Wednesday, March 13, 2024

Hon. Supreme Court, Wildlife Tourism & fate of Wildlife!

 















“The most dangerous worldview is the worldview of those who have not viewed the world.” Alexander von Humboldt

 

Friedrich Wilhelm Heinrich Alexander von Humboldt was a German polymath, geographer, naturalist, explorer, and proponent of Romantic philosophy and science. And his above words I find so fitting for me, this sharing which is again about wildlife (not about tadoba though) but from a different window. Frankly Humboldt’s quote took me a while to understand at first as how you can use the term “worldview” saying those who have not viewed the world! Well, here is where my sharing comes in picture as it's about the Hon Supreme Court’s (which defines our worldview) view about wildlife tourism! Recently a row is going on about the Supreme Court which on its own took cognizance of irregularities in wildlife conservation in Uttarakhand as Corbett tiger park & for a while stopped tourism activities in some part of that forest! At the same time Hon SC made some observations as well seek clarifications about the wildlife tourism at large in the country, which is a good part but keeping all due respect for Hon SC, wildlife is not something which you can bind in some rules & laws, its nature after all, we can just monitor it in best possible way than trying to define it or control it, is what I feel!

 

Unfortunately, of-late wildlife tourism has been in news a lot often for wrong reasons & to the extent whereas country’s apex judicial body i.e. Hon. Supreme Court has started thinking wildlife is being governed in the wrong way & the first got axed is, wildlife tourism, is a sad fact. A decade back first salvo was fired curbing the area of tourism in core parts of jungle which was a big blow for tourism reducing numbers of tourists in the national parks making wildlife tourism very costly on one hand & unaffordable to most of the countrymen on other hand at a time! Hon Court & many so called self-proclaimed environmentalists will say, that’s worth the price for wildlife conservation but this is where the wrong worldview comes in picture, is my reason for sharing! As already, operating wildlife tourism is a costly affair as most of the locations are at remote places & right from basic needs like drinking water & vegetables to make accommodation facilities available in good condition for the tourists, everything is a hardship! As well, here the tourists come only for wildlife & when the number of safaris itself got reduced, so did the tourists & has it helped wildlife actually, have we studied this aspect? Rather take example of Tadoba at present most sought of wildlife destination here the areas where tourism is allowed all the tigresses are with cubs, numbers of tigers increasing every year so much that we need more space for the tigers, means tourists or tourism in controlled way is a boon for the tigers & wildlife at large, right?

 

At the same time wildlife tourism definitely is different from regular fun & entertainment tourism (E.g. Goa) where booze & music are the two inherent aspects of it! If we avoid these two & rather make tourists more focused on nature & our responsibility towards its conservation then that’s the only hope for wildlife, Hon SC please, please consider this aspect & make guidelines for wildlife tourism accordingly, is a humble request! Recently I came across few pointers or say objection via print news media about the aspects/ issues which Hon SC is concerned on the wildlife tourism front, so I thought of mentioning them & my view on it as a common wild lifer as well as a civil engineer, hope this will be of some use for Hon SC, if it reaches to them!

--

The question as to whether Tiger Safaris shall be

permitted in the buffer area or fringe area…

 

I am of firm opinion to permit safaris in not just buffer or fringe areas but in the core & every part of forest protected or unprotected as considering the resources (funds/manpower) govt (read as revenue/ forest depts) is incapable to save the forests & unless the people around these forests are able to do it on their own then only, we will be able to save the forests! At the same time tourists in a controlled manner are like watch dogs of these habitats making all ill elements at bay, this is an added advantage of wildlife tourism which we call safaris!

 

 

If Wildlife Safaris can be permitted, then what

should be the guidelines for establishing such

Safaris?

 

This is the crux of wildlife tourism actually, as knowing we the Indians & our attitude in public places we have to be very careful & strict in defining safaris in any type of the forest! Most important is make a separate body for wildlife tourism as this may seem absurd thought yet at present scene is, forest dept is overloaded with their own work of patrolling forests as well areas outside of the forests because maximum man animal conflicts happen outside protected forests is a fact & we need to focus on them, while to conduct & monitor wildlife safaris is different job of a professional team with that kind of expertise! Guidelines should be in tune with the purpose we have aiming for & that is conservation of wildlife & make it grow! Right number of vehicles to routes to accompanying of trained guides & vehicle drivers, their constant training & supervising these activities to making rest rooms arrangement type things, type of vehicles & stoppages in such safaris, a manual must be made by a centralize committee with experts in it, including tourism professionals, civil engg environmentalist & forest officers in it! And do it fast. The tourists can enjoy wildlife without disturbing it & losing their comfort, is what will make the safari sustainable for all! At present no proper, safe restrooms in the safari route is a big hurdle for many tourists about which forest dept doesn’t do anything as they think it’s a nuisance for them or added work but its big need of any tourism, is what they forget because forest dept is not formed for tourism!

 

(iii) While considering the Wildlife tourism

the approach must be of ecocentrism and

not of anthropocentrism;

 

… agreed but for that we must first understand what eco-tourism is, & why we are doing it, right? The focus must be wildlife conservation & not going by age-old theories of conservation should be given up & accommodate what is to be needed actually!

 

How we can ensure that the least amount of

environmental damage is caused;

 

For this we need a constant awareness program & not just making stringent rules. This is why we need an expert & dedicated system/ entity/ body/ department which will look after controlling every eco-tourism in the right way, which is not present anywhere at present.

 

About Zoo & rescue centres around project tigers:

 

… rescue centres & zoo type establishments can be done in fringe areas i.e. outside of buffers, along with awareness activity centres.

 

Hon SC will

always be at liberty to take such other

factors into consideration as it deems fit...

 

… this is the problem, there must not be any ambiguity in making wildlife tourism policies yet they should be ever evolving as the situation & conditions are going to vary from place to place depending upon geographic as well social conditions & accessibility or say closeness to urban population at respective place. As well the animals, their habitats will be different & so will the needs of the tourists & locals will be different. For e.g. in Sundarbans habitat is different & spread is too big than forests like Umred Khrandhala , we have to consider these diversities while making policy. At places like Pench which is very close to Nagpur, people visit just for fun also & we should entertain them as they spend money here which is used for wildlife conservation but the fun must not become the botheration for the wildlife, that has to be checked & controlled!

 

The type of activities that should be permitted and

prohibited in the buffer zone and fringe areas of

the Tiger Reserve. While doing so, if tourism is to

to be promoted, it must be eco-tourism. The type

of construction that should be permissible in such

resorts would be in tune with the natural

environment…

 

I think the more we will be able to get common people in the forest the more they will learn how to conserve wildlife! The accommodation as well structures must be in tune with wildlife safaris (quantity) as well extreme fringe areas can be used for activities of leisure & awareness. We can permit resorts, awareness centres & nature living experience giving activities in buffer & fringe but make a manual for design of such structure & the same body which I suggest of safaris will control this development & their daily operation for not violating the basic purposes! Even destination wedding types activities resorts too, we can think with special subsidies in taxation for income here but at ten km away from any gate & strict control of sound & alcohol! More & more people must visit forests as then only people around forests can survive with the help of forests! Even nature training centres /schools/education centres can be thought of in fringe areas beyond buffers.

 

The number and type of resorts that should be

permitted within the proximity of the

protected areas. What restriction to be imposed

on such resorts so that they are managed in tune

with the object of protecting and maintaining the

ecosystem rather than causing obstruction in the

same.

 

The resorts rooms design must be in tune with nature as it will vary depending upon land conditions in the respective place, so we should study most habitats & keep many options of designs ready & observe the jobs in such resorts are being preferably given to locals as well some part of income of these resorts must go to wildlife conservation, make different tax system instead of GST & income tax for wildlife tourism!  As it's difficult to operate in remote areas any service industry & margins are poor or else wildlife tourism remains only for rich people, which should not happen, even poor people can afford to go to the forests, which is not happening at present!

 

As to within how much areas from the boundary

of the protected forest there should be restriction:

 

… few accommodations say 10% of safaris numbers can be inside the core also, while 80% must be within buffer & rest with no restriction on numbers outside of buffer i.e. area beyond buffers!

 

About noise level and what should be those

permissible noise levels:

 

… No loudspeakers or alcohol sale in core & in buffer at any cost as well control light pollution also by making right norms & forming a governing body! In fringe areas we can allow recreational activities yet light & sound pollution must be monitored.

 

The measures that are required to be taken for

effective management and protection of Tiger

Reserves which shall be applicable on a Pan India

Basis:

 

…First understand the concept of tiger conservation which is not happening with due respect even at Hon. Supreme Court level! Reality is, at present the core zones of Project Tiger forests have become Open Zoo, when the tiger can roam freely with tourists confined to respective vehicles. Every tiger has its own territory & when in core the tiger numbers increase as reproduction is natural process then these new tigers seek support of buffer parts for making their territory & when even buffers get full, then these tigers move in to the human settlements in fringe area around project tiger & this is major lacuna of project tiger! This basic fact either we are neglecting or ignoring deliberately! We must focus on making people to live with the tigers as we can’t create new forests for the new tigers & for making this happen wildlife tourism is the only option or else we will end up with fixed numbers of tigers like we have in the zoo as new tigers keeps dying because of fighting other tigers for space or with conflict with humans outside of project tiger’s protected part! Example is, in 2023 if numbers of tigers have increased then we have lost nearly 200 plus tigers also & these are not natural deaths & 200 is a very big figure when we have only 4000 plus tigers in the entire country! This can be achieved by expanding wildlife tourism as this is not about just tigers but many endangered wildlife species too!

 

(viii) The steps to be taken for scrupulously

implementing such recommendations.

 

First form a body for wildlife tourism which will be beyond red-tapism. Appoint only real experts professionals on it. Be ready to make bold changes & don’t get bound by age old environmentally blind vision, I too am an environmental engg & environmental science is always evolving! Get out of taboo of “more tourists means, more disturbance for tigers & wildlife,” as had it been so then with thirty gypsies together Maya tigress & Choti tara in Tadoba & Collerwali tigress in Pench wouldn’t have given birth of fifty plus litters combinedly & numbers of tigers in buffers of tdaoba wouldn’t have grown constantly while they live among near one lakh human beings here! Rather thousands of wild animals get killed in road accidents out of protected forests only because we don’t love & care for wildlife, this will stop only when each of us has seen what wonderful gift wildlife is to us & we only are going to protect it!

 

 If we keep sufficient distance from tigers then they are least bothered with numbers of tourists is a fact we have seen, so make a policy which will make possible as many people to visit our forests & start accommodating wildlife as their part of life, is the only hope for wildlife now with 150 crores plus humans sharing land with them!

-

Interestingly while I was writing this piece newspapers where full of headlines of State Govt’s decision of regularising all illegal construction in urban areas by paying nominal fine (read as nil), Hon SC, a humble request the sensitivity you show for irregularities in the project tiger areas & take cognizance on your own, please give some attention to these major irregularities in Urban Forests (read as towns & cities) also, as even with entity named MAHARERA, what’s use if the govt itself is regularising illegal building, why one should build a legal building then!

 

Hon SC Sir, you are supposed to be with vision even when blindfolded & wildlife tourism needs your that vision where we must be able to reach the common destination which is, coexistence of wild animals & humans & for that the activity must be rightly controlled, is the only way; & we have many wise & fair brains which can frame the norms for it, only if you take the lead it is possible, will be happy for any assistance on this front, adios with this request for the future of wildlife!

 

Sanjay Deshpande, Hemangi Vartak & team Jungle Belles.

smd156812@gmail.com


--

Sanjeevani Dev.

Please view my sharing about finding a Right Home/ Office in Pune, at YouTube link below & share if liked..



Please do visit my blog links below to read about real estate & home buying! 

https://visonoflife.blogspot.com/2024/01/choosing-your-home-along-with-future-of.html

http://jivnachadrushtikon.blogspot.com/2023/02/blog-post.html


Creating Togetherness; team Sanjeevani Way (Click link below)
 

https://www.flickr.com/photos/65629150@N06/albums/72157627904681345

For any of your complaints about city, log in at link below

www.punecorporation.org

Take your issues to Hon PM at link below..


https://secure.mygov.in/

Think Green, Think Life

www.sanjeevanideve.com / https://junglebelles.in/






Monday, March 4, 2024

Tadoba Forest, School of Civilization!

 







-

“Only when you go to the forests you start understanding how much civilized wild animals are & how much uncivilized we the humans are actually”…

This is what I felt (I mean once again) while I was on the dusty roads with summer heat of tadoba, & if you wonder why suddenly such a criticism for our human race then let me tell you, every time when I visit forests there is something new to learn. Rather put it like this, it’s always there, the knowledge, but I understand it in a new way & this can happen with anybody, all we need to do is, be in sync with the forest we are visiting! As of late if you come across the news in our concrete jungle what you read, it’s all about frauds, cheating, road rage fights, drugs & yes abusing women (rape as per the latest news from Jharkhand that too of an international tourist who was our country’s guest) & yes, road kills of wild animals along with ever encroachment on wildlife habitats & nobody speaks a single word or raise voice about it; can we call this as a sign of civilization & culture, no, is the answer! Each of us hear, see, read about wrong things being done by other humans but we ignore them saying we are not part of it & move on, this is what I call as an uncivilized act of the humans! Because in the forest  when a monkey or a sambhar deer or a spotted deer which are prey of tiger, sense a predator around then they immediately raise the alarm call in a typical voice alerting all other species about the presence of the tiger which is a danger & helps in saving respective lives! And they keep raising alarm till the tiger doesn’t moves away from their eye-sight & here the tiger is not wrong on its side, as hunting these animals is his only way to feed itself yet for these animals a tiger is a threat & they raise voice against it! Actually, when a sambhar or a spotted deer or a monkey see or sense tiger’s presence then as that alone deer  can skip saving its own life yet it take risk to alert all other animals because it knows that today it has seen the tiger first but tomorrow some other deer may see the tiger first & this way only all can be safe!

Guys, every day we see some vehicle jumping red signal on our city’s roads, some goons misbehaving with school girls on the streets or somebody selling illegal things or doing any wrong act such as tree cutting, but we don’t raise alarm as we just think of our own comfort & forget that tomorrow it may be our turn to become victim of such wrong deed & that time had anybody alerted us we would have saved but that’s possible only when we raise an alarm today by our self, right? This reality, I understood during my recent trip to tadoba as we were waiting at a water hole, it was hot noon & Central Indian summer was sinking in & surprisingly there was no animal on the water hole even when there was no water nearby in that area. This means, there was a tiger somewhere around which the deer & monkey must have sensed, so they too were keeping away from the water hole. We decided to wait & to our confirmation there was an alarm call of a smabhar deer behind the bund-wall of the water hole, confirming presence of the tiger. Sambhar deer’s alarm call  (a peculiar sound animal makes to indicate danger) is considered as guaranty of a predator around as unless it actually sees the tiger or leopard, it won’t give an alarm call but this time it just gave call twice & everything went silent. This means the sambhar deer has seen the tiger but it must be sleeping so the sambhar stopped giving alarm calls but it didn’t come to water hole & we decided to wait. We waited for nearly an hour during which other gypsy’s patience evaporated just like the pond water evaporates in the tadoba heat & most vehicles moved away to search elsewhere (tiger, what else) but we relied on the civilization of forest world (sambhar call) & decided to wait & suddenly head of the tiger appeared on the bund-wall of the water hole with no alarm calls because by that time all the deer must have moved away! After that, the tiger relaxed in the water for nearly one more hour, here again till it won’t drink the water & yawn for three four times it usually won’t get up from the water & we waited to happen that! After one & half hour the tiger drank water, yawned & got up from the water started swimming towards us & suddenly the alarm calls started ringing all around as now the danger was on move, we have witnessed the perfect civilized show of the forest life!

This is how the Year 2024 has started & what better destination could it have been than tdaoba for the first forest trip of the year & so I reached Kolara gate! The best thing was, in the entire last year's forest trips, every time it has rained at least for at least a day & during this trip sky was clear blue when I reached Tadoba & fortunately remained so for three days, which itself was the good omen, lol! I don’t blame nature god & I love to be in forests even in rains but sitting in a gypsy with its hood pulled up, it becomes a bit difficult to enjoy the wilderness, is a fact! This trip as usual was full of highs & lows with luck shining for just a few minutes with some special sightings (though every minute is special in the forest) such as sighting of blackie, the melanistic leopard of tadoba! Here are some more stories from the trip…

Luck can meet you in Black also...!!‍

A cool morning but with complete silence engulfing forest & just an alarm call of sambhar from deep within the bamboo ocean around & nature's call to myself, we decided to go for the rest-room at tadoba centre via the route from where the alarm call has come & on the turn saw long ahead a black dot walking on road!! It was the melanistic black leopard akka Blackie of tadoba! Here the driver's experience matters as excitedly he tried to slightly raise the speed which was enough to make the shy animal get alert & vanish into thickest along the road, yet we could see him was a big luck!! Whenever in the forest if you encounter animals like leopard, civet cat or sloth bear it's better to stop the gypsy where ever it is, get shots from that distance and then slowly try to get a bit closer as this way you at least get some shots because these animals are not like the tiger which is unruffled by your presence & keep walking. I have been reading about presence of this black leopard in tdaoba since last three years & I must have visited tdaoba nearly ten times in the last three years yet it took this day for the sighting of it, that’s how things work in the forests!

Moods of a Tiger!

It was late evening already & we were on the opposite side of Navegaon gate & in front of us was a forest vehicle & a tiger male subadult was sitting right in the middle of the road, giving a hoot for anything! The RFO saw our cameras (and our face anxiety) and pulled his vehicle aside & let us go ahead, a great gesture & keeping one eye on watch I tried to get one shot where the tiger will look in the camera but the fellow was just to engrossed in his mood & I kept clicking & just when we decided to give up & turn back, for a moment he obliged us by looking at me straight in camera & bang, I could click it! Though the one look he gave me from the corner of his eyes just before looking at the camera was special, like he was teasing me for the shot I wanted, that's what a tiger is, it lives by its own rules & not ours...!

--

And many such stories I caried back along with the images & post my trip I encountered some interesting incidences about wildlife which I will be sharing here. On FB somebody posted series of images of kill of a domestic bull by a tiger on main road in Pilabhit sanctuary (UP) & on those images few people have commented about immorality or say it’s a wrong thing to post such violence of social media & glorify the same! My reply was as below…

... Actually, it’s an excellent documentation that how tigers are adopting loss of their habitats due to humans only! As cow or domestic buffalo is not its real food but poor fellow doesn’t have any choice but to come in open & kill domestic animals for its hunger, keeping due respect for their fate but had it not been cow then it would have been some deer or wild boar! And do mind we the humans are more savage than the tiger who has forced it do so! I understand your feelings that its cruel to watch an animal being killed by a tiger but humans are lot crueller than that; check internet & you will see that in the time of any accident most people are busy in shooting the scene & making reels than helping the victims, here what is happening is nature as that bull is natural food of the tiger & no wild animal ever kill without reason, unlike we the humans do many such things!

 

And then, in the gym during a short break from work-out a fellow lady member commented that she wanted to see a tiger but she has decided not to go to the forests as she thinks we are disturbing the animals by going in the forests to watch them! With due respect to her care & sentiments for wildlife I tried my best to explain her…

... Miss, I come from Vidarbha where still human pulls rickshaws manually & it’s a torture to watch them pull another human’s load in hot summer or rains but that’s how they are supposed to earn their livelihood as they are not beggars to accept money without efforts, is what I used to tell the guests at our home from Mumbai/Pune when they used to refuse to sit in such manual rickshaws! Same way, if we want to make the wild animals & forests to be protected then we must make sure that the people around these forests survives & the only possible way is wildlife tourism! And if somebody doesn’t ever see a tiger then how it will love it & will make effort to protect it, right? And one more aspect, had our presence been so disturbing than how come the numbers of the tigers is increasing in tadoba, this means if we visit forests with some rules to follow & keep safe distance, we can achieve both things that is protect the forests as well enjoy being in them, is the way! Hopefully, she understood & agreed!

--

Friends, as I said, forest is a school which is open twenty-four hours & three sixty-five days of the year, it’s up to us how & when we want to enrol our name in this school & what we take out from it & how we use this knowledge; with this understanding I said bye to the tadoba forest with a promise to return soonest...!

tiger mowgli full show of swim, check at the link belwo..tadoba feb 24

-

Sanjay Deshpande 

smd156812@gmail.com

Sanjeevani Dev.

Please view my sharing about finding a Right Home/ Office in Pune, at YouTube link below & share if liked...

 

https://youtu.be/27j3I3rwGPQ?si=-ODYBxVI2Dl_C345

 

Please do visit my blog links below to read about real estate & home buying! 

https://visonoflife.blogspot.com/2024/01/choosing-your-home-along-with-future-of.html

http://jivnachadrushtikon.blogspot.com/2023/02/blog-post.html


Creating Togetherness; team Sanjeevani Way (Click link below) 

https://www.flickr.com/photos/65629150@N06/albums/72157627904681345

For any of your complaints about city, log in at link below

www.punecorporation.org

Take your issues to Hon PM at link below...

https://secure.mygov.in/

Think Green, Think Life

www.sanjeevanideve.com / https://junglebelles.in/














Tuesday, February 20, 2024

Tiger, Plastic Bottle, Tourists & Media!

 









-

“I think there should be regulations on social media to the degree that it negatively affects the public good” … Elon Musk.

 

Interestingly, this quote of Mr Musk was before he owned social media platform X (earlier twitter), as it would be interesting what his opinion about regulating social media now! Well, the reