Caged

Looking into his eyes
I can feel the pain
The loneliness of pacing up and down
The growl unaswered
The thrill of the hunt long forgotten
No matter how big the cage
It is not his home
the fence the barbed wire
that's all that he has known
the elephant grass long gone
the feel of the soft moist grass
smell of a fresh kill but a distant dream
waiting for the next meal
waiting as a slave
I can feel his pain, the frustration
If there is a hell then this is it
A free spirit trapped in a cage.

The land of magical river

The towering mountains flanking me

The winding river moving to her own rhythm

Basking muggers with their evil grin

The silent rumble of the Tusker

The leopardess moving like the morning mist unheard

I lived here.... the wind screaming freedom

Eagle watching over all from their lofty towers

The white backs circling riding the thermals patiently waiting

We were searching for the mighty beast

We felt his presence more often than not

He was watching us unseen unknown

In his land I was 

I lived here..... Breathing sweating

I lived here...... Coz he let me.  

in the land of the magical river...

Sojourn to Mowgli land

How do I make you understand the morning chill in a forest, the view of trees shrouded in mist, the call of a peacock, the tree pie, the cheetal or the sambar. They say a picture is worth a thousand words that maybe true but neither words nor all the pictures we clicked will ever do justice to the true experience we lived. I am at best making a futile attempt to describe the three most amazing days of my life so far.

This is how it all began, two people in similar situation wanting to escape the rut of their existence decided to travel together. One thing leading to another with a lot of ifs and buts three friends landed in a national park late one night with a lot of doubt and apprehension. My mom Meetu had done a great job of fixing accommodation in the vip guest house (that’s Indian for not open to general public).

We had a whole lot of animal sightings from day one, saying that I realize that would still be an understatement. The forest was teaming with life, at every turn every straight we had breath taking views. We lost track of time and every one of us went into a trance like state. Every minute sound was heard every falling leaf was noticed.  

In the night sleep eluded us with the constant rustle outside; noise of a breaking twig brought us out of our deep slumber. There was this constant excitement of another sighting, we were on the edge. Not the one which drains us, not the one which makes us hate every waking second. This seemed like our inner most being was dancing to the tune of jungle.

Then on the last day it finally happened, we spotted the tiger after a near miss. To begin with I came here seeking some sort of happiness what I found was ecstasy. We just sat and watched him, every move every muscle twitch, the yawn and the stretching, if you have not seen the tiger in the wild you have missed something really worthwhile in life. Our sighting lasted for a whole 45 minute and we were still very reluctant to leave the spot even after that.

All I could do on the journey back was close my eyes and relive every moment of it. Ro and Ila were happy high after seeing the tiger in the wild. On the last safari, about four hours after spotting the first tiger, we spotted another tigress. We had a close encounter with 'Big Momma', the tigress who successfully raised five cubs in a single litter and is also the star attraction of the jungle. Truly luck was on our side. After that point nothing else mattered, nothing seemed important, all the pain and sorrow I was carrying within for a long time was washed away. I felt light and appy again. This was my pilgrimage and I paid homage to the mighty beast of the jungle and I was twice blessed on the same day.

Thank ya Meetu Gupta :)

Uniting to conserve our wildlife

Every speech, every article written about the state of wildlife in India begins with or contains the famous quote from Gandhi –“ One can measure the greatness and the moral progress of a nation by looking at how it treats its animals”. Even here I am making a reference to it. This article is not about the greatness of India’s wild heritage. A lot has been said about it in the media, and over coffee tables. This is an article about a few people involved (even remotely) with wildlife conservation. This is about how we feel. This is about the state of the system as we have come to see it. With this simple introduction I will dive into the point of contention…

Travel to any protected area where wildlife is officially supposed to exist, which is not in the ‘A list’, and talk to the locals. All you will hear are stories about the lack of effort from the Forest Department (FD) and state government. Before you conclude that this is yet another article complaining about the inadequacies of these officials, we would like to request you to put aside these doubts and read on. In our encounter with various states’ FDs we have more often than not encountered insurmountable difficulties, from plain indifference to abject hatred. That’s one part of the story. What we, as people living in civilization, don’t hear is that there are a few people still scattered around who rise above the normal rut to do good work. It is these people we seek out and help in our own capacity. Be it writing a simple proposal or a requisition letter or actively participating in conservation efforts. This story is dedicated to those people.

