappoint us during this visit.

Teesta River - Poetry in motion and still

2009-06-10T14:37:00.026+05:30

This was my first visit to the North-East and I couldn't resist asking my driver to stop the car at dozens of places along the drive from Bagdogra airfield (West Bengal) to Gangtok (Sikkim). The drive is dominated by Teesta, which seems omnipresent through much of the journey. This was summer and the beautiful river was lazily meandering through the tall and handsome canyons in these Himalayan foothills. The river and valley, I thought, must have been made for each other. I have rarely seen things in my life so nicely supplementing, complimenting and blending with each other...the Teesta River and its valley.

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Below are the images of the landscape as one drives up from Siliguri.

Hope for Sunderbans' villagers

2009-05-25T16:59:00.000+05:30

Shakeela Bibi's husband was killed by a crocodile in the brackish waters of Sunderbans Tiger Reserve, in India's West Bengal.

The high density of humans adjacent to the forests here means the eternal presence of conflict. After her husband's death, Bibi faced the threat of a tiger straying out of the forest, regularly, into her village. In response, WWF-India set up a solar powered light in front of her home, in February-March this year. The light's brightness has reportedly been discouraging tigers from venturing out into this area.

Among other things, I saw hope in this lady's eyes. Hope, that the tiger will never return to her home. Hope, due to WWF's intervention

Work ‘For a living Planet’

2009-05-25T11:57:00.006+05:30

WWF’s outreach progamme in early 80s

My first brush with World Wildlife Fund (as WWF was earlier expanded) was when I was around eight years old. In early 1980s, like much of

India

, toothpaste variety at my home was restricted to either Colgate or Binaca - now Cibaca (remember Binaca / Cibaca Geet Mala hosted by Ameen Sayani?). WWF-India had then been associated with Binaca, as part of its campaign to save

India

’s tigers. In 1983-84, I guess, Binaca launched a tiger poster campaign. Each toothpaste pack carried a tear away coupon that one could fill and send to an address in

India

. In return, we received a beautiful Tiger poster. I did this twice and received posters in both the instances. As a kid I was excited not only about some one in a far way city responding to my letter but also sending me a poster of Tiger – something that I deeply appreciated.

WWF’s role in shaping Karnataka’s conservation scene - late 80s to early 90s

In mid/late eighties, the environment movement and spirit of outdoors was catching up with youth in a big way in Karnataka. Though seventies saw the implementation of Wildlife Protection Act and creation of new sanctuaries - many of them in Karnataka, the eighties saw some of Peninsular India’s best rainforests being drowned for ever. This was chiefly for dams in Western Ghats. Forests were also being lost for mining, roads, regularization of encroachments etc. There seemed too much of ‘development’ around, hence an urgency among the youth to group themselves. While some did so to trek in the less explored jungles, wary of them being lost for ever, some wanted to document wildlife. Then there were others who wanted a direction in dealing with the many conservation issues. This gave rise to many organized events being held, at regular intervals, like the annual mid-winter Asian Waterfowl Census and Western Ghats treks. Around the same time, WWF-India launched its Nature Club of India (NCI) movement. The brand name of WWF and their resources in providing much needed education materials like handbooks and field guides gave the much needed direction for budding naturalists in the state. For many of us from small towns like Tumkur, Mysore, Chikmagalur etc, the timing could not have been better. Nature camps were held in rich wildlife habitats like Bhadra Wildlife Sanctuary. We could share with each other and learn, in an organized way, about wildlife and natural history. Among the nature clubs formed then were Wildlife Aware Nature Club (WANC), Tumkur, Merlin Nature Club, Bengaluru and Mysore Amateur Naturalists (MAN). Together they produced some amazing nature conservationists and field naturalists, who have made an impact not only in

India

but abroad as well.

Silent heroes of

India

’s conservation front

Over the years, some conservationists have felt that WWF-India should be doing more for nature conservation in

India

. I have been in WWF-India for nearly a month now. I have had a chance to see, first hand, some of its work in the field. I testify that WWF-India is continuing with its outstanding work to conserve

India

’s wildlife. The many success stories I have come across are a living proof. There is a revolving fund set up for micro-credit for villagers surrounding Pilibhit Territorial as well as Dudhwa Wildlife Divisions. This has helped many to set up and run their own businesses. It has weaned away their direct dependence on forest resources and helped them lead a dignified life. Solar lamps have been installed in some villages affected by tiger attacks around Sunderbans Tiger Reserve. This has successfully kept tigers away from these villages, reducing the man-animal conflict.

WWF’s field guys are amazingly dedicated to the cause. Among them are Mudit Gupta and his team, who have inspiring stories of their work for Dudhwa Tiger Reserve. Mudit’s efforts, along with Dudhwa’s young DFO Shri P.P.Singh, to rescue wildlife swept away from Dudhwa Tiger Reserve in the 2008’s floods of Sharda and Soheli Rivers, are some thing of legends. Mohanraj in Tamil Nadu is carrying his decades’ old relentless pursuit for the cause of Niligiris’ wildlife with WWF as well. There have been concerted efforts to establish wildlife c

orridors around Jim Corbett Tiger Reserve by Hem Tiwari’s team. Harish Gularia’s team has been overseeing the Terai landscape work that includes WWF’s help to create a new tiger reserve in Uttar Pradesh’s Pilibhit District. Anurag and his team are working in the heart of one of Climate Change’s worst affected areas – the Sunderbans. They refuse to stand idle to the evil effects of this mega-problem and are working hard to mitigate its effects. Apart from this they are working to reduce the human-wildlife conflict in and around Sunderbans Tiger Reserve. I am yet to visit WWF’s work areas in

North East and Central, but having met the field staff from those areas I don’t think the scene there will be any different.

The stories and efforts are endless. My job is to ensure that this face of WWF is seen by its stake holders - from the lay man to the decision makers. The task is challenging, but I am enjoying it.

Check out WWF-India’s work, online, at http://wwfindia.org. I am working with the team here to give the site a face lift and this should happen before end of June. Keep visiting to find out more.

Peace,

Ameen

The fun in driving to 'Dilli'

2009-05-17T20:08:00.002+05:30

It was fun driving all the way to Delhi from Bangalore in my Santro. As a nature lover, I will say the best part was driving through the length of Madhya Pradesh. I could see different landscapes ranging from the gentle rolling hills north-west of Nagpur to the dense sal forests around Itarsi and Hoshangabad including the newly created Satpuda (Satpura) Tiger Reserve.

The landscape is different as one moves northwest of Bhopal into the thorn and ridge forests of Narasinghad sanctuary. The drive from Shivpuri to Gwalior is through the very hot and dry forests including those of Madhav National Park. But these huge swathes of dry forests form a spectacular sight. Around Shivpuri the people and traffic are as rough as the landscape is. I could see one guy driving his bike with his countrymade revolver tucked into his belt at his lower back. Being in close proximity to the Chambal valley, this surely must be India's answer to America's 'wild wild west'.

India is truly big and amazing. We all shall make it a much better place before we die. Much of Madhya Pradesh's roads still need to improve, but the varied landscape made up for the beating my car's suspensions and tyres took.

Since this was purely a drive to take my car to Delhi within 4 days, I did not take even one picture (though I was tempted to stop the car at many places). But I surely will drive my car back in a few months from now and will take many Gigabytes of images. Any body willing to join me???

Will keep you informed.

