Monday, November 29, 2010
Monday, November 22, 2010
Crocodile tears?
My response (published in the current Outlook) to the article "No More Trunk Calls" , on the massive 'rescue' effort to revive an elephant hit by a train near Lalkuan..
it was fatally hit, the article is basically on the treatment being given, the money spent to help save the elephant..
but hadn't the state scripted its obit by giving away the Gola river corridor..signing off the elephant's right of passage?
It is all very well for the Uttarakhand government and the state forest department to pour money and shed crocodile tears over the fatally injured elephant (No More Trunk Calls, November 15, 2010) when they have refused--inspite of massive efforts by the central government-- to acknowledge and conserve that particular area as a crucial elephant and tiger corridor. The Dehradun-based Wildlife Institute of India has identified the region as the Gola river corridor, but the state forest department has failed to conserve it, and willfully given away parcels of forest to myriad agencies. The Gola river corridor now has a railway line, highway, a railway sleeper factory, ITBP campus etc, blocking animal movement. Little wonder the elephant was forced to walk along the railway line..and was doomed.
Here is hoping that this fatal accident will be a wake-up call, to preserve this, and other, ancient migratory paths of our National Heritage Animal.
Regards,
prerna singh bindra
it was fatally hit, the article is basically on the treatment being given, the money spent to help save the elephant..
but hadn't the state scripted its obit by giving away the Gola river corridor..signing off the elephant's right of passage?
It is all very well for the Uttarakhand government and the state forest department to pour money and shed crocodile tears over the fatally injured elephant (No More Trunk Calls, November 15, 2010) when they have refused--inspite of massive efforts by the central government-- to acknowledge and conserve that particular area as a crucial elephant and tiger corridor. The Dehradun-based Wildlife Institute of India has identified the region as the Gola river corridor, but the state forest department has failed to conserve it, and willfully given away parcels of forest to myriad agencies. The Gola river corridor now has a railway line, highway, a railway sleeper factory, ITBP campus etc, blocking animal movement. Little wonder the elephant was forced to walk along the railway line..and was doomed.
Here is hoping that this fatal accident will be a wake-up call, to preserve this, and other, ancient migratory paths of our National Heritage Animal.
Regards,
prerna singh bindra
Sunday, November 21, 2010
CRY WOLF
It’s hot. Even though we are well into October the sun beats down on us mercilessly as we trudge through the scrub vegetation, trekking over rocks, through verdant groundnut fields into the valley of Mahuadanr. My guides for the day--forester Ajit Narayan Singh or his deputy Bachendra Chaube lead the way, slashing at thorny scrub and branches, pointing to a lonely hare that skips across our path. It is well into noon when we reach our destination , a huge boulder bearing the inscription ‘maand 1’ or ‘Cave 1’, for tucked at its base is a cave—the lair of the wolf. “Come next month,” they say, when its winter, that’s when they breed, here, and you can see them with their pups..”
I hope.
Much maligned (who doesn’t know the story of Red Riding Hood & the big Bad Wolf), and persecuted, the wolf has been exterminated across many of its ranges, worldwide. In India, too, cubs are smoked out of their dens, and then clubbed to death; or poisoned. Coupled with habitat loss and decreasing prey, wolf populations in India have taken a severe beating and are currently estimated at around 2,500.
This, the Mahuadanr Wolf Sanctuary, is perhaps the only one in India created to protect the critically endangered Indian wolf though I halt, ponder at the word ‘sanctuary’ which implies that the place is a haven, with the protective, benevolent hand of the state over it. But Ranchi is far, Delhi… even further; and Mahuadanr? It’s simply fallen off the map, relegated into nothingness, unlike the glory that surrounded its birth. The sanctuary, a conglomeration of fragmented, old zamindari forests, owes its existence to Bihar’s legendary forest officer S P Shahi. A keen conservationist, he first began visiting the valley in the early 1970s and identified Sarnidhi and Urambi hills as “colonised by a pack of wolves.” He spent many days-and nights there, observing, photographing, studying the wolves. “The valley,” Shahi writes, in his book, Backs to the Wall, “is being notified as a wolf sanctuary and will perhaps be the first of its kind in the country.” He understood the need for a deeper study of the wolves’ habits to arrive at effective strategy to save the critically endangered Indian wolf.