Fighting against all odds

The Indian forests largely have inaccessible and inhospitable terrain. Life here is not simple; most of us can’t survive there for a weekend without running water, electricity, network and internet. It is where these few able and capable forest staff works. They need help in the form of volunteers and people who come to recognize their work appreciate them and help them in whatever simple way it might be possible. This might be our first step towards wildlife conservation. Helping those involved, making their life simple. All the readers are informed enough to know that we are at the brink of losing everything. Not just the Tiger, the damage is done across all species. The tiger is simply a mascot to bring to your notice all that is wrong in the wild. There should be more public involvement and that will be the only way to bring in transparency to the FD work.

How you can help

You can start with taking some time off and contacting the nearest FD. Get involved by doing simple odd jobs, build contacts and get more people involved. We are not asking you to become the big brother, we are asking you to assist as a concerned responsible individual. Directly help the people caught in the crossfire or fund a tribal kid’s education. There are various means and ways to do it. Google will show you the way. Make sure you monitor it. Understand that this is an effort for the survival of our species, of humanity. There are people working for conservation, sadly however there is a larger number working against it. This has to change this has to be a people’s effort.

We humbly request you to take an effort in this direction and get as many people as possible involved. We need not just the tigers in our jungle, but also the leopards and gaurs and a whole lot other wonderful creatures. There is not much time left. This Wildlife Week we can, each and every one of us, work towards making that one simple change. If you cannot contribute time, help those who can. The simplest way is to help the FD of this country function better. We are always willing to help those who are lost. Let this be a new beginning and all we can hope for is the best

any queries mail us at
gupta.meetu@rediffmail.com
praveenzone@rediffmail.com

An eternal roar

The story of Raja and Rani is not just a tribute to the couple themselves, but also the many forest guards involved in giving them their space to mate for life. No, I am not using crude terminology. I actually do mean "mate" because this is the story of the only tiger pair we have heard of that has mated for life. The villagers of the Melghat Tiger Reserve, who had never seen the two apart, always knew when the pair had walked past, the inter-twined pug marks, a result of the way they gently rubbed past each other as they walked, were always a clear give-away. It was no surprise then that the one who watched over them, intended to bury them together whenever the fateful day came.

There came a time when the villagers realized that the pair had not been spotted for almost a year. Not even the romantic tangled prints that had become their identity could be traced. About the same time a pair of tiger skins was confiscated in raid some where in North India. On further interrogation it was found out that the skins were of a pair of tigers from Melghat jungle. Those skins were the remains Raja and Rani. A shooter, hired for Rs. 500; a trap setter, hired for Rs. 50; a person to watch the trap, hired for Rs. 5 all led to a women, hired for Rs. 1500, to wrap the skins round her waist, don a Burqa and transport them to a wealthy woman who paid Rs. 15 Lakhs for the skins of a pair that had mated for life. They were all arrested.

On hearing this news the distraught Mr.Barde, a forest guard to whom Raja and Rani were more then just a pair of animals, interrogated the perpetrators to find the location of the killing. On hearing that the remains of the tigers were scattered through out the mountain side to avoid detection, he traced back the location and spent the next few months looking for every remaining bone. Their bones were brought back and buried together for eternity, their pug marks never to be found again. He in his own way paid back to his beloved Raja and Rani.

On seeing the depth of emotions involved in this incident one of the perpetrator committed suicide in the same jungle.

With all the NGOs claiming to work with animals and the various government departments that are formed, we forget (as we often do) that the true heroes lie at the grass root levels. They are the true inspiration to all those with a passion for wildlife and should be on a pedestal right up there above all else.

This story is the legacy of people like Barde who are still out there. Working beyond the call of their duty, working to protect and save the last few remaining tigers. Living in inhospitable conditions and taking it all in the stride. In spite of people like Barde toiling out there, if the tiger ever goes extinct, due to our insatiable greed, on that day I would have lost all hope on human race.

Raja and Rani, their corporeal form might have been lost for ever but still somewhere in the deep jungles of Melghat in the heart of this country, if we listen closely we might still hear their roar.

Maansi & Praveen