Peace,
Ameen

'Roam nations, read encyclopedias'

2009-05-17T20:07:00.000+05:30

Friends,

I moved to Delhi in mid-April to join World Wildlife Fund (WWF) - India, as a Senior Manager - Communications, in their Species division.

I have many of you telling me you are sad, that I am moving away from Bengaluru/ Tumkur and Karnataka. I have to say the following.

This new position will allow me to work on conservation issues through much of India, particularly the wildlife sanctuaries, and among others our tiger, elephant, dolphin and rhino areas. That includes Karnataka too. Also, I will be able to exchange thoughts and learn positive things from people of other states as well.

Also, WANC is working on interesting proposals for wilderness areas in Tumkur district. I will be working with members of the team to carry out some of these tasks. So I will not be far from Tumkur as well : )

I was equally passionate about wildlife before I left for Canada in 2002. Though I was not in the midst of action, here in Karnataka, for much of the next 5 years, my travel and education outside India helped me gain a wealth of knowledge. I have been able to use the same to work with like minded nature lovers like you back home and do my bit to conserve our priceless wildlife.

I am sure this new stint away from Bangalore/ Tumkur will help me gain more knowledge. I want to plough back the same when I return for good, when ever that happens. As a traditional 'Gaade' (proverb) in Kannada language roughly goes, to gain knowledge one must ''Desha suttu, Kosha vodu" (roam nations, read encyclopedias).

I am ever indebted to all my friends from whom I have learnt so much over the decades. It is because of your well wishes and support that I am what ever little I am.

We shall keep in touch.

Best regards,
Ameen

Bababudangiri State Forest - the evergreen tiger country

2008-06-10T14:33:00.003+05:30

Although Bhadra Tiger Reserve consists of a big area, it is in fact divided into three parts, disconnected physically from each other. While the Aldera state forest is divided from the main body by the huge Bhadra reservoir, private coffee estates cut off the Bababudangiri (BB Giri) state forest from the forests of Muthodi Range and Jagara valley.

Also, the BB Giri state forest chiefly consists of Montane Temperate Wet forests (Sholas) and grasslands. Come monsoons and few places can rival the scenic beauty of Shola-Graslands.

View Larger Map

The following images were taken during one such visit during the monsoons, in early June 2008. We drove from Kemmanagundi to Attigundi and back. The weather ranging from overcast to torrential downpours.

Click here for a detailed story and more information on Bhadra Tiger Reserve

'Soubhagya Sanjeevini': River diversion / linking project in Karnataka's Western Ghats

2007-04-20T07:35:00.003+05:30

Dear Nature lovers,

Those of you who have been following the River linking/diversion proposals in Karnataka, might find this useful.

The following is the advertisement that appeared in the Times of India, Bangalore, April 17, 2007 (Page 19) regarding "Soubhagya Sanjeevini", the name given to River diversion / linking project in Karnataka's Western Ghats.

Please click on the advertisement below to enlarge it

Looking at the map of the project and also the original Detailed Project Report (DPR), the proposed network of canals will cut through the following protected forests:
1) Pushpagiri wildlife sanctuary,
2) Bisle/Kukke Subramanya Rainforests,
3) Kudremukh National Park,
4) Kollur Mookambike Wildlife Sanctuary/ Kodachadri Rainforests and
5) Someshwara Wildlife Sanctuary/ Agumbe Rainforests.

If you are opposed to the idea of destruction of these forests, make sure your have your opinion known to the Government at this juncture.

BACKGROUND OF RIVER LINKING PROPOSAL IN KARNATAKA'S WESTERN GHATS

Introduction:
Since late 1990s. there have been calls to divert the waters of Netravathi River and its tributaries including the Kumaradhara and Kempuhole Rivulets to the dry eastern districts of Karnataka i.e. Tumkur, Kolar, Chitradurga and Bangalore. The proposal was originally mooted by a retired Government Irrigation Engineer Mr.Paramashivaiah and supported by politicians from Tumkur like Ex.Lok Sabha M.P. Mr.G.S.Basavaraju.

Criticism:
Critics call the proposal, a would be financial, environmental and political/social disaster. Among other things, the project aims to divert rivers flowing west starting from south at Lingadahole in Kodagu district to the Shiruru River bordering Shimoga district in the north. The rivers are proposed to be linked through two huge parallel concrete canals through the length of Karnataka's Western Ghats. The intriguing part of the project is that it aims to divert the water from the head waters of the rivers. Any sane person would know that the amount of water available in any River is to be calculated and collected after it merges with its streams away from its meagre headwaters. But going through the map of the project it makes one believe the proposal envisages diverting the headwaters themselves without looking into diverting the water downstream after it gains volume.

Cost:
Financial cost: It is said the project needs around 50,000 crore rupees, which will have to be borrowed from International financial organisations / foreign banks.

Environmental cost: The original detailed project report (DPR) submitted to the Government of Karnataka claim that the total forest area intended to be submerged is 7716 hectares. But they have failed to include the forest cover to be lost to transport men and material, service roads to be constructed to approach the work sites, settlements for construction and then maintenance, new power transmission lines to be drawn and finally the green cover to be lost to lay the canal itself. Looking at the map of the project and also the original DPR, the proposed network of canals cut through Pushpagiri wildlife sanctuary, Bisle/Kukke Subramanya Rainforests, Kudremukh National Park, Kollur Mookambike Wildlife Sanctuary/Kodachadri Rainforests and Someshwara Wildlife Sanctuary/Agumbe Rainforests. Unlike the earlier hydroelectric projects in the Western Ghats, which mostly submerged forest area at the single place of dam site and backwaters, this proposed scheme is going to deforest the Western Ghats for a stretch of 300 kilometres cutting across its length.

Political/social cost: There have already been protests in the Western Ghats district through which these canals pass and counter protests in the districts that supposedly benefit from the project. This has led to disturbance of peace among people and fears of water-wars between districts on the scale seen for the past two decades over Kaveri River waters.

Related links/stories:
1) 'Sapping lifelines' is a story published in the Deccan Herald on the project . Kindly read it for more details on the ills of this project.
2) Kindly read this excellent piece 'Interlinking Rivers -The Millennial Folly' by Shailendra Nath Ghosh

Unique Birdman from the land of Rainforests - Dr.Narasimhan.S.V

2007-04-14T13:35:00.002+05:30

Cutting across all man made barriers like Nationality, Race, Language, Religion, bird watchers round the earth share the same passion - birds. But the expressions that spring out of each birder, upon watching these living gems vary with each human. While some shoot with cameras, many others tend to recreate the magic with their hands.

Among them is Narasimhan.S.V. A medical doctor by profession, Dr.Narasimhan hails from Coorg or Kodagu district of Krnataka. Nestled amidst the lush green Western Ghats, Kodagu is a land of Rainforests and Waterfalls. And birds of the rainforests spell magic for Dr.Narasimhan, as his joy spills out in the form of Colour hand sketches.

Wildlife Message Cards are individually hand painted cards, with pictures of animals, birds and butterflies, with appropriate captions on wildlife conservation in English and Kannada, sent free, by post, to individuals all over the world, so that the conservation message spreads. Students, wildlife officials, NGOs concerned with wildlife, Nature lovers, and the like, have become the recipients of these cards. These recipients, in turn, send them to their friends or display them at various public places and help to further spread the message of wildlife conservation.

