Tadoba Andhari Tiger Reserve - The baap of Kruger scene

Tigers chasing Sambar – The Baap of Kruger Scene !

2 Tigers on Land and 2 Crocodiles in water await to kill the Sambar

 

Tadoba (Nagpur), 12-14 Nov 09

Met the Chief Forest Officer, Thane Zone, IFS (Indian Forest Service Officer, equivalent to an IAS) – Shree Bhagwan a few months back with connection to business. Myself being a wild life enthusiast got into some long drawn conversations which resulted in live experiences and future of the Wild Life in India shared quite passionately by Shree Bhagwan. I shared my poor perception of wild-life in Maharashtra purely on my experiences at Melghat Tiger Reserve, Chikaldhara and on the under developed Sanjay Gandhi National Park which has immense potential but no-one doing much about it, and the way Madhya Pradesh has projected its sanctuaries like Bandahvgarh, Kanha and Pench.

Shree Bhagwan differed with me saying that one should go to Tadoba-Andhari Tiger Reserve (625 Sq. km), which is just 150 kms from Nagpur. Shree Bhagwan had headed Tadoba around 2003-2006 and he was passionate enough to show me some brilliant pictures of tigers and other animals there and I parked his views in my mind. We had discussions on my experiences of Wild life across India and South Africa and what can turn around the same in Maharashtra and the same was taken in positive spirit by Bhagwan ji and each point was given a logical reasoning and view which a layman can not have. The discussion with such a wild life lover and a passionate IFS official was very enriching and remained in my mind and months passed by.

One fine day, had plans to visit Nagpur and the thought lying in the corner of my mind lighted up. I communicated with Shree Bhagwan and he was kind enough to meet me and spend some time guiding and mentoring me on Tadoba-Andhari.

And then, the Headlines followed. We saw a breath taking scene, though post a long patient wait of 4 hours and the scene can be termed as a Baap of Kruger (No.1 National Park of the world). Usually, the scene of Tiger chasing a prey and killing is quite common – all would have seen on Discovery, but a situation, where 2 Tigers  chasing a Sambar and the Sambar survives by jumping into the water, but unfortunately 2 Crocodiles await their prey and the battle goes on for 24 hours and finally makes the Headlines of Times of India – Front page on 16^th November 2009.

I witnessed the same and was able to capture a 35 minutes live video of the battle and Star News and Star Maza took my Interview and the same along with my video which was broadcasted on the National television at Prime time 9:30 PM on 16^th November (Attached the News video)

                                                                        JALPESH MEHTA ON STAR NEWS EXPLAINING THE KILLER SCENE OF TADOBA ANDHARI TIGER RESERVE

The World class battle of Kruger

The famous Battle of Kruger, which took place in South Africa’s Kruger National Park is one of the most widely-watched vidoes, after being posted on YouTube in 2007, it depicts how a buffalo calf, which is separated from its herd, survives a tug-of-war between a pride of lions and a few crocodiles. Soon after, the buffalo herd, in a stunning display of courage, regroups to rescue their young one, with full-grown members chasing away the lions.

The Rare Battle of Tadoba-Andhari

It was Telia Lake of Tadoba-Andhari Tiger Reserve where the battle went on for 24 hourson 13-14 Nov 2009

13 Nov : 6:30 AM : The poor Sambar (The Bigger deer species with long horns) was there grazing on the banks and suddenly 2 tigers attacked, but the sambar was lucky enough to run down the water and save its life, but it never knew that 2 crocodiles were awaiting their dinner ! The tigers went back, but were hiding in the bushes for the Sambar to come out. The Sambar struggled from the crocodiles who finally gave up and the Sambar came on the banks and the injured Sambar, unable to walk came out.

13 Nov : 5:30 PM : We sat in our jeeps (only 4-5 in the whole park, unlike 50 in Kanha)  from 2 PM and at 5:30 PM saw the female tiger slowly coming out of the bushes and strategizing her secret moves to attack. She took the way from water and then the bushes and finally attached but was unlucky again. I was able to capture the whole  live incident on my Sony Handicam with 2000X Zoom.
14 Nov : 6:30 AM : When we entered the park, the brave Samber had already lost its battle in the night and the Tiger was enjoying its breakfast and the 24 hours long battle thus ended.

 

A Background on TADOBA :

Tadoba is Dry Deciduous Forest of Central India with lots of leafy bushes, meadows and Bamboo trees. There are 3 ranges – Moharali, Tadoba and Kolasa. Main area is Moharali which is close to Chandrapur – just 25 kms and there are other gates like Kolara gates and Navegaon gates which are much closer to Nagpur, if one is coming from Nagpur – saves an hour. The Park is a Tiger Project and claims that there are 40 Tigers in the park. Other animals include panther, bison, sloth bear, hyaena, jackal, wild dog, blue bull, sambhar, cheetal, barking deer, four-horned antelope, chinkara, hare, porcupine, langur etc. There is a variety of Birds – around 140 and reptiles and insects. One should not miss the huge Cob webs and Spiders in the jungles of Kolasa.

