Treesouls

The Union Budget for 2011-12, announced by India’s Union Finance Minister, Mr Pranab Mukherjee, in Parliament on February 28, 2011 does seem to take a hard look at environmental concerns with some concrete plans on the anvil. Down below are the salient features.

• 4% increase in the budget allocation for the ministry of environments and forests compared to last year,  i.e. from Rs.220 million to Rs.230 million.

• Drop in funding in the segment of Forestry and Wildlife protection, which is from Rupees 7.93 billion in 2010-11 to Rupees 7.85 billion this year.

• Increase in allotment for the conservation of ecology and environment which is changed from Rupees 12.2 billion in 2010-2011 to Rupees 13.5 billion for the current year.

• Over Rs.600 crore allocated for protection and regeneration of forests, environmental management and cleaning of rivers and lakes.

• Rs 200 crore allocation for 2011 from the National Clean Energy Fund to start implememention of the ambitious 10 Years Green India Mission (GIM) program

• Rs 200 crore from the National Clean Energy Fund for environmental remediation program, cleaning up of the Ganges and other important rivers.

Never in my wildest dreams would I have thought that I would have blood on my hands today. The incident happened just in the matter of a few seconds.Now, I am about 3kms away from the scene of that unavoidable calamity. Aimless, like a vagabond, I wandered in the green canopy that surrounded me. I felt fear, confusion and anger. The dry leaves that crackled under my heavy feet added to the mixed emotions that ran circles in my mind.

Will they come in search of me? Warm blood trickled like rivulets alongside my ears. I turned back once to see if anyone was in pursuit. I could feel my lower lips palpitate uncontrollably in anger. There was no one following me but the possibility did exist. Before that happens, I need to get away as far as possible.

I swear, I did not do it wantonly. Only thing I don’t understand is why they kept piling those barricades across the paths that were meant to be used. This has been happening for the past few months. Quite a few times I had returned back, confused that I had taken a wrong route. But this day, since she had consented to accompany me, I decided to get across the barricade. By exploring new places, I felt my relationship with her would improve. In hindsight, this desire might have a contributed to the incident that happened a little while ago.

In the vicinity we stay, there were some villages, some developed areas,which we sometimes visit during our search for food. We used to go around in large numbers. The inhabitants, sensing our unquestioned strength and fearless demeanor use to run helter-skelter to safety the moment they see us. Till we have our fill, though locals used to shout at us from a safe distance, they never dared to attack us. I could never understand their behavior. Though we knew for sure that they could not harm us, maybe an inherent fear inside made us only go for feeding only during the night time. Hours before the break of dawn, we would retreat back to our shelters.

Our family elders always used to say that, in the past, the villages and sub- urban lands were places where our forefathers used to live. But it seems they were cruelly driven off from their rightful lands and forced to go deeper into the forests. It was big news to me, since my shelter has always remained the same ever since I was born. I realized now, that after the incident that happened today, even our stay here seemed like a question mark. The rain that had stopped yesterday night, started again now. It hit me that once this rains stop, they would come in search of me.

I had sent her home through another path that we knew. Without my presence, I knew she might be a little scared. Even after the big calamity that happened she wanted to stay with me. But I felt that her presence would not help, especially in this confused state. In fact, I had to rebuke her a bit rudely to make her go back. Tears on her face though seemed more painful for me to handle than my present fate.

My legs seems just that heavy and weary and I felt like resting for sometime. Finding a place that can hide me properly in dense outgrowths, I sat to get back my strength. My palpitated, heavy breathless state seemed to settle down now. I wiped traces of blood that were on my feet. The incident that happened just a few hours seemed to cast light shadows on the back of my mind.

While crossing the man-made barricade with her, I could not foresee the forthcoming events. I was more engrossed in the heady feeling of being with her, especially when our bodies touched each other, when walking close to each other.

That day, traffic on the roads were a little heavy, maybe due to the rain. Normally, the traffic would be less and the road calm. The high beams from the vehicles, the incessant horns blaring seemed to make her disconcerted. She wanted to cross the road quickly. Both of us increased our pace. As we tried to weave trough the traffic, people put their heads out of their windows hooting and hollering in impatience. She tried to get close to me as much as possible.

Suddenly, while we are halfway through to crossing the road, one vehicle, maybe blinded by the rain, lost control and came to a screeching stop near us. It only scared her more and she tried to get behind me for protection. I felt my anger rising against that unfeeling driver, yet my only aim was to get out of that place as fast as possible.