Sadly, the sanctuary has failed its vision. The neglect is appalling—staff shortage is as much as 90 per cent, leaving little scope for monitoring and protection. The few daily wagers employed have not been paid for months, a routine state of affairs. The management sits at Daltonganj, about 50 km away. The distance isn’t just measured in miles; the sanctuary is far from being on anyone’s priority list. Though Mahuadanr isn’t part of the Palamu Tiger Reserve, it comes under the jurisdiction of the field director. Officer visits are rare and there is no protection and management strategy. Why are areas designated sanctuaries when it is not followed up by any conservation effort or action? Even something as basic—and effective—as compensation for livestock killed is not being practiced. The biggest threat to the wolf today-apart from habitat loss—is that it is killed in retaliation. Given that there is hardly any natural prey, and villages in proximity, the dominant item on the wolf’s menu is goats and sheep. Speedy compensation helps ease the angst, and the anger. Yet, the staff is not even aware that there is provision for compensation.
I despair…how can we conserve this creature, as rare as the tiger? My answer lies in the impressions on the bank of the meandering river Burrah. Dog-like. Bigger. Well-established in the wet mud. The Mark of the Wolf—resilient predator, ancestor to the pet canine at home, and dating its linage back to over four lakh years…and yet, we are dooming it to extinction.
Appeared in The Sunday Guardian, Nov 21, 2010
(a bit edited)
I hope.
Much maligned (who doesn’t know the story of Red Riding Hood & the big Bad Wolf), and persecuted, the wolf has been exterminated across many of its ranges, worldwide. In India, too, cubs are smoked out of their dens, and then clubbed to death; or poisoned. Coupled with habitat loss and decreasing prey, wolf populations in India have taken a severe beating and are currently estimated at around 2,500.
This, the Mahuadanr Wolf Sanctuary, is perhaps the only one in India created to protect the critically endangered Indian wolf though I halt, ponder at the word ‘sanctuary’ which implies that the place is a haven, with the protective, benevolent hand of the state over it. But Ranchi is far, Delhi… even further; and Mahuadanr? It’s simply fallen off the map, relegated into nothingness, unlike the glory that surrounded its birth. The sanctuary, a conglomeration of fragmented, old zamindari forests, owes its existence to Bihar’s legendary forest officer S P Shahi. A keen conservationist, he first began visiting the valley in the early 1970s and identified Sarnidhi and Urambi hills as “colonised by a pack of wolves.” He spent many days-and nights there, observing, photographing, studying the wolves. “The valley,” Shahi writes, in his book, Backs to the Wall, “is being notified as a wolf sanctuary and will perhaps be the first of its kind in the country.” He understood the need for a deeper study of the wolves’ habits to arrive at effective strategy to save the critically endangered Indian wolf.
Sadly, the sanctuary has failed its vision. The neglect is appalling—staff shortage is as much as 90 per cent, leaving little scope for monitoring and protection. The few daily wagers employed have not been paid for months, a routine state of affairs. The management sits at Daltonganj, about 50 km away. The distance isn’t just measured in miles; the sanctuary is far from being on anyone’s priority list. Though Mahuadanr isn’t part of the Palamu Tiger Reserve, it comes under the jurisdiction of the field director. Officer visits are rare and there is no protection and management strategy. Why are areas designated sanctuaries when it is not followed up by any conservation effort or action? Even something as basic—and effective—as compensation for livestock killed is not being practiced. The biggest threat to the wolf today-apart from habitat loss—is that it is killed in retaliation. Given that there is hardly any natural prey, and villages in proximity, the dominant item on the wolf’s menu is goats and sheep. Speedy compensation helps ease the angst, and the anger. Yet, the staff is not even aware that there is provision for compensation.
I despair…how can we conserve this creature, as rare as the tiger? My answer lies in the impressions on the bank of the meandering river Burrah. Dog-like. Bigger. Well-established in the wet mud. The Mark of the Wolf—resilient predator, ancestor to the pet canine at home, and dating its linage back to over four lakh years…and yet, we are dooming it to extinction.
Appeared in The Sunday Guardian, Nov 21, 2010
(a bit edited)
Tuesday, November 16, 2010
Nice to read something nice about me :-)
from: http://www.wild.org/blog/bright-young-star-in-india/
right Young Star in India
November 16,2010 by Vance Martin
When in India you meet with effective young professionals making a real difference in nature conservation, most of them have a one thing in common…they were inspired by Bittu Sahgal (see my last post) and usually worked and were trained for awhile with Bittu’s Sanctuary Asia.
Just one example is Prerna Bindra, a very remarkable woman. A professional journalist, author, policy expert, and advocate for wild nature, she has packed a tremendous amount in the last 10 years.
She began her career in journalism, born out of a passion for the wilds, with Sanctuary Asia. Later, she moved on to mainstream media, as she believed that the message needed to percolate to the common man, and to reach a larger audience. In a career spanning over a decade, she has worked with various publications including India Today, The Asian Age, The Pioneer, Tehelka and The Indian Express— penning well over a thousand articles on nature and wildlife. She has also written nature articles for children.
Prerna, photo by Vance Martin
She is courageous. Prerna has done many investigative, undercover stories at times at considerable risk to life, ie., exposed the illegal trade in shahtoosh in Jammu & Kashmir, the ivory trade in Gujarat and the elephant massacre in Orissa. She has travelled across forests in naxal (bandit) controlled areas like Palamau and Saranda in Jharkhand, and also recently reported on the naxal attack in Simlipal Tiger Reserve in Orissa.
She has written extensively on the Terai, traversing through Uttarakhand-Uttar Pradesh-Bihar to understand and highlight man-animal conflict, poaching concerns, rehabilitation of villages from critical tiger habitats, tourism impact and other issues in protected areas in the Terai. She has consistently highlighted man-leopard conflict.
Corbett National Park, photo by Vance Martin
She wrote the hugely significant article exposing the negative impact on tourism in the famous Corbett National Park, which eventually resulted in the intervention of the Prime Minister. She has also focussed on many lesser-known endangered species such as hangul, dugongs, bustards, gharial, forest-owlet, lion-tailed macaques, Asiatic wild ass, hoolock gibbons etc. Her canvas also includes writing on deforestation, impact of power plants, mines and other mega-projects on ecology and livelihood.
She currently edits Tigerlink, a journal which collates and analyses information on the tiger from across its range countries. This is THE publication for up-to-date information on the Bengal Tiger, which Prerna produces with the help of Aditya Panda and the support of the Ranthambhore Foundation.
Prerna lobbies with governments, media on conservation issues, to impact change on the ground as well as policies at the state and central level. She is member of the National Board of Wildlife, the apex body on wildlife issues chaired by the Prime Minister, and is also part of the Standing Committee of the National Board that is empowered to take decisions on projects/activities within, and ten km around, protected areas that fall under the Wildlife Protection Act. She is also part of a team of the National Tiger Conservation Authority to assess the Management Effectiveness of tiger reserves in an IUCN framework.
Prerna also authored the report ‘Impact of tourism on tigers and other wildlife of Corbett’ for the Ministry of Tourism, which has raised concern at the highest level, has impacted change at the ground level as well as proved to be an impetus to create a buffer zone for Corbett.
Prerna is world-class…she gives me hope for wild nature in India, and for human beings the world over..
Young! star! Jesus :-) Thanks Vance.
right Young Star in India
November 16,2010 by Vance Martin
When in India you meet with effective young professionals making a real difference in nature conservation, most of them have a one thing in common…they were inspired by Bittu Sahgal (see my last post) and usually worked and were trained for awhile with Bittu’s Sanctuary Asia.
Just one example is Prerna Bindra, a very remarkable woman. A professional journalist, author, policy expert, and advocate for wild nature, she has packed a tremendous amount in the last 10 years.
She began her career in journalism, born out of a passion for the wilds, with Sanctuary Asia. Later, she moved on to mainstream media, as she believed that the message needed to percolate to the common man, and to reach a larger audience. In a career spanning over a decade, she has worked with various publications including India Today, The Asian Age, The Pioneer, Tehelka and The Indian Express— penning well over a thousand articles on nature and wildlife. She has also written nature articles for children.
Prerna, photo by Vance Martin
She is courageous. Prerna has done many investigative, undercover stories at times at considerable risk to life, ie., exposed the illegal trade in shahtoosh in Jammu & Kashmir, the ivory trade in Gujarat and the elephant massacre in Orissa. She has travelled across forests in naxal (bandit) controlled areas like Palamau and Saranda in Jharkhand, and also recently reported on the naxal attack in Simlipal Tiger Reserve in Orissa.
She has written extensively on the Terai, traversing through Uttarakhand-Uttar Pradesh-Bihar to understand and highlight man-animal conflict, poaching concerns, rehabilitation of villages from critical tiger habitats, tourism impact and other issues in protected areas in the Terai. She has consistently highlighted man-leopard conflict.
Corbett National Park, photo by Vance Martin
She wrote the hugely significant article exposing the negative impact on tourism in the famous Corbett National Park, which eventually resulted in the intervention of the Prime Minister. She has also focussed on many lesser-known endangered species such as hangul, dugongs, bustards, gharial, forest-owlet, lion-tailed macaques, Asiatic wild ass, hoolock gibbons etc. Her canvas also includes writing on deforestation, impact of power plants, mines and other mega-projects on ecology and livelihood.
She currently edits Tigerlink, a journal which collates and analyses information on the tiger from across its range countries. This is THE publication for up-to-date information on the Bengal Tiger, which Prerna produces with the help of Aditya Panda and the support of the Ranthambhore Foundation.
Prerna lobbies with governments, media on conservation issues, to impact change on the ground as well as policies at the state and central level. She is member of the National Board of Wildlife, the apex body on wildlife issues chaired by the Prime Minister, and is also part of the Standing Committee of the National Board that is empowered to take decisions on projects/activities within, and ten km around, protected areas that fall under the Wildlife Protection Act. She is also part of a team of the National Tiger Conservation Authority to assess the Management Effectiveness of tiger reserves in an IUCN framework.
Prerna also authored the report ‘Impact of tourism on tigers and other wildlife of Corbett’ for the Ministry of Tourism, which has raised concern at the highest level, has impacted change at the ground level as well as proved to be an impetus to create a buffer zone for Corbett.
Prerna is world-class…she gives me hope for wild nature in India, and for human beings the world over..
Young! star! Jesus :-) Thanks Vance.
Monday, November 15, 2010
The T3, and the IA fiasco
3 am. And a delayed Cab.Still reach airport, the showcase airport -T3 well on time. Wait at the counter. System does not work. Wait for 40 minutes. Ask IA about Raipur flights. Ears don't work. Ask again. Response systems and ability to talk also sees collective system failure.
Meanwhile, the boarding for Raipur flight closed.
System failure of response systems continue.
Flight missed, inpsite of reaching well on time.
Not just mine, but of about eight others... There had been no information on flight departure, to passengers waiting on flight.
So we are told to take tickets for the next day.
But at the 'Help' Centre the response systems again fail.
As do the network, and the printer.
Also, there is acute shortage of paper, hence tickets cannot be printed.
Please wait, you are in Q.
Meet many other fellow suffers-missed Jaipur flight, jabalpur flight, those who spent the night at the swanky new terminal, T3 ...as they missed a flight that took off right under their noses. They were waiting at the counter too..they weren't informed,
Finally about three hours later, we are 'free' to go.
But tomorrow is yet another day with yet another flight ...
Meanwhile, the boarding for Raipur flight closed.
System failure of response systems continue.
Flight missed, inpsite of reaching well on time.
Not just mine, but of about eight others... There had been no information on flight departure, to passengers waiting on flight.
So we are told to take tickets for the next day.
But at the 'Help' Centre the response systems again fail.
As do the network, and the printer.
Also, there is acute shortage of paper, hence tickets cannot be printed.
Please wait, you are in Q.
Meet many other fellow suffers-missed Jaipur flight, jabalpur flight, those who spent the night at the swanky new terminal, T3 ...as they missed a flight that took off right under their noses. They were waiting at the counter too..they weren't informed,
Finally about three hours later, we are 'free' to go.
But tomorrow is yet another day with yet another flight ...
Thursday, November 11, 2010
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