How to reach : This National Park is in the Nagpur-Chandrapur district, easily accessible with good roads – takes 2-2.5 hrs from Nagpur (directly to Kolara or Navegaon gate) or through Chandrapur to Mohrali gate.

Jeep Safari : The only developed area is Mohrali (25 kms from Chandrapur) or one can say commercial – around 6-20 jeeps enter this gate while other gates hardly get 2-3. This gives you a place with less tourists like BG and Kanha and once can also have a little leniency in terms of timings. The park opens to Jeep Safaris (from 6AM to 11AM and 2PM to 6PM). We were there for just 3 safaris (1 Morning and 2 evenings). There are not much jeeps and hence no unions which has its own merits and demerits.

Places to stay : There were foreigners but not as much as in MP and may be this is what is lacking for the development – lack of awareness, hence lesser footfalls, hence lesser business opportunities, hence lesser commercialization (eg. Not many good hotels to stay except MTDC, Saras and moderate rates -1200-1400 for AC rooms and Tiger Trails – around 5000. There are not much private hotels and resorts either. Eating restaurants are also limited to 2-3. Chandrapur is also a decent option to stay (Hotels Sidhartha, Hotel Kundan Plaza)

The People, Guides, Forest Officials : The place gives you a real upcountry feel as not much developed or commercialized like Kanha and Bandhavgarh. There are still some villages in the park area and yet to rehabilitated, so you may find some adivasi – tribals cycling or walking around which is not so common in BG and Kanha.

The Guides and Forest systems are good and well trained, they have exchange programmes and trainings at BG and Kanha.

The Animal tracking is a but different here - No calls of Cheetal or Monkeys over movements of the Tiger or No common tracking of the Tigers movement like pug marks by guides or jeep guys who would identify an area where tigers are frequenting and all would try the luck there, which in most probability helps see the tigers.

Coverage of entire ranges – There are 3 ranges. Drivers of Mohrali Range prefer staying around Mohrali only and usually avoid going too far to other ranges like Tadoba or Kolasa giving fake excuses that there are not much sighting etc and the first timers get fooled. The reason of this is to save fuel and efforts driving (they charge Rs. 1300 for each safari and if they make you sit at one place waiting for the animal they save the whole cost). Believe me, the best forest so far I have seen is the Kolasa, which beats even Kanha in terms of the feel of forest. It was just one jeep and the roads are much less travelled with absolutely bushy roads with just two tyre lanes and huge long bushes even on the middle of the road and lot of greenery. It gives you that irky feeling of what if the jeep breaks down here as there are no other jeeps or connectivity – Kolasa drive is a must and there are some points where one can sight animals, though we didn’t like – Kakadghat, Ambewadi, Shravani Zari etc.

Some Useful Numbers :

Jeep Owners : Sameer Maji – 9325770530, Anil Tewade – 9579010493, (They can organize the stay etc without any charges) –Jeep Fees – Rs 1300 per safari; Guide Fee – Rs 100, Entry – Per Jeep – Rs 50,  per Person – Rs 20. Forest Office – TADOBA – 07172 251414; Forest Officer Chandrapur – 0712 2528953/2552518/2765

My Views on TADOBA and Wild Life Tourism in Maharashtra :

Most of us think of beaches or hills or pilgrimage when we think of holidaying near our home – Mumbai, somewhere close for 2-4 days or a weekend trips.  Wild Life which is a very exotic and upcoming tourism (Africa’s leading revenue making industry) – the problem is

(a)     Indians have not really taken this sort of a tourism so seriously, though there is a niche segment. –(My mother says, why do you have to go to such deep forests and for so many days just to see tigers – you can go to the zoo – The mentality of Indian tourism is primarily Beaches, Hills and Pilgrimage no matter however crowded they are !) In this age when space tourism or Horror tourism (you are taken to real haunted places where you “may” encounter ghosts or spirits) are evolving, India should look beyond the typical holidaying and wild life is such an area where more foreigners come as compared to Goa ! Many  Yound Indians are getting into Adventure Tourism and that’s a good sign.

(b)    The experience of Wild Life tourism has to be better than what one gets in the routine holidaying and that is what South Africa and many National Parks like Kanha or Bandhavgarh have achieved. Maharashtra is way behind.

Melghat (Chikaldhara, near Badnera Rly Station) was the saddest experience in wild life in Maharashtra, where could not see a small mouse in the forest, no regrets, but regrets over the poor attitude of the forest officials – the babu culture where they ridiculed the far claimed tiger project names by just a 30 minute safari on some jungle roads, where you literally don’t find any single insect, bird or animal and the guide had to be forcefully picked from home as no one in the village was willing to come unlike other places where the forest department has evolved the lives of local adivasis (tribals) bu uplifting them rehabilitating them and creating multiple job opportunities for them (guides, trekers, helpers, drives, jeep safari owners, restauranters and even employees of forest departments etc) despite of their illiteracy and lack of communication skills. If I could, would want the park to be delisted from being a Sanctuary but am told maybe the landscape of Chikaldhara is such hilly and terraineous unlike Kanha, BG. But in that case the place should not be promoted for tourism but should be maintained as a Core Area only.

Tadoba was great experience but luck factor was also strong. But Tadoba speaks of the future of Wild Life in Maharashtra and the scene sighted above is a challenge to all the national parks where tourists could see such a scene at all !

Bandhav Garh, Kanha, Pench in Madhya Pradesh or Ranthambhore in Rajasthan or even Jim Corbett have created a brand of theirs that attract tourists. Not that they have assured or 100% probability of sighting (Have know many who have spend days in the park with futile efforts to sight a tiger), but the awareness is so strong (through media, word of mouth etc) and the commercialization is strong (Good lodging, boarding, infrastructure, roads, security etc), that people visit these parks. Besides being Commercial, they provide great hospitality and service as they know that their house runs on the same – Right from Hotels, government officials to locals and that is one more reason.  The distance or reachability is also discounted. BG or Kanha are the most difficult to reach parks in terms of airport and rail connectivity (eg. To go to BG from Mumbai, one has to go by train to Katni or by flight to Jabalpur and travel by bad roads for 3-4 hours, but still lots of people come – lots of foreigners come as these places are becoming brands and the government plays a major role. The same happens if this Industry is taken seriously or the Department of Forest has some strong weight in the respective State. Or the last way is, if the Minister is a strong person with a vision and passion and a will to change things. In Maharashtra, the new Forest  Minister, is Shri. Patangrao Kadam and he is known for his administrative skills and the way he has mould the education industry and I sincerely hope and appeal to the Hon. Minister to help evolve the Wild Life Industry in Maharashtra. And hope to have more IFS officers like Shree Bhagwan who have given their lives for forests and wildlife and on whose names there are villages (In Tadoba, people have renamed their village as Bhagwanpur as the IFS Officer had rehabilitated the tribals and had helped them evolve in lives and had helped the Forest evolve as a valuable park.

Maharashtra is usually known for Beaches, Hills and Pilgrimage, but Wild Life is also abundant here. Tadoba, Melghat and Pench (One portion is in MP and other in Maharashtra) and even Sanjay Gandhi National Park in Mumbai – these can be developed and promoted very well and can attract good tourists as well as revenue to the state. Hope the state looks beyond Electricity, Sugarcane and Commerce !

Project Tiger

Project Tiger is a wildlife conservation movement initiated in India in 1972 to protect Tigers. The project aims at tiger conservation in specially constituted Tiger Reserves representative of various regions throughout India and strives to maintain viable populations of Bengal tigers in their natural environment.

In 2008, there were more than 40 Project Tiger reserves covering an area over 37,761 km² (14,580 sq mi). Project Tiger helped to increase the population of these tigers from 1,200 in the 1970s to 3,500 in 1990s. However, a 2008 census held by the Government of India revealed that the tiger population had dropped to 1,411. Since then the government has pledged US$153 million to further fund the project, set-up a Tiger Protection Force to combat poaches and fund the relocation of up to 200,000 villagers to minimize human-tiger conflicts.

Goals and objectives

Project Tiger was meant to identify the limiting factors and to mitigate them by suitable management. The damages done to the habitat were to be rectified so as to facilitate the recovery of the ecosystem to the maximum possible extent.

The following potential tiger habitats are being covered:^[1]

• Sivalik–Terai Conservation Unit (UP, Uttaranchal, Bihar & WB), and in Nepal
• North east Conservation Unit
• Sunderbans Conservation Unit
• Central Indian Conservation Unit
• Eastern Ghat Conservation Unit
• Western Ghat Conservation Unit

Organisation

Project Tiger is administered by the National Tiger Conservation Authority. The overall administration of the project is monitored by a Steering Committee. A Field Director is appointed for each reserve, who is assisted by the field and technical personnel. At the centre, a full-fledged Director of the project coordinates the work for the country.

Wireless communication system and outstation patrol camps have been developed within the tiger reserves, due to which poaching has declined considerably. Fire protection engineering is carried out by suitable preventive and control measures. Villages have been relocated in many reserves, especially from core areas. Livestock grazing has been controlled to a great extent in the tiger reserves. Various compensatory developmental works have improved the water regime and the ground and field level vegetation, thereby increasing the animal density.