To get away from the maddening traffic and the strange sounds of that place and reach the safety of the fields was my primary objective. Even though I had not gone on that path before, I knew that it was close to our regular feeding places. It was a paradox that the impending dark and the chilly weather seemed to add more beauty to our companionship. Talking to her all the time to make sure she does not feel any fear, I made my way to the houses on the outskirts to get to the fields. Even now, I vaguely heard the hooting of the insensitive people in the vehicles in the background. There was not much activity in the vicinity of the houses. Not one soul, except for one lady who was out with her dog, the empty land in front of the houses there serving as a open toilet for the dog. The moment i entered the outskirts, I noticed both of them. It was my intention to somehow find a way to avoid them on the way to my destination.

The dog though, spotted us and started barking. The lady herself would have expected our presence at that untimely hour. Seized by fright, the woman waved her umbrella at me and started yelling for help. My companion, already frightened by the road crossing moved behind my back. To assuage her fears, I took a couple of steps forward and advertised my discomfort. The dog, growling and barking incessantly added to the confusion. The lady folded the umbrella and threw it at me. I just pushed her away. She fell a few feet away. The dog advanced towards me. The lady got up, shouted more for help and tried to move forward. Whether she wanted to save her dog or try to hurt me, it was something I could not comprehend. She lost her footing in the slippery mud due to the rain and fell,almost under my feet. Just for a solitary instant as I thought of pushing the dog and the lady away, my feet dithering in indecision. I drove the dog away for a short distance and turned back. The lady seemed to lie still. I got close to her and tried to move her inert form. It seemed like she had passed away. Damp blood beneath her head made the red clay seem even more darker. Did I step on her while I went for the dog?

I tried to shake her again and again. Unmoved. I stepped back a little. Saw my companion sheltering behind a tree. I am not sure if she understood what happened here. I was lost and did not know what to do. Confusion reigned. Made another effort to move that collapsed body.

The lady’s screams and the dog’s barks made the people come out of their houses. They started coming at us shouting. Crackers were burst. Fire torches made of wood, doused in kerosene and lit made their appearance. It would not be good for me to stay there for long. Taking my love with me, I started to run to the safety of the dense forests close by. More firecrackers were thrown at us.

The rain increased, the falling rain on the leaves shook me out of my reverie. I got up slowly. Almost by second nature, I broke a shoot of leaves close by using my trunk and fed myself. The dew tinged leaves helped sooth my throat.

I looked back once. There was no one following me. I started walking towards the denser regions of the forest. Why did I have to take a life? I could feel heaving thoughts weigh down the pace of my measured walk.

Whatever be, it was my destiny to get back to my love as fast as possible.

This narrative on human-animal conflict by the author was inspired by a recent incident that happened a stone’s throw from his house.  This is a translation by Prakash Rangarajan of the original article in Tamil. You can check out the original tamil version here.

We wish too that it was just a bad dream. But, we know too that it was an accident waiting to happen. Increased conflict between animals and humans has slowly becoming an universal problem. What do you think would be an ideal working solution to this pressing issue? What is the best way forward? Do chip in with your thoughts.

What would anyone do with a hundred and eighty five acres of land in Begumpet, the heart of Hyderabad? Considering the malls that have come up around it – Shoppers Stop, Pantaloons, Lifestyle and the like, one would not really point fingers if real estate developers got their hands on to at least some of this land. But what if this land belongs to a trust formed in 1923 by the then ruler, the Nizam of Hyderabad, as the private Jagirdar’s college to educate his vast family and which later became the Hyderabad Public School? This is my alma mater and that of thousands of other proud students, who wherever they are, will always remain a Shaheen (School emblem – The Eagle) at heart.

On a hot summer day, exactly two decades ago, I passed out of the hallowed portals of this institution. This year I was able to get my daughter admitted into the primary school section here. Today her first term papers were being handed out and in my eagerness to know how she has settled in; I reached the campus an hour early. Having time to kill, I decided to take a stroll around the campus and try to recollect the old days and familiar places. And boy, was I stunned by the way the school has maintained its campus! Two decades of phenomenal change in Hyderabad, of population explosion, of troubled and bouts of unstable school administration should have left inedible and unsightly marks all over the place.

But NO! Right from the stately and tall Ashoka trees that front the main Shaheen Block to the umbrella shaped tree we used to climb during school breaks and the rock garden near the Science Block, the school has maintained its green cover and heritage, flaunting it for all to see and savour. If anything, the Greenery actually seems to have increased. Two decades of unhindered growth has widened most of the trees and canopy formation in the rock garden and primary school gardens are a testament to this. Primary school has also added landscaped gardens complementing and encompassing the old grandfather trees. The tennis courts and grounds remain as they always were – earthy fields. A quick round of the backfield – the favourite high school class bunking spot, told me that the rocky hillocks and stream running by it remain largely untouched. Our free hours were often spent high up on a ledge watching the airplanes takeoff from the adjoining airport. Today the airport is no longer operating commercial flights ( a blessing considering the air traffic now!). The hillocks have now been sensibly converted into rock climbing training areas.