Materials used to make Wildlife Message cards: Index cards, Colour sketch pencils, Black pencils, colours

History
It all began in 1982-83 says Dr.Narasimhan. I have committed myself to bring awareness regarding wildlife conservation, among school-going children and general public. Because of my compelling profession, I had to select a way by which I did not have to go out to do the job. So I started sitting and painting the wildlife message cards. “The number of cards painted in each of the first three years was 200-480. In 1985, when an English daily published an article regarding these cards, the number of recipients went up to 400 and the number of cards painted, shot up to more than 1500 cards. In 1987, I set a target of making 3000 cards every year. Though I have not reached this self-set target, I have consistently done 2700 to 2920 cards each year.”

Now, every year, these cards are posted to 1350 selected recipients, at gratis, so as to reach them by Wildlife Week- the first week of October. Thus the total number of recipients has crossed 3400-mark and the total number of wildlife cards that have been painted in the past 16 years has exceeded 32,500!

“All of us talk a lot about the need for Nature conservation; about the rapid depletion of forest cover and diminishing wildlife. Progress in the name of industrialisation, modern agriculture, added to population explosion, greed and lack of political will are responsible for this for state of affairs. The public in general and NGOs in particular, can play a great role in influencing the policy making bodies, when it comes to implementation of these ideas. Politicians and Government officials are all important people. No amount of legislation or force can change the heart of men. I have immense respect and trust in the schoolteachers who can try to inculcate a sense of love and concern for the Nature in the students, who are the future of hope, in this field”.

Responses
One Ms. Kathy Woveris, from California, has written to me. Perhaps she is a wildlife photographer, because she has sent a photograph of Uganda Kob, that she clicked in Africa.

In 1999, he prepared a questionnaire regarding the quality of my work, type of recipients, their habits, etc. This questionnaire was sent to 1350 recipients of whom 1058 [78 percent] sent back the completed questionnaires. The results of this survey give a detailed assessment of the response.

Some of the interesting features found in the survey have been mentioned below: Each year, 23% recipients form a buffer. None has put the wildlife message cards into the trash bin. They have found their place on office tabletops, and various public places. 15.6% of them are students; 5.2% are wildlife officials and out of the 59% professionals, 22% are teachers. Most of them i.e., 90% have liked birds; only 8% have liked insects: butterflies are insects too! More than 80% reside in urban areas.

“I am not carried away by the nice response, regarding the quality of my cards, but seriously aware of the caution of some of the people. As many have suggested, I have already started replacing water-colours in place of sketch pencils. Starting from this year, I have even tried pencil sketches”.

Love Birds of Coorg
Recently he has formed an organisation along with a few of his friends to promote birding. This small group of bird enthusiasts is called ‘Love Birds of Coorg’.

The objectives of this group include:
> Educating high school students about bird and nature watching.
> Conducting workshops on preparing wildlife cards
> Teaching wildlife photography (One member is a professional photographer).

“There is a great deal of difference between the work done with a sheer love for nature and that, which is done with money in mind. The former gives immense gratification to your soul. Over the past seventeen years, the total number of cards that I have done is 32,140. A well-paid professional artist might paint more than this in a single year. Today, my cards appear in many places: On the working tables of great men, on the notice boards of schools and colleges, as placards at various public places, and in many homes as wall hangings and private collections. Many even do not know who did them.

I know that the cards are not masterpieces of art. No one will buy them, if sold. Over the past 16 years, it has never been a one-man show. But they have understood the love that goes to make each card. More than 5050 nature lovers have helped me to spread these messages of which 3500 like-minded people have been the arch-pillars. At the end of the day I silently thank God for making me a little artist, unknown to so many people who equally love nature. Satisfaction is the greatest reward!

Let us join hands to make our only Earth a place, where all elements of life can live in peace, happiness and harmony”.

To receive a set of cards every year, please write a letter to him giving your complete home address at:

Dr.S.V.Narasimhan
Virajpet 5712 50
Kodagu District
Karnataka

or

Since this is the era of Internet. You are free to send these cards to your friends and help to spread the message. To receive cards through e-mail please send him an e-mail at:

drnsimhan@yahoo.com

Nature's marvel - Dodda Alada Mara

2007-04-11T15:59:00.003+05:30

Known as "Dodda Aalada Mara" in south India's Kannada language (meaning 'Big Banyan tree') this is one of the largest Banyan trees in south India. Its branches spead over a wide area making the tree quite a spectacle. You can see many of its branches and roots in the above picture.

The tree is revered by locals as sacred and is protected. The tree is home to varied wildlife including different species of owls and also some wood pigeons.

Fact-file:

Location: Dodda Alada Mara is located about 10 km to the north of Sira Town on the Sira - Amarapura Main road. This is located near Kaggaladu Heronry/ Community Conserved Area.

View Larger Map

Nearest Airport: Bangalore City

Nearest Rail: Tumkur City

Key attractions: Along the way one could stop over at-

i) Kallambella wetland to see waterfowl.

ii) historic Seebe temple at Seebe village, which lies along the Tumkur - Sira stretch of the National Highway 4.

iii) historic Moghul architecture at Sira Town.

IF YOU GO:

When to go: Early February to early May

Best time of the day: Summers are very dry with day temperatureshovering around 40 degrees. Try being at the place early in themorning or late in the evening.

Where to eat: Carry own food or eat at Hotels in Sira Town. One decent one is Hotel Kamath near Sira Town along National Highway 4 on Tumkur Road.

Where to stay: Kaggaladu has no accomodation.

Getting there: Since the Bangalore - Pune/ Mumbai National Highway No:4 passes through Sira Town, the best way to get there is to drive down from Bangalore city (about 3 hrs drive). Sira is about 50 km away from Tumkur City and about 120 km from Bangalore.

Driving directions:

1) Drive on the National Highway 4 towards Tumkur town.

2) 3.5 km after the Kyathasandra Highway toll gate and about 3 km before Tumkur City, the highway splits into Shimoga Road (which enters Tumkur City) and Sira Road (which bypasses Tumkur City).

3) Travel on the Sira Road / Tumkur Bypass and after the bypass ends continue towards Sira/ Hiriyur. (This is one of the best stretches of this highway in Karnataka!)

4) As you near Sira Town (after about 50 km from Tumkur) just before the highway turns north-west and by-passes Sira Town get off the highway and enter Sira Town (from one of the passages/ breaks in the road median).

5) In Sira, travel along the main road inside the town. Just after the Sira Bus-stand ask any one for the office of Sira Circle Inspector of Police. You will be directed to drive from the bus stand to one of the circles leading out of the town. There, turn north (take a right) and go to the Sira Police offices complex (offices of Deputy Superintendent of Police, Sira Rural Sub-Division and Sira Circle Inspector of Police).

6) Drive north (straight) on the Sira - Amrapura main road from the Sira Police offices complex to Togarugunte (pronounced 'tog-ru-goontey') village. The Big Banyan Tree (ask any one for 'Dodda Aalada Mara') is towards right immediately after Togarugunte village. This is just before 'Bande-kunte' gate, about 10 km from Sira Town (this 10 km stretch has quite a few potholes).

Important:

1. Please maintain a low profile and make sure you respect the locals.

2. Make sure you don't interrupt the local traffic when you park your vehicles

3. Leave nothing including disposable and non-disposable garbage.

4. Carry adequate supply of water, as this region of south India gets pretty hot and dry suring summer.

NOTE: I have included the above information to give visitors a general idea of the places. I request readers to make more detailed enquiries with the Tumkur district administration to know the exact road conditions and facilities for tourists.

Kaggaladu - Home to colourful birds

2007-04-07T15:17:00.001+05:30

A group of young kids stand guard near the Painted Stork and Grey Heron nesting colony at Kaggaladu Village in Sira taluk of Tumkur District.

Kaggaladu is a small village in Tumkur district in south eastern part of Karnataka state. Since 1999, the villagers have been a welcome host for Painted Storks and Grey Herons, which annually breed on the trees inside the village and raise their young ones. The village was first made known to the outside world in 1999 by members of local NGO Wildlife Aware Nature Club (www.wanc.org). WANC has been monitoring the nesting colony and the wetlands used by these birds since then.

View Larger Map

The birds nest and roost on tamarind and ficus trees. While there are nests of both the species on some trees, on majority of the trees only Painted storks breed. The nesting birds are joined by more Painted storks and Grey herons who arrive to roost. Grey Pelicans (Pelecanus philippensis) occassionally visit the village during the breeding season and roost on the trees in the village.

Ownership of trees: The five tamarind trees which are lying on either side of the Sira-Changavra main road belong to the state government. Three other tamarind trees and one ficus tree are privately owned.

Protection by the villagers: The villagers protect the birds seriously and take to task anyone who tries to harm them. According to the villagers, the Grey herons have been nesting here on a single tamarind tree since 1993. Their numbers increased in 1996, when a lone tree in the neighbouring Muddakanahalli, on which these birds were nesting, was disturbed by poachers and some birds were killed. The villagers are so interested in conserving the birds that, they have prevented the Government authorities from auctioning the tamarind harvest. They are not even harvesting the tamarind in the trees owned by them. While many of the villagers are interested in protecting the birds just because they look beautiful, a few believe them as harbingers of prosperity, hence their protection.

Feeding: It has been found that the birds use tanks lying within a radius of twenty kilometres from Kaggaladu like Kallambella tank. The birds feed their young ones with fish, crabs and even snakes, it has been observed.

Weather: Kaggaladu lies in the dry belt of eastern Karnataka. The average annual rainfall is approximately 600 mm. The maximum temperature in summer rises to above 40 Celsius. In winter the temperature may descend down to 15 C.

Other Wildlife: As the area lies in the plains of the Deccan Plateau, bordering Andhra Pradesh, the wildlife found here is related to the drier areas. WANC is compiling a detailed report of the flora and fauna found in the area. But notably a few herds of blackbuck roam around Kaggaladu and surrounding villages. Also some of the villagers claim to have sighted the Great Indian Bustard in the area, but this has not yet been confirmed.

Threats and protection measures:

1. Hunting: Considering the protection afforded to the birds by Kaggaladu villagers, there islittle threat to the birds in the village. The major and the only real problem is the hunting of these birds in their feeding tanks. In fact the problem of poaching of water birds has been recorded in Tumkur district by WANC during the Asian Waterfowl Census since 1991. After this nesting colony made news in the National and local press, many incidents of poaching in the tanks around Kaggaladu were reported. Immediately WANC met Mr.Narayan Swamy, Deputy Conservator of Forests, Tumkur division and Dr.Suresh K Mohammed, Superintendent of Police, Tumkur district. The officers took immediate action and many unlicensed guns around these tanks were seized. On the directions of the enthusiastic Police Chief, action was taken against some of the poachers. As an aftermath of this, the number of poaching incidents has come down. The highlighting in the press has turned out to be boon for the water birds of Sira taluk due to the decrease in poaching, as concerned officials and conservation orientedvillagers are maintaining a strict vigil.

2. Excessive tourism: The discovery of the nesting colony has been attracting many people from both far and near. But it has been observed that, rural people from surrounding villages visiting the area hardly cause any disturbance for they have very limited access to polluting vehicles or plastic. Urban tourists seem to pollute most, particularly by bringing in polluting vehicles and disposing plastic. To avoid this, at the request of WANC and villagers, the forest department has put up boards describing the do’s and don’ts.`No Parking’ and `No horn’ signs have been put up near the nesting trees. Other boards depicting Grey herons and Painted storks have also been put up. Village youth enforce the rules among visitors in order to prevent nuisance to birds.

3. Falling of young birds: Quite a number of young birds fall down during the breeding season. As observed, the usual reason for the falling down of young ones is due to the strong pre- monsoon winds and recently due to over nesting. On the initiation of WANC, the villagers have began to take care of the fallen birds. At the request of forest department, the veterinary doctor of neighbouring Gaudgere village is visiting Kaggaladu to treat the injured birds. Earlier, WANC used to buy fish for the villagers to feed the fallen birds. But a number of fish brought by the parent birds to feed their young ones fall on the ground. The villagers now collect these fish and feed it to the injured birds. If there is a short come, the villagers purchase the required quantity. The fisheries department has been approached to provide fish for the fallen birds.

Measures taken by the forest department:

1. Boards have been put up providing information on painted storks and grey herons, do’s and don’ts etc.

2. Separate parking zones have been created.

3. Species suitable for the birds to nest have been planted in and around the village.

4. The nesting trees have been fenced to prevent tourists and others from disturbing the birds. 5. A small concrete water pond to rehabilitate the fallen and injured birds has been constructed. 6. Vigil is being maintained on the water tanks and lakes used by the Kaggaladu nesting birds to prevent their poaching and disturbance.

Fact-file:

Location: Kaggaladu is located about 9 km to the north-west of Sira Town on the Sira-Chengavara Main Road.

Nearest Airport : Bangalore City

Nearest rail: Tumkur City

What to eat? Carry own food or eat at Hotels in Sira Town. One good one is Hotel Kamath near Sira Town along National Highway 4 on Tumkur Road.

Where to stay: Tumkur City or better stay at Bangalore City and drive down.

Other attractions: Along the way one could stop over at-

i) Kallambella wetland to see waterfowl.

ii) historic Seebe temple at Seebe village.

iii) historic mughal architecture at Sira Town.

The Sunsets over Kaggaladu Chikkakere which is used by many of these birds to feed.

Getting there: Since the Bangalore - Pune/Mumbai National Highway No: 4 passes through Sira Town, the best way to get there is to drive down from Bangalore city (about 3 hrs drive). Sira is about 50 km away from Tumkur City and about 120 km from Bangalore.

Driving directions:

1) Drive on the National Highway 4 towards Tumkur town.

2) 3.5 km after the Kyathasandra Highway toll gate and about 3 km before Tumkur City, the highway splits into Shimoga Road (which enters Tumkur City) and Sira Road (which bypasses Tumkur City).

3) Travel on the Sira Road / Tumkur Bypass and after the bypass ends continue towards Sira/ Hiriyur. (This is one of the best stretches of this highway in Karnataka!)

6) Just behind these Police Offices, the road turns west (take a left) towards Chengavara village. The road has been tarred recently for about 4 km, after which there are quite a few potholes.

7) Drive along the road and about 9 km from Sira, you see the heronry towards right in Kaggaladu village.

The historic Sira town is on the way to Kaggaladu heronry and visitors can stop to see some interesting architecture of the erstwhile Mughal Empire and Palegars (Chieftans).

Important:

1. Please maintain a low profile and make sure you respect the locals.

2. Make sure you don't interrupt the local traffic when you park your vehicles

3. Leave nothing including disposable and non-disposable garbage.

4. Carry adequate supply of water, as this region of south India gets pretty hot and dry suring summer.

NOTE: I have included the above information to give visitors a general idea of the places. I request readers to make more detailed enquiries with the Tumkur district administration to know the exact road conditions and facilities for tourists.

Land of blackbuck - Destination Jayamangali (formerly Maidenahalli) Blackbuck Conservation Reserve

2007-04-07T14:33:00.003+05:30

Updated with a printable map: 21 JAN 2009

Below is the first ever public map showing location and routes to Jayamangali (Maidenahalli) blackbuck conservation reserve. If you have plans to drive down to area, you might want to take a print out and carry it with you to prevent getting lost.

Source of Map and copyright: Survey of India, 1:2,50,000 scale, No: 57/G, 2nd edition, 1988

Jayamangali Blackbuck Reserve borders Maidenahalli a small village situated in the plains of Deccan Plateau at the north-eastern tip of Tumkur district of Karnataka state, bordering Anantpur district of Andhra Pradesh. Apart from Jayamangali blackbuck reserve, a few herds of blackbuck are found scattered through the eastern parts of Karnataka. But the largest population of blackbuck in Karnataka, apart from Ranibennur sanctuary, is found at Jayamangali blackbuck reserve. It is an eight hundred and thirty nine acre patch of grassland planted with Eucalyptus and Acacia auriculiformis. It is probably the best place in Karnataka to photograph blackbuck apart from other grassland flora and fauna.

Factfile:

Area: Forest department owned land is under 3 sq. km but wildlife here is spread across the landscape that includes private farm land.
Status: Conservation Reserve (declared under Wildlife Protection Act 1972) and private property with public access.

Nearest town:
1) Inside Karnataka: Madhugiri (23 km)
2) Across border in Andhra Pradesh: Hindupur (apx. 20 km)

Nearest Airport: Devanahalli/ Bangalore International Airport (163 km)

Nearest rail:
1) Hindupur (apx 20 km): along the Guntakal Junction - Bangalore line
2) Tumkur (68 km): along the Bangalore - Arasikere.

Key attractions: Blackbuck, Indian fox, Over 130 bird species particularly grassland ones, beautiful views of open plains and grasslands.

Jayamangali is probably the best place in Karnataka to photograph blackbuck, Indian courser and common sandgrouse

IF YOU GO:
Worth seeing: Apart from the wildlife, views of the vast plains of Deccan Plateau and the prominent granite stone hill chain that runs from Bellary to Ramanagaram made up of a granite called the Clospete granite.

What to eat: Food is not available here. Carry your own food and water or eat at hotels in Madhugiri Town.

Where to stay: There are no lodges in the area. There are tents bases where campers can pitch tents. Tents are available at the Madhugiri Forest Office. The forest department has constructed a two room rest house here in early 2009, with basic amenities.Visitors can request forest department for permission to camp in the area or stay at the rest house.

Best time of the day: Summers are very dry with day temperatures hovering around 40 degrees centigrade. Try being at the place early in the morning or late in the evening. The weather is pleasant any time of the day during winters and monsoons.

Getting there: The best way to get there is to drive down from Bangalore city (about 3 hrs drive). Jayamangali area is about 23 km away from Madhugiri Town and about 138 km from Bangalore (via Tumkur).

Driving directions to Jayamangali grasslands from Bangalore City via Dobespete - Tumkur - Koratgere - Madhugiri - Puruvara: (Day trips can be made from Bangalore)

NOTE: There is a direct road from Dobbespete town on NH4 (22 km before Tumkur) to Koratgere town by skipping Tumkur City. This road is in a bad shape and under repair for the past few years. Don't travel on this road unless you really hate your vehicle!.

1) Drive on the National Highway 4 towards Tumkur City.
2) 3.5 kilometres after the Kyathasandra toll gate and about 3 kilometres before Tumkur City, at a place called Batawadi, the highway splits into BH (Bangalore-Honnavar) Road (which enters Tumkur City) and Sira Road (which bypasses Tumkur City).
3) Travel on the Tumkur by-pass / Sira Road. There is an exit in a little less than 4 km where you need to turn north (take a right turn) towards Madhugiri Town.
4) Travel on the Madhugiri road through Koratagere town, for 41 kilometres, till you reach Madhugiri Town (Road update as of Oct, 2011: Road was tarred about 4 years ago and is very bad at many places. Don't drive fast in small/ compact cars (Maruti 800, Alto, Santro etc). This road was notorious for many speed-breakers, of which there were at every village, though they were removed supposedly a couple of years ago due to a court order. Be careful though, as speed breakers are known to spring overnight thanks to local communities who use this as a tool to force stop public buses at their village.
5) As you enter Madhugiri town ask some one for Hindupura Road. Travel along that road inside the town for a km.
6) When the the road splits into east and west, you will probably come across a board put up by the forest department depicting a blackbuck. Drive east/ right turn (ask some one again for road to Hindupur town if you are confused).
7) About 1.5 km from the above junction the road again splits. Take the Hindupur Road on the left (north-east). The road straight (east) leads you to Chikballapur/ Gowridbidanur towns. It's easy to be confused here.
8) 11 km from Madhugiri town (and before the bridge over Jayamangali River / Kodegenahalli village), you will reach Puruvara village.(Madhugiri - Hindupura Road update as of Dec. 2009: Road was tarred a couple of years ago and is NOT in the best of conditions thorough most of it. Don't drive fast in small/ compact cars (Maruti 800, Alto, Santro etc).
NOTE: From Puruvara village, Maidenahalli area can be reached from both west (via Badakanahalli and Giregowdana halli villages) or from east (via Kodigenahalli and Maidenahalli village cross). Described below is the approach from west, which allows better views of the area's landscape.

9) At Puruvara village, turn left (north) and travel on the ID Halli village road for 8 km. Just after the twin villages of Badakanahalli and Giregowdana halli, the habitat abruptly changes into open plains. (Road update as of Dec, 2009: Road was tarred a couple of years ago and is NOT in the best of conditions thorough most of it. Don't drive fast in small/ compact cars (Maruti 800, Alto, Santro etc).
10) Half a km after Giregowdana halli village, an unmetalled track turns north-east (right). Take this track. (It's easy to be confused here too). Please enquire with the local villagers if you are not sure.
11) The grasslands and blackbuck habitat begins on this track. You can stop your car and bird along the track (Road update as of Dec, 2009: This is just a metalled track and is basically soil and stones. Drive very carefully particularly if you are in a small/ compact car. 4 km down this track you will reach the gates of Maidenahalli or Jayamangali Blackbuck Reserve. Pass through the gates and park your vehicle at the watch tower. You can walk around the area.

There usually are a couple of local forest guards in the area, a couple of whom are Narasimha Murthy and Anantha Ramu. They should be able to guide you around, if you tell them about your interest in wildlife.

FOR MORE DETAILS ON THE PLACE, PLEASE VISIT THIS WEBSITE ON MAIDENAHALLI / JAYAMANGALI BLACKBUCK AREA:

Permission to stay over:
1) Deputy Conservator of Forests (DCF)
Tumkur Territorial Division,
Kunigal Road,
Tumkur City- 5721 02
Telephone : + 91 (816) 2201196 (Updated Jan 2009)

2) Assistant Conservator of Forests (ACF)
Madhugiri Territorial Sub-Division,
Forest Office,
Madhugiri Town
Tumkur District
Telephone: Not working (Updated Jan 2009)

3) Range Forest Officer (RFO)
Madhugiri Territorial Range,
Forest Office,
Madhugiri Town
Tumkur District
Telephone: Not working (Updated Jan 2009)

The beautiful grasslands of Mydenahalli with the backdrop of Tumkur's Hills

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DID YOU FIND THIS INFORMATION USEFUL, ANY QUESTIONS, COMMENTS, WANT TO HELP CONSERVATION? Please wrtite to me at tumkurameen AT gmail DOT com

When it pours in the rainforest...

2006-03-17T06:48:00.002+05:30

(An edited version of this article 'When it pours in the rainforest...' , was published in Bangalore Times, The Times of India, on 21st July 2001)

What began as a small drizzle turned into a torrential downpour within minutes. The bio mass rich ground sunk in a few inches, on being stepped upon every time. From the high canopy to the leaves on the under storey through which we were trekking, there was water pouring down everywhere. To reach back to our four-wheeler, we had to cross a swollen tributary of the virgin Kumaradhara over a narrow hanging bridge and climb the steep slopes of this deep valley. The sound of the roaring river to our north was ideal enough for us to navigate over the bridge, back to the road. But the monsoons poured cold water on our idea…

Now, there was sound of water everywhere. Rising like tall towers, each tree seemed to be the same, their canopy devouring in every ray of the hiding sun. With rainwater all over the ground, we had no identifiable landmarks or surrounding features to help us find the way back. This was enough to get us lost. Even though we were hardly about a hundred meters from where we started, it seemed we were miles inside this unknown rainforest. My little sister and myself were isolated from the four others of our trekking party. While leeches turned our feet red with blood, the rest of our bodies were soaked in water. My sister could hardly hide her fear on this first ever trek of hers. And it was difficult to make out whether it was the tears or the raindrops that drenched her eyes. For her, this was nature at its brutal best. As we stopped in our tracks pondering on the next move, a feeble voice from behind pierced through the rain. A senior member of Wildlife Aware Nature Club, which comprised of the trekking party, saved us from the uncertain moments that lay ahead.

View Larger Map

Walking back towards the bridge again, the view from over it was a sight to behold. The raw power of nature was at its zenith. The tall rainforest clothed river banks were attracting the clouds like powerful magnets, which in turn were emptying every drop of water they had, into the valleys below. All these converted the subtle meandering waters into a river in rage, thundering down stream the mighty Western Ghats. Just as we crossed the bridge and started to ascend the riverbank, the rainfall ceased abruptly. For some time again, the sun regained an upper hand in its war with the clouds, as it radiated its brightness all over the place. The mist over the river cleared and the sunrays kissed the waters, turning them into milky white.Suddenly a huge butterfly rose amidst the mighty trees. The golden of its wings would have turned the brightest gem in a jeweller’s shop pale. It was Southern Birdwing, twenty centimetres from one tip to the other, the largest Butterfly in India! Unable to suppress its joy for long, a Whistling Thrush broke into its melodious whistle. Moving up into the forest, a Malabar Trogon, the fluorescent orange on its chest dimmed by the rainforest canopy, was still to come in terms with the ceased rain. A giant wood spider was attempting to reconstruct its 25 feet wide web in between two towering trees. The previous one devastated by the spell of monsoon fury, minutes before. Before we touched the road, we could see tens of other creatures around us; small frogs, strange insects, giant spiders, snails and many others that we were unable to recognize. We were in the shadow of the towering Pushpagiri mountain ranges. In a remote corner of Western Ghats, the name of the place was Bisle, located in Sakaleshpur taluk of southwest India’s Hassan district…

Rainforests in the Indian subcontinent are seen in the Northeast and the Western Ghats. Western Ghats or Sahyadris as they are also known are a 1600 km long mountain chain, which start from Gujarat and end near Kanyakumari. These mighty ghats are home to some of the finest forests in India. Karnataka has a large chunk of these forests and Bisle occupies a pride in this priceless natural heritage.

About Bisle:
Spread over an area of 3135 hectares, Bisle reserve forests in Bisle range consist of lowland evergreen forests. They are located in Sakleshpur taluk, famous for its coffee and forests, in the southwestern corner of Hassan district. Bisle on all sides is surrounded by dense rainforests. To the north and east are the Sakleshpur and Yesaluru range forests of Hassan division and to the west Bhagimale reserve forests of Subramanya range (Mangalore division) are contiguous with it. To the south, the spectacular forests of Pushpagiri Wildlife Sanctuary, Kodagu (Coorg) district merge with it. Together these forests are among the largest stretches of contiguous rainforests throughout the Western Ghats, spreading over two hundred thousand hectares. Being lowland rainforests, the diversity in the wildlife here is immense. Among the carnivores present here are the wild dog, leopard and tiger, apart from the lesser cats. The carnivores feed on many of the herbivores found here like Gaur, Sambar and Barking deer. But the place is rich in smaller wildlife like Flying squirrels, Giant spiders, colourful butterflies, flying lizards, and of course tons of leeches. These forests are the proud home of the king of all snakes: King Cobra, the largest poisonous snake on earth. But much of the wildlife of these unexplored forests is yet to be documented.

IF YOU GO
What to do:Bisle is among the best terrains in Karnataka to trek. Apart from trekking the area offers excellent opportunities for watching birds.

Where to stay:The forest department has a well-maintained nature camp including dormitory facilities at Bisle on the banks of Addahole stream. For those into camping, tents can be pitched inside the forest.

Approach:The Bisle nature camp is about 60 km from Sakleshpur on a metalled road via the villages of Lakshmipura and Vatla. The easy way round is to drive to Kukke Subramanya via Shiradi on the Mangalore – Bangalore national highway and then trek or drive 14 km to reach Bisle.

A note of caution: Extreme caution has to be exercised while venturing here during monsoons. Leeches and pouring rains can make camping a futile exercise in heavy rains. There have been instances in the recent past when adventurers have been swept away by the turbulent streams. Also during summer, trekkers need lots of water and salt to beat the energy sapping heat and humidity. Never enter the forest without a guide, preferably from the forest department. Also check with the forest department officials about the outbreak of the deadly Kyasnoor forest disease or Monkey fever, during late winter and summer.

Permission:
Permission to enter the forest has to be taken from either of the following:
1. Deputy Conservator of Forests (DCF), Hassan territorial division, Office of the DCF,

Hassan 5732 01 Karnataka

2. Assistant Conservator of Forests (ACF), Sakleshpur territorial sub-division,

Sakleshpur town 5731 34 Hassan District Karnataka

Wildlifing in India’s youngest Tiger Reserve

2006-03-17T06:47:00.004+05:30

(This article was originally published in Sunday Herald (Deccan Herald), Bangalore, 'Wildlifing in Bhadra' on 1st July 2001)

A view of the forest covered Jagara Valley

View Larger Map

Nestled amidst the lofty ranges of the Western Ghats is Bhadra Wildlife Sanctuary, India’s youngest Tiger Reserve. Bhadra although less known, is among Karnataka’s richest wildlife reserves. Spread over an area of 492 Sq. km in the malnad districts of Chikmagalur and Shimoga, Bhadra is a mosaic of different habitats, with bamboo being very common. Towards the northern part of the sanctuary the habitat is mainly dry deciduous inter spread with a huge reservoir, the Bhadra irrigation project or Lakavalli dam, as it is popularly known. Towards south the trees are much taller and are of moist deciduous type. Bababudain giri state forest, which is in the eastern part of the sanctuary, consists of Shola evergreen forests.

Although Bhadra consists of a big area, it is in fact divided into three parts. While the Aldera state forest is divided from the main body by the huge Bhadra reservoir, private coffee estates surround the Bababudain giri reserve forest.This forest was first given the status of a protected

area in 1952 when 252 sq. km of it was declared as Jagara valley sanctuary, in 1952. The area was enlarged to the present 492 sq. km in 1974 and renamed as Bhadra. The sanctuary is extremely rich in wildlife, due to the diverse habitat and its proximity to Western Ghats. These forests have always been known for the big wild cats. They were a happy hunting ground for famous hunter Kenneth Anderson, who shot many blood thirsty man-eaters here, including the `Lakvalli man-eater’ fearing whom,

construction work of the huge Bhadra reservoir had to be briefly abandoned. The sanctuary even today has a very healthy tiger population, the reason for which it was declared as a tiger reserve in 1999. Leopards, wild dogs, jungle cats, jackal, striped hyena and Indian fox are the main predators found here. Elephants have made Bhadra as their home since long and occasionally even enter surrounding coffee estates. Bhadra is known for its large population of Gaur or Indian bison. A severe outbreak of rinderpest epidemic during late eighties led to the death of many gaurs. The strict protection being afforded by the forest department has once again raised their numbers considerably. Chital or the spotted deer is the commonest deer here. Sambar and barking deer are also found here. Among the smaller mammals are Slender loris, Porcupine, Black napped hare and mouse deer. Giant malabar squirrels, which are endemic to the Western Ghats, can be seen in plenty at Muthodi. Along the streams and Bhadra reservoir, a number of otters and Marsh crocodiles can be seen.

The southern part of Bhadra, particularly the area around Muthodi is extremely rich in birds, butterflies and reptiles. The sanctuary is home to over 250 species of birds, many of which like the malabar pied hornbill, malabar Trogon, blue winged parakeet are endemic to the Western

Ghats. Some of India’s most beautiful and big butterflies like red helen and blue mormon are found here. Rare and unique reptiles like the flying lizard can be seen gliding amidst the huge trees here. Malabar pit vipers and rare coral snakes are found here.Numerous streams flowing through the pristine forests form a major water source for the wildlife here. Among them is the Somavahini, a tributary of Bhadra river. During summer many animals can be found along the Bhadra reservoir.During rainy season, chances of sighting wildlife decrease due to misty conditions and the dense vegetation cover. But the scenery within and around the sanctuary with the backdrop of the Bababudain giri hills, during this period is spectacular. Sigekhan, a couple of kilometres from Muthodi is one such place. Standing atop the isolated forest bungalow one can enjoy entire landscape of the horseshoe shaped Bababudain giris and the Jagara valley within it. A walk around this place early morning or late evening can reveal some beautiful birds and rare wildlife. Kemmanagundi and Bababudain giri are the two hill stations near Muthodi.

Among the other interesting sites worth visiting within

the sanctuary is Jagara giant. It is a huge teak tree, considered to be the biggest in Karnataka. The girth of this 300-year-old tree is 5.21 metres. The Salim Ali Nature centre is a must for those who visit Muthodi. The centre has a few trophies of wild animals along with a good library. Also there are facilities to screen wildlife movies on video.There are a few villages within the sanctuary with little basic amenities. Most of these villages are willing for rehabilitation out of the sanctuary. But the required funds are not coming from the government; hence the project hangs in balance. Once the villages are relocated, the biotic interference will decrease, so will the man-animal conflict.

Approach:

Muthodi, the head quarters of the sanctuary is 33 km from Chikmagalur. The road from Chikmagalur to Muthodi is lined by beautiful coffee estates and bubbling streams. The greenery along this road during monsoons is breathtaking. The nearest railhead is Kadur, which is 40 km from Chikmagalur. There are a few unmetalled tracks from Bababudain giris down to Muthodi, but these are very confusing and unapproachable during monsoons. Unlike other popular sanctuaries, there are no safari vehicles belonging to the forest department here, to take visitors into the forest. The park is closed from 6 PM to 6 AM.

Where to stay:

Muthodi is the main place for tourists to stay in Bhadra. There are a number of cottages here along with a couple of dormitories and rest houses. There are excellent facilities to organise nature camps. Food is available on request. There are a couple of forest rest houses deep inside the sanctuary like Hebbe and Kesave, but they are generally not open for tourists. Sigekhan, although at the edge of the sanctuary, is a nice place to stay and is easily approachable from Muthodi.

When to visit:

The best time to visit the park is from October to March. It is not advisable to visit the park during peak summer or from July to August when the monsoons are at their fury.

Permission to visit and halt in the sanctuary can to be obtained from:

1. Chief Wildlife Warden, 2nd floor, Aranya Bhavan,18th Cross, Malleswaram,

Bangalore – 560 005 Tel: 233419932.

2. Deputy Conservator of Forests (Wildlife), Bhadra Wildlife Division, Chikmagalur – 577 101

Tele fax: 08262 -30751

FOR IMAGES FROM BABABUDANGIRI STATE FOREST OF BHADRA TIGER RESERVE, PLEASE CLICK HERE

Sapping lifelines

2006-03-17T06:46:00.003+05:30

(This story 'Sapping Lifelines', on the proposed diversion of Nethravathi River away from Arabian Sea into the Peninsular India heartland was published in Spectrum, Deccan Herald, Bangalore, 20th July 2001)

Any diversion of the Nethravathi waters will massively disturb the breeding cycles of millions of species of organisms in the Arabian Sea.

After Kali, Sharavathi, Chakra and other river valleys of Western Ghats in Karnataka, the so called 'developers' backed by sympathy gaining politicians are now targeting Nethravathi and Kumaradhara rivers, among the last remnant virgin rivers of Karnataka and home to some of the most spectacular rainforests in the entire Western Ghats. Two major projects have been planned to tame these wild flowing rivers. While the first one is a 18 MW Hydro-electric project at Doddahalla near Sakleshpur, the second one is a ecologically and economically devastating project. It envisages diverting all the west flowing streams from Lingadahole in Northern Kodagu till Samse in Chikmagalur district, by building 37 small dams and two canals 300 kms long claimed as "Garland Canals", along the western face of the Western Ghats.The idea of

diverting Nethravathi towards east has been played up periodically by a few politicians since a couple of years. Encouraged by this, two project feasibility reports have been submitted to the Chief Minister of Karnataka by a Government constituted committee of 9 engineers.The reports contend, "the west flowing Netravathi river waters have been draining into the sea as a waste" and should be diverted to the dry districts of Eastern Karnataka. By doing so, claim the reports, whatever the cost: economical or ecological, there will be no shortage of food and water for the population in these districts "for generations to come". They acknowledge that this scheme is "totally new" but should be given the go ahead even if it receives criticisms, by comparing it to other big projects which have come up despite criticisms. The name is so chosen because the alignment of the proposed canal is below the Peak line or ridge of the Western Ghats "which is meant to collect rain waters that precipitate on the western slopes of the Western Ghats". The water so collected, is proposed to be diverted to Eastern and Central Karnataka. By this the ground water will be recharged, claim the reports.

In states like Rajasthan, many of whose areas fall under arid and semi-arid zones, people are shunning Mega projects for traditional water harvesting practises. Villagers under enterprising groups like Tarun Bharat Sangh are repairing and rebuilding traditional water harvesting structures like check dams, anicuts and gully plugs at strategic places where rainwater earlier flowed unhindered. Thousands of such structures in the catchment area of rivers like Aravari and Ruparel have reincarnated them from dead rivers to ones, which provide water even during summer. This has recharged hundreds of water wells and improved the living conditions of

villagers. Eco-friendly success stories like these are increasingly being seen in Maharashtra and Gujarat.Nearer home in Karnataka, the Bharatiya Agro Industries Foundation (BAIF); now the BAIF foundation, has achieved remarkable success in watershed management in the dry areas of Tumkur district. Says Dr. G. N. S. Reddy of BAIF, Tiptur, "600 to 700 mm of rain is not meagre by any measure. Ground water table can be improved without bringing Nethravathi to these areas. What is required is a systematic decentralised rainwater harvesting measure coupled with green cover of the barren lands with out unduly disturbing the cropping pattern. This will open new possibilities of profiting from dry lands at the least cost to farmers. There is no proof to show that the paddy/cotton growers of irrigated tracts are well off than the rain-fed farmers who have successfully adopted well balanced farming systems with out need for high input oriented irrigated agriculture. Probably the engineers are imagining that they can increase the area under coconut and arecanut in the area by bringing Nethravathi. This will be the ultimate ecological disaster that this region can sustain. It is already reeling under the impact of monoculture of coconut.The water level in Dakshina Kannada district has gone down drastically in the recent years with taluks like Sullia, Bantwal and Belthangadi being declared as "Dark" and "Grey" areas. Also due to the acute water shortage the district was declared as drought-prone area in 1995".

The idea of constructing a totally new concept called "Garland canal" is itself a big question. Noted environmentalist and Retired senior Forest officer, Mr A. N. Yellappa Reddy says, "The topography and geo-morphology of the Western Ghats is highly dissected i.e. each hill is

separated from the other by valleys which are thousands of feet deep. If the entire hills are cut open and a parallel river system is created against the natural landscape, this will be an attempt to override the matrix system of stability of these hills which are not just rocks and water but have evolved over millions of years. "He says, "When such a wide canal is constructed on slopes that are thousands of feet steep, how can the resultant land slides be prevented? Even if retaining walls are constructed to prevent the landslides throughout the length of the canals, the ever probing root system of the trees particularly the ficus will penetrate into the retaining walls, whatever their thickness might be, and the canals will give way. When rock crevices can be forced open by the root system, how can concrete be prevented from doing so? " questions Mr Reddy. He further adds, "Deep burrowing animals like moles, rats reside here in large numbers and will create crevices. When water seeps in due to the absence of root system, the entire soil matrix will be loosened. The landscape is not homogenous and changes at an interval of every ten kilometres, at least, like the composition of soil and rocks etc. Also the large-scale use of explosives will loosen the stability of the entire matrix. Even if a single hill under these huge canals gives way, the entire network will break open with devastating consequences. It is impossible to remove all the debris, which comes out of this large-scale excavation. Also the loss of vegetation will lead
to massive soil erosion. Monsoons are sure to carry off this debris and eroded soil, which will interfere with the landscape downstream by causing flash floods and flooding of estuaries.There will also be irreversible damage to the marine ecosystem". Says, Mr Reddy "A fine and delicate balance exists between the terrestrial ecosystem, the riverine eco system and the marine ecosystem. If the terrestrial ecosystem is damaged, then the other two would be affected. As a river flows, it collects the decomposed and the micro-organism converted organic matter from the forests. Rainwater provides mineral ions to aquatic animals and plants in the riverine ecosystem, which get their highly complex nutrients from the terrestrial ecosystem. This river water, which is rich in minerals and organic matter, contributes greatly in the production of Plankton in the marine ecosystem. Every second the Nethravathi and for that matter all the west flowing rivers of Western Ghats pump in thousands of litres of water into the Arabian Sea. The programme of nature is so delicate that monsoons; when the waters are rich in mineral and organic ions, coincide with the breeding season of aquatic animals. It is also during monsoons that the plant productivity is at its highest. Even a minor alteration in this will affect the life cycles of millions of species of aquatic fauna and flora of the entire riverine ecosystem. Any diversion of the Nethravathi waters will massively disturb the breeding cycles of millions of species of organisms in the Arabian Sea".

The 1,600 kms long Western Ghats are home to some of the finest forests in India. Karnataka

has inherited a large chunk of these forests and the Kumaradhara - Nethravathi river valleys are among this priceless natural heritage.Mr Harish Bhat, researcher from of Centre for Ecological Sciences, Indian Institute of Science, says "The Western Ghats are home to many endemic, rare and endangered species of flora having an estimated 27 per cent of India's total plant species. Of the total 15,000 flowering plant species in India, over 4500 species occur in the Western Ghats, of which 1720 are endemic. Apart from 22 endemic species of medicinal plants, a number of economically important species occur here."

Together the forests around Nethravathi and its tributaries like the Kumaradhara, Kempahole, Addahole, Girihole and others are home to an amazing array of flora and fauna species, most of which, particularly the smaller species like toads and frogs, are yet to be discovered and documented. According to studies by noted Amphibian and bird expert R J Ranjit Daniels,

of the 100 species of frogs and toads found in the Western Ghats, 7 species are endemic to Kempahole and are going to be devastated by the Nethravathi diversion scheme. These seven species of toads are found nowhere else on Earth.Rich in prey component, these forests support a viable population of carnivores like Tiger, Wild dog, Leopard, apart from many endemic smaller cats like Malabar Civet. The herbivores here are Gaur, Sambar, Chital and Barking deer. This is one among the critical corridors of Asian Elephants left intact. Elephants use these forests to migrate between Pushpagiri wildlife sanctuary and Bhadra tiger rseserve. These forests are extremely rich in smaller wildlife like Flying squirrels, Giant spiders, colourful butterflies, flying lizards, and of course tonnes of leeches. These forests are safe home for King Cobra. Much of the wildlife here is yet to be studied.

While the project feasibility reports claim that the total forest area intended to be submerged is 7716 hectares, they deliberately hide the forest cover to be lost to transport men and material, service roads to be constructed to approach the work sites, settlements for construction and

then for those involved in maintenance, new power transmission lines to be drawn and finally the green cover to be lost to lay the canal itself. The proposed network of canals and dams start at Lingadahole in Pushpagiri wildlife sanctuary and cut north into the Kudremukh National Park. The canals carrying water are then proposed to pass through the Bhadra Tiger Reserve. Unlike the earlier hydroelectric projects in the Western Ghats, which mostly submerged forest area at the single place of dam site and backwaters, this proposed scheme is going to deforest the Western Ghats for a stretch of 300 kilometres cutting across its length. This apart from the forest cover to be lost for various reasons.Most of the forest lost in Karnataka has been in the area with the highest forest cover, Western Ghats.

While only a few alternatives were suggested to the projects that devoured most of our pristine forests till a decade ago, an extremely alarming trend is emerging these days. Projects are being implemented without giving a single thought to the devastating consequences. Mangalore Bangalore Petroleum Pipe Line (MBPL), which damaged core Western Ghats in the districts of Dakshina Kannada and Chikmagalur is the latest example.Most of the wildlife corridors in Karnataka have been permanently destroyed by developmental activities, resulting in Man-animal conflict rising to feverish pitch in many areas. To prevent wild animals, specifically elephants, from straying into human habitats the Nethravathi forests have to be kept intact at every cost. Otherwise it will also spell disaster for the tiger conservation movement in Karnataka. Endangered Lion-tailed Macaque, Great Pied Hornbill and the Southern Birdwing are still known because they have been seen in these places...