History

The tiger population in India at the turn of the 19th century was estimated at 45,000 individuals. The first ever all-India tiger census was conducted in 1972 which revealed the existence of only 1827 tigers. In 1973, the project was launched in Palamau Tiger Reserve, and various tiger reserves were created in the country based on a 'core-buffer' strategy. For each tiger reserve, management plans were drawn up based on the following principles:

• Elimination of all forms of human exploitation and biotic disturbance from the core area and rationalization of activities in the buffer zone.
• Restricting the habitat management only to repair the damages done to the eco-system by human and other interferences so as to facilitate recovery of the eco-system to its natural state.
• Monitoring the faunal and floral changes over time and carrying out research about wildlife.

Global organizations such as the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) contributed much funding to Project Tiger. Eventually, however, it was discovered that the project's field directors had been manipulating tiger census numbers in order to encourage more financial support. In fact, the numbers were so exaggerated as to be biologically impossible in some cases. In addition, Project Tiger's efforts were damaged by poaching, as well as the Sariska debacle and the latest Namdapha tragedy, both of which were reported extensively in the Indian media.

The landmark report, Status of the Tigers, Co-predators, and Prey in India, published in 2007 by the National Tiger Conservation Authority estimates only 1411 adult tigers in existence in India, plus uncensused tigers in the Sundarbans

The project to map all the forest reserves in India has not been completed yet, though the Ministry of Environment and Forests had sanctioned INR 13 million for the same in March 2004.

The Forest Rights Act passed by the Indian government in 2006 recognises the rights of some forest dwelling communities in forest areas. This has led to controversy over implications of such recognition for tiger conservation. Some have argued that this is problematic as it will increase conflict and opportunities for poaching; some also assert that "tigers and humans cannot exist". Others argue that this is a limited perspective that overlooks the reality of human-tiger coexistence and the role of abuse of power by authorities, rather than local people, in the tiger crisis. This position was supported by the Government of India's Tiger Task Force, and is also taken by some forest dwellers' organisations.

Future plans

Wildlife protection and crime risk management in the present scenario requires a widely distributed Information Network, using state-of-the-art information and communication technology. This becomes all the more important to ensure the desired level of protection in field formations to safeguard the impressive gains of a focused project like 'Project Tiger'. The important elements in wildlife protection and control are: Mapping/Plot (graphics)plotting the relative spatial abundance of wild animals, identification of risk factors, proximity to risk factors, 'sensitivity categorization', 'crime mapping' and immediate action for apprehending the offenders based on effective networking and communication.

Space technology has shown the interconnectivity of natural and anthropogenic
phenomena occurring anywhere on earth. Several tiger reserves are being linked with the Project Tiger Directorate in the GIS domain for Wildlife Crime Risk Management. A 'Tiger Atlas of India' and a 'Tiger Habitat and Population Evaluation System' for the country is being developed using state-of-the-art technology. This involves:

• Mapping, data acquisition and GIS modeling
• Field data collection and validation
• Data Maintenance, dissemination and use

Satellite data is being used and classified into vegetation and land use maps on a 1:50,000 scale, with digitized data relating to contour, villages, roads, drainage, administrative boundaries and soil. The spatial layers would be attached with attribute data, viz. human population, livestock population, meteorological data, agricultural information and field data pertaining to wildlife, habitat for evolving regional protocols to monitor tigers and their habitat.Conservation of tigers and their prey species faces challenges from the need for income, lack of awareness, and lack of land use policy in landscapes having Tiger Reserves.


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What is Project Tiger
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Credits and Reference - wikipidea

The Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972

The Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972 has been amended to provide for constituting of the National Tiger Conservation Authority responsible for implementation of the Project Tiger Plan to protect endangered tigers. The National Tiger Conservation Authority is set up under the Chairmanship of the Minister for Environment & Forests. The Authority will have eight experts or professionals having qualifications and experience in wildlife conservation and welfare of people including tribals, apart from three Members of Parliament of whom two will be elected by the House of the People and one by the Council of States. The Inspector General of Forests, in charge of project Tiger, will be ex-officio Member Secretary.

The Authority, interalia, would lay down normative standards, guidelines for tiger conservation in the Tiger Reserves, apart from National Parks and Sanctuaries. It would provide information on protection measures including future conservation plan, tiger estimation, disease surveillance, mortality survey, patrolling, report on untoward happenings and such other management aspects as it may deem fit, including future plan for conservation.

The Authority would also facilitate and support tiger reserve management in the States through eco-development and people's participation as per approved management plans, and support similar initiatives in adjoining areas consistent with the Central and state laws.

The Tiger Conservation Authority would be required to prepare an Annual Report, which would be laid in the Parliament along with the Audit Report.

State level Steering Committees will be set up in the Tiger States under the Chairmanship of respective Chief Ministers. As recommended by the Tiger Task Force constituted by the Prime Minister, this has been done with a view for ensuring coordination, monitoring and protection of tigers in the States.

A provision has been made for the State Governments to prepare a Tiger Conservation Plan, which would include staff development, their deployment to ensure protection of tiger reserves and its development, while ensuring compatible forestry operations in adjoining areas. Further, safeguards have been provided for ensuring the agricultural, livelihood, developmental and other interests of the people living inside a forest or in and around a tiger reserve. The core as well as buffer areas have been explicitly explained to avoid ambiguity.

Provision will be made for the States to establish a Tiger Conservation Foundation, based on the good practices emanating from some tiger reserves. The proposed Foundation is a Trust, which would be constituted as per the appropriate statutory provisions in vogue in the State. It will have administrative autonomy as delegated by the State Government for fund generation to foster eco-tourism, eco-development and related activities involving the local people.

 The Wild Life (Protection) Amendment Act, 2006

The Wild Life (Protection) Amendment Act, 2006 (No. 39 of 2006) has come into force on 4 September 2006. The Act provides for creating the National Tiger Conservation Authority and the Tiger and Other Endangered Species Crime Control Bureau (Wildlife Crime Control Bureau).

The implementation over the years has highlighted the need for a statutory authority with legal backing to ensure tiger conservation. On the basis of the recommendations of National Board for Wild Life, a Task Force was set up to look into the problems of tiger conservation in the country. The recommendations of the Task Force, inter alia include strengthening of Project Tiger by giving it statutory and administrative powers, apart from creating the Wildlife Crime Control Bureau. It has also recommended that an annual report should be submitted to the Central Government for laying in Parliament, so that commitment to Project Tiger is reviewed from time to time, in addition to addressing the concerns of local people.

The National Tiger Conservation Authority would facilitate MoU with States within our federal set up for tiger conservation. It will provide for an oversight by Parliament as well. Further, it will address livelihood interests of local people in areas surrounding Tiger Reserves, apart from ensuring that the rights of Scheduled Tribes and such other people living nearby are not interfered or adversely affected. The core (critical) and buffer (peripheral) areas have been defined, while safeguarding the interests of Scheduled Tribes and such other forest dwellers.

The functions and powers of the Authority, inter alia include : approval of Tiger Conservation Plan prepared by States, laying down normative standards for tiger conservation, providing information on several aspects which include protection, tiger estimation, patrolling, etc., ensuring measures for addressing man-wild animal conflicts and fostering co-existence with local people, preparing annual report for laying before Parliament, constitution of Steering Committee by States, preparation of tiger protection and conservation plans by States, ensuring agricultural, livelihood interests of people living in and around Tiger Reserves, establishing the tiger conservation foundation by States for supporting their development.

The Notification of the National Tiger Conservation Authority has been issued on 4 September 2006, for a period of three years, with the Minister for Environment and Forests as its Chairperson and the Minister of State for Environment and Forests as the Vice-chairperson. The official members include Secretary, Ministry of Environment and Forests, Director General of Forests and Special Secretary, Ministry of Environment and Forests, Secretary, Ministry of Tribal Affairs, Secretary, Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment, Chairperson, National Commission for the Scheduled Tribes, Chairperson National Commission for the Scheduled Castes, Secretary, Ministry of Panchayati Raj, Director, Wildlife Preservation, Ministry of Environment and Forests and six Chief Wildlife Wardens (in rotation from Tiger Reserve States) (Arunachal Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Orissa, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu and Uttaranchal). Three Members of Parliament would be nominated by the Parliament. The Ministry of Law and Justice would also be nominating an officer. The Ministry of Environment and Forests is in the process of selecting the eight non-official experts or professionals having prescribed qualifications and experience, of which at least two shall be from the field of tribal development. The Inspector General of Forests in charge of Project Tiger shall be the Member Secretary of the Authority.

The Ministry is in the process of creating the Wildlife Crime Control Bureau, invoking the provisions created after the recent amendment. The Bureau would collate intelligence relating to wildlife crime, ensure coordination with State Governments and other Authorities through its set up, apart from developing infrastructure and capacity building for scientific and professional investigation into wildlife crimes and assist the State Governments in successful prosecution of such crimes.

The penalty for an offence relating to the core area of a tiger reserve or hunting in the reserve has been increased. The first conviction in such offence shall be punishable with imprisonment not less than three years but may extend to seven years, and also with fine not less than fifty thousand rupees but may extend to two lakh rupees. The second or subsequent conviction would lead to imprisonment not less than seven years, and also with fine not less than five lakh rupees, which may extend to fifty lakh rupees.

National Tiger Conservation Authority

National Tiger Conservation Authority

The National Tiger Conservation Authority was established in December 2005 following a recommendation of the Tiger Task Force constituted by the Prime Minister of India for reorganized management of Project Tiger and the many Tiger Reserves in India.

Tiger conservation

In June 2007, a detailed survey by the Wildlife Institute of India (WII), which used accurate camera traps for counting tigers rather than the more traditional method of counting footprints (pugmarks), reported that previous estimates of tiger numbers in India may be hugely optimistic. The landmark report, Status of the Tigers, Co-predators, and Prey in India, published by the National Tiger Conservation Authority, estimates only 1411 adult tigers in existence in India (plus uncensused tigers in the Sundarbans)

For example, in the 16 reserves of Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Maharashtra and Chhattisgarh there may be only 490 tigers – a 60% reduction from the 1,233 tigers previously estimated for these areas in 2002. Indeed, the same 2002 survey had claimed that in total, India had 3,500 tigers, whilst the new survey claims that just 1,400 remain.

Although India does have good laws governing tiger conservation, there is frustration amongst those working in tiger conservation that these laws are not being adequately implemented. However, initiatives such as Born Free’s community and education work in India are getting good results.

Translocating villagers out of tiger reserves can be effective too, if sensitively done. The villagers get access to schools and health care and can farm without risk of attack, the tigers’ prey flourishes in the absence of disturbance, and poachers’ activities are harder to disguise. In China, the domestic trade in tiger body parts was banned 14 years ago. However, there are at least 5,000 tigers in tiny cages in China, reportedly just for display.

Nevertheless, farmers seem quite open about the fact that tigers are killed so their body parts can be used for Traditional Medicine. At the CITES¹ conference in June, there was a proposal from China to amend the Convention text governing the trade in tiger parts. This would have effectively given China the go-ahead to trade in ‘parts and derivatives’ from captive bred tigers. Thankfully this proposal was rejected by the CITES Parties, and instead a landmark decision taken, which states that ‘tigers should not be bred for trade in their parts and derivatives’. Will this decision see the end of tiger farming in China? Only time will tell.

The most recent audit of wild tigers by the Authority (in early 2008) has estimated the number at 1411 wild tigers - 1165 - 1657 allowing for statistical error - a drop of 60% in the past decade

Wildlife Conservation and Empower Foundation...

Wild Life and Nature Conservation

Each one of us encounters China atleast once a day, either when we see a traffic signal urchin selling a Chinese toy or colleague carrying a new expensive looking cheap Chinese gadget to an extent that even the traditional Indian items like the lanterns for diwali (festival of light) and the idols of Lord Ganesha (the Indian elephant God) are made in China. We either appreciate or or crib about

China for its mass production strategy almost taking over the Indian market. Having said all, China definitely has given a dent in the Indian Economy and even the wildlife sector has not remained untouched of this dent.

All would have seen the 1411 Tigers and Save the Tigers Campaign, but, one of the biggest hand in the declining population of our National Animal is China ! The hunting for Chinese medicine and fur is the biggest cause of decline of the tigers.

The Wild Indian and Empower Foundation with this blog is trying to give all Indians a brief background on the whole issue with some way forwards too.

A Background :

Nearly one tiger is getting killed everyday in India despite many Tiger conservation programs, mainly due to habitat loss and indiscriminate poaching for pelts, bones and teeth used to make medicines allegedly providing the tigers strength. A 40000 Tigers number at the beginning of the 20^th Century is at just 1411 today !

For a poor Indian farmer, for whom word suicide is like common cold, the money from selling a tiger equals six months of hard work on the fields, no wonder killing an endangered animal seems a tempting option. Tiger pelts can fetch up to $12,500 to $15000 in China.  Infact, there are poaching tribes existing in the country, many of them are caught with the tiger skins and bones and are spending their lives behind bars.

As per data by greendiary, even in the woods of Ranthambhore, the only dry deciduous tiger habitat in the world to spot the elusive cat, the tiger population has dwindled to just 35. Meanwhile, the number of people living next to the park has more than tripled, from 70,000 in 1980 to 250,000 today. The new arrivals have brought construction, logging and nearly 1 million grazing livestock. Even as their habitat shrinks the tigers tend to seek out this livestock, resultant in revenge killings by the farmers. Its almost humans versus tigers, with land getting more and more limited. Also, Human activities including carbon emissions, other pollution, habitat destruction and fragmentation, and climate change are driving an unprecedented wave of destruction and habitat degradation that is leading to species extinction on a scale never before seen in the Earth’s recent past.

I began with the Tigers for 2 reasons – (1) Tiger is our National Animal (2) Save the Tigers Campaign has atleast set the base or created the basic plinth about the cause and building on the same will be easy as there is much much more beyond the Tigers. And ofcourse, the government has various projects for other species too.

Equal number of Elephants (for their tusks & bones ), Rhinos (for their horns & bones) and Lions (for their skins and bones) are being killed year on year.  There are many species like the Indian / Asiatic Cheetah,  Snow Leopard, Barasingha, Rhinoceros,  Pink-headed Duck, Himalayan Quail, Gangatic Dolphins, etc on its way to extinction. If you even recall the last time you saw a sparrow in Mumbai. We are loosing animals and birds, an important part of our world and the day would soon come when our kids would be shown a tiger in a museum like our parents showed us the Dinosaurs !

What can we do ?

It is quite alarming – when you ask someone to Save the Tiger – How can I save a tiger is the first question and the cause itself gets killed in the first shot. The campaign gets you only one thing and that is Awareness, well atleast. But what next ? This is a bigger question.

Being friend with some CFCs  (Chief Forest Conservators) / IFSs (Indian Forest Service Officers) below are some simple ways on how a common citizen like me or you can Conserve the Wild Life or Nature.

CITIZEN LEVEL – A very important stakeholder for the Conservation are us – the citizen of India, who need to learn, understand and appreciate the cause. Then would follow the other steps.

1. Awareness – The first and the most important step is creating awareness on the subject. For eg. How many of us know about the Wild life of India, how many of us understand and appreciate the same. How many of us consider Wildlife tourism as a holiday option ? How many of us have initiated a process of taking our kids and showing them the beauty of jungles, animals in their wild habitat and teaching them to appreciate the nature so they can conserve it. Ideally, thewildindia and Empower Foundation would try doing this basic.

·         One can read websites/blogs and forward good articles to the peer group for awareness. Do you know that Gangetic Dolphin is our National Aquatic Animal ? or do you know that there are many natural destinations near Mumbai where you can explore nature without the crowd of the tourists to the closest over a weekend ?

2. Spread the Message - One can display their respect or love for the cause by means of using a wild animals picture on the desktop/laptop/screen saver or wear a T-Shirt with such cause (Surrogate advertising)
3. Participate in a Campaign - One can participate in a petition/pledge for a certain cause (thesedays the same are online). Raise your voice against this injustice. Peaceful protest, human chain, petition and rally are some ways to do it. You can also write a heart felt and logical letter to the government stating your ideas about this issue and how it can be solved. Remember- an RTI has to be replied else the government officials are fined !
4. Contribue and Collaborate - One can contribute (time, money) to various NGOs working in that area post being satisfied with their process. Choose and Fight for a cause - Visit Zoo / Circus and if you find poor state of the animals, you could directly or through an NGO file an RTI and fight for the Right of the animal. It hardly takes a few minutes of your life.
5. Protest -Refuse to buy products that contain animal ingredients such as fur, ivory, and tortoise shell. Refuse to buy products that have been tested on animals. Think about what you eat.  You get Zebra, Antelope, Crocodile Flesh very easily in Africa. Some of my acquaintances in India have experienced Wild Hare, Deer and Peacock Meat. Ideally, all should become Vegetarians, but it’s a personal call. Buy recycled paper and save paper for recycling to help conserve forested habitats. Protest illegal tree –felling and Plant trees – a common one though

GRASSROOT LEVEL – The most important stakeholder for the Conservation are our Tribals. - Man-Animal Conflict has to be tackled at the ground level and its not that difficult. 

1. Awareness at the GrassRoot level- One can Join the Forest department officials for some social initiative – As we all know that man-animal fight leads to the extinction of the wild life. Not just wildlife, even teak plantation would soon become endangered with the illegal cutting of trees. Here too, Awareness at the grass root level is required on what to do and what not to do. Forest department is too small in strength, be it anywhere in the country and would always require support from the citizens.
2. Engaging with the Tribals and educating them as the same is the base, so that they who are on the ground can conserve nature first.
3. Empowering the Tribals with employment generating opportunities (eg. Art)
4. Promote Rural Tourism so a revenue generation can happen.
5. One can donate Old Clothes, Old cycles, two-wheelers other household items to the tribals.
6. One can mentor a tribal family or a class of tribal youth

SOUTH AFRICA - The Unbeatable Wild Life Experience

July 12, 2008, Johannesburg, South Africa : It was around 4 AM in the morning, pitch dark and 2 souls awake in the morning, one not so enthusiastic, till he was there – there at the Pilanesberg Wild Life Sanctuary, my maiden experience in the wild (in my whole senses, besides the ones when I was a small kid). We were on a South Africa business visit for the International Partners business of the bank post which I wanted a Saturday to be spent in the Wild of Africa, post much of Discovery Channel pumping in. With me was Gautam Sehgal who I convinced to join in with an add-on of the Sun City visit (where Ms. Worlds or Universe were held) in the evening ;)

The Pilanesberg National Park is situated in the Northwest province, about a 2 hour drive northwest of Johannesburg. The park ranks among the largest of the national parks in South Africa (it is in fact the fourth largest park), and covers an area of 55,000 hectares. It also has the bonus of being a non-malaria area and is home to the 'Big 5' – Lion, Rhino, Elephant, Buffalo, Leopard.

A Dark green Pajero arrived at our hotel in the morning, with a 7 ft African (Vincent) greeting us enthusiastically at 4 in the morning with a warm namaste, courtesy his regular business with the bank and Indian officials visiting South Africa and courtesy my friend Afzal Azmi who had almost imbibed many DNAs of India in him !

We left and post 2 hours of lovely drive, experiencing the sun break in the midway reached the gates of the Pilanesberg Game Sanctuary. It was yet little dark and to our first surprise was the “Declaration Form” which made us sign on various terms, the most astonishing one “ I would be responsible for any accident or death caused due to any circumstances in the sanctuary and not the government or the sanctuary authorities. Like normal humans, since all were signing and as there was no scope of questioning at 6 in the morning, we too signed and moved ahead.

As we entered the scene around of the lovely jungle game me the dejavu of the discovery channels with light orange long grassland and a flat topography. And soon the 10-12 jeeps which entered together at the gate vanished into thi9n air.  The first animal which we saw, I still clearly remember was a Rhino along with a Baby Rhino, and that too while passing by, as in we did not put in any major efforts finding them as they were on their morning walks. The first sight of the large animal bigger than our Pajero was like still a dream. We waited there for the movement, though they did not much, we clicked a few pictures and moved ahead as Vincent said theres lot to se, as he has visited this place around 5 times.

The next 30 mins were boring, not being able to find any animal around, though a few birds which Vincent showed us but we were typical Indians and cared least for wasting time on the birds, wherein the britishers and Americans were shooting them as if they were more dearer than their spouses.

Soon, we entered into a different topography, a bit hilly at the end, but a greener grassland and we saw a scene which beats our first encounter – a herd of more than 100 Zebras ! The scene was fascinating…. The color scheme was breathtaking, any camera could not have captured. And as we moved closer, saw a few different type of animals camouflaged in the herd of zebras. They were neither horse, not goat, nor deer, but a mix of all called the wild beasts. This animal was fascinating as had never learned about it in school or as a child in a zoo or circus !  Well, this was just the beginning as per Vincent. He drove further and soon we neared a big lake and he stopped and asked us to stay silent. We did so ! But post 5 minutes asked him does he see something and he said he did, but now that something was not visible and soon in a while we saw a stone like structure move in the water and emerging on a bank near me and another smaller stone too flowing in. As it emerged, we knew we had encountered the Hippo and the Baby Hippo and Vincent felt or knew that and since these animals are extremely shy and sensitive, he had asked us to be absolutely silent and not murmur a word amongst us.

We moved further and saw many monkeys (Indians don’t care much as we keep seeing them so often, but there are 23 types of monkeys, 8 of them in this park) and also beautiful deers. Soon Vincent screeched and stopped on the way and showed us porcupines running into bushes, which we just managed to quickly take a note of. Hats off to Vincent for his sense of identifying or catching a life in the thick dense African forest. He says it’s the local tribal instinct and he is mostly right. We moved further and again halted as Vincent literally got out of the window to find us a huge herd of African Elephants ! They were far, but beautiful – thanks to my Sony 40X Digicam which could capture what the cameras could not and what a beauty – much different than the Indian elephants, these animals had huge ears and long white tusks and Vincy thanked, that they were not near !

Being so much impressed with Vincent and his instincts, and having seen these animals, we – the typical Indians asked for just one thing to Vincent – show us some Big ones ! Well, the park housed some lions and leopards but these animals were difficult to sight as the forest his huge and its purely on luck, where instincts also don’t work. But there are ways to arrive to this luck. Well, we were asked to hold our expectations low, so we don’t feel too bad if we don’t see one, but the overall package with so many animals was definitely much important. Vincent promised us more excitement and he only knew why and how.

We quickly had our breakfast (packed one at hotel) at a common point, where tourists were allowed to step down, refresh and answer the natures call. It was around 11 noon. And we spent 5 hrs in the wild.

                         

We moved further and Vincent drove us suddenly over some hill, don’t know how and where did it emerge from and asked us confidently to await some surprise and soon we were in a terrain with long trees all around on a plain bushy land and then came our surprise – the tall shining giraffes – not one but many. This topography with tall trees was the best for the giraffes and our man Afro knew it – I shall call it common sense now and no instinct. As we traveled we saw many giraffes and one thing was common none were single. Were always with one to three fellow companions and then were told that these are unconfident animals and like to stay in small groups, of like minded ones, though not in herds. And 3 of them together can make hell out of a lions life and Vincent has seen a lioness being kicked 10 ft in the air by one of the giraffe. The best part with Vincent was to learn the detailed nature and habits of each animal.

Well, now the desire was to see the King of the Jungle and it was getting dark and we desperate, but Vincy said not to worry as dawn and dusk are the best time to trace the Big 5s and imagine what we encountered a Lion and Lioness and Majestic was the only adjective which could describe the scene. What and experience at Pilanesberg – a dream come true  ! And at this place took birth of my Bug for the Wild and Nature and I said to myself – India has much and why haven’t I explored it ?

We moved to Sun City post the great day and returned back to our hotel rooms as satisfied as cracking a big deal… but as a greedy human, the real dream is still due- the Masai Mara – Kenya-Tanzania migration experience in Africa – Hope to realize this dream soon !

 

VINCENT, GAUTAM & MYSELF