One would think from my account so far that the school has got caught in a time warp and allowed 21st century advancements to pass it by. Not so at all. The assembly block has been renovated fully but exactly as per the original design. Most of the buildings have been renovated similarly to ensure a stable structure, repainted and refurnished. A couple of football grounds have been concretized to form a vast parking lot to help out with the traffic management on the main road outside – there is a critical bottleneck in the arterial S.P.Road just after the school campus ends. But that is it. No new buildings or other construction in the campus. No temptation to modernize or expand in spite of so much potential to exploit for business. Education is a big business nowadays as we all know!

Even the class rooms continue with the original “Green” design and each class in the primary block gets most of its light and ventilation naturally. Both sides of the class room have large windows with wire mesh grills for protection and safety and these ensure cross ventilation. Even ceiling fans are not used most of the time thanks to this natural breeze. Two doors for each class room exit on to a corridor whose other wall is a series of similar windows overlooking the inner courtyard which itself is open to sky. Given the generous dose of natural breeze in Hyderabad and more than abundant sunlight through most of the year, the school design is perfect. In today’s world, a building designed like this and adding a few fancy embellishments would most likely boast of several Green Awards.

Just think about the service the management is doing for local population as well. Tens of gardeners and helpers are seen working all over the campus maintained the acres of greenery – weeding, pruning, planting, watering, sweeping…you name it.

An hour’s walk complete, I take a seat on the parapet of the boundary wall to the hockey ground, under the shade of a massive neem. Birds are chirping merrily in the branches above me and I recognize the sounds of bulbuls, sunbirds and sparrows. It is pleasantly shady and a light breeze cools my back. To my side, the spires of Shaheen Block soar up into the sky reaching for the tufts of cloud scattering across the blue. The school emblem – Eagle flutters on the flag atop a tall mast in front of the building. Up above, its original, a tawny eagle circles around looking for small prey in the ground below. Now he banks in the breeze and soars past the spires before turning back towards me, his head moving from side to side as he scans below.

And just for a few moments I am transposed back to 1990..a sense of living in another time when enjoying these moments of quiet solitude outdoors was the norm and which today has become the exception. Thank you HPS for what you were and what you continue to be…..not just a school but an institution and an inspiration to Green Warriors like us.

Finally the curtain is down on the football World Cup 2010, replete with all the gut wrenching drama associated with the No 1 team sport on Earth. On a personal note, the demise of the Brazilian samba and the Argentine ballet left a huge lump in the throat. The Spanish salsa had the final laugh though, the Dutch hard arm tactics not really
counting when it mattered most, must have made Cryuff wince at this Dutch parody of ‘Total Football’. It took all of 116 minutes for Iniesta to slot the winner,after which it was all over, bar the shouting.
[Read more…] about A Golden Goal for the Environment

I have been on an average visiting at least one national park or wildlife sanctuary in India every year for the past two decades. This summer we had the opportunity to visit four different National Parks in the USA, each one differing from the other in terrain, climate, flora and fauna. Yellowstone is the world’s first designated national park and spread over a stupendous 2 million hectares. The adjoining Grand Teton is a young park. Grand Canyon is one of the world’s natural wonders. New River Gorge is a smaller park based on the new river eco system. So while the parks are diverse in most aspects one thing that links them all is the model park management & administration run by the National Park Service (NPS) through its team of Rangers and staff.

The main underlying philosophy of the national park is to enable people to learn about, appreciate, enjoy while at the same time respect nature and allow wild animals their space within their habitat. This core philosophy is reflected in the facilities provided, the information system, clarity in communication and the way the park is run. Let me run through some of the key impressions which have stayed with me.

The experience starts at the time of planning your trip itself. Check out the exhaustive information provided on nps.gov which is the official website. Every sort of detail required for planning a visit, what to do when there, fees, local weather and conditions updates and links to park lodging is available. Maps on how to reach and detailed park maps showing major attractions are there to guide you.

The Park Newspaper – every park has its own seasonal newspaper edition which can be downloaded from the site itself. A regular newspaper style copy is available at any of the Visitor information centres in the park. We took one for the spring season and it had all the programs running in the park by NPS, the hiking/trekking trails open and maps for the same as well as a few articles of interest on park happenings and wildlife encounters.

All park lodge booking can be made online either on the net itself or through phone using credit card. This is in line with the reservation process in all US hotels. I made a booking for Grand Canyon lodge sitting in my home in Hyderabad without calling a single person or customer service agent!

So now I have planned my trip, collected all the relevant info, booked my accommodation and am actually on the way there. What happens when I reach there:

Park fees are very reasonable just like in India and collected at toll booths as you enter the park. Fees are simply per car or per person. Everyone has one or more cameras anyway!!

Each park has multiple Visitor Information Centers staffed by NPS rangers occupying kiosks containing all types of information booklets, maps etc. I love meeting them because I can ask them to recommend what trails I should take or what places I should see knowing that they will give me an enthusiastic answer delivered with a straight look into my eyes, a smile on their face and speaking clearly using one of the maps which I can then keep. These rangers sincerely believe it is their job to guide people and help them appreciate and enjoy their park.

Grand Canyon rim free shuttle bus service – probably the best shuttle facility in the world of its kind. This consists of three loop lines, red, blue and green, with intersection points for transfers like the Venn diagrams for sets we used to draw in maths. You can hop on or off at any point, a bus will come along every 10-15 minutes. Each stop has a shelter, a bus map, a stop name and friendly drivers who also give you tips on views and viewpoints. This covers the entire 20 odd miles within the National Park and is all FREE!

The hiking (trekking) trails – America beliefs in doing things yourself helps you explore more, learn better, set your own pace and have the satisfaction of independence. The trails (self guided) are another example of this. Here is what you do. Take your trail guide in the park newspaper and check out the information about each trail – distance (miles/km), climb height (feet), approx. time required for normally fit person, what sort of terrain and animals can be seen, availability of rest houses, water source along the trail and where located…can you ask for anything more! Decide on which trail you want to do and proceed to the trail head by car or shuttle bus using the park map.

Once you get onto the trail, just enjoy the scenery, the rhythm of walking and keep your eyes open for birds and animals. The trail will be exactly as the map says and any junction with other trails will be marked with a signboard clearly indicating name of each trail and distance in each direction. Smaller paths may intersect at times, so keep your eyes open, every few hundred feet or so a small orange mark on a tree trunk shows that you are on the main trail. If you don’t see one, turn around and go back to the intersection point and try again. You just can’t get lost!

Animal and human safety – animals have right of way and people there have respect for this as with all rules. It is not uncommon to see long traffic jams in the main roads as cars are held up by herds of bison crossing. Bears are the sensitive animals in US parks – tips on bear safety, what to do should you come across a bear on foot are written in the park newspaper and on signboards at all centers, lodges, camping areas …you just cannot miss knowing about it even if you want to!

An average American generates 5 times the trash of a middle class urban Indian. all forms of plastic, foil, carton and paper, cans and bottles are to be disposed off. But you will find it hard to see even a scrap of paper on any road, trail or lodging area in a park. How come? There are multiple trash cans/bins at every view point, trail head, rest house, lodge, camping area and other general interest areas. Separate trash bins for recyclable items are provided. All cans are bear proof; you have to pull the handle and open the shutter downwards to throw in the trash and shut them back firmly again. Talk about discipline and adherence to the rules, I never saw a single trash can with even a part open shutter!

The Junior Ranger program is all about getting kids involved with nature at a young age itself. Each park has designed a child activity booklet related to the park and its flora and fauna. The child also has to attend one or more of the Park Ranger led programs / talks and do certain activities. On successfully completing these, the child is awarded a Junior Ranger badge pinned on by the NPS Ranger. Its fun to see the kids all excited about getting a badge pinned to their jackets!

To summarize, what I learned from the NPS style of administering and managing the national parks is that the twin goals – protecting nature and letting man appreciate it at the same time are truly compatible. By allowing people (right from small children) to come close to and be one with nature while at the same time developing in them a respect for wildlife and discipline whilst in their midst, the NPS is a role model in many ways to emulate. The immediate defence mechanism most of us Indians would adopt is that India has far more people it is difficult to implement similar measures here. Here we should remind ourselves that the Grand Canyon National Park has about 5 million visitors each year!! Need we say more……

Today is the World Environment Day, a wakeup call for all human stakeholders to not just pledge their support but also do their wee bit in their own little ways to pave the way for a greener planet. It is also a stark reminder of the fact that each passing minute is another chance to sculpt a cleaner environment, the best legacy that we can create for the future. This year’s theme “Many Species. One Planet. One Future” says it all. The global host for the year 2010 is Rwanda which will lead the celebrations marked by events and conferences. [Read more…] about World Environment Day – Many Species. One Planet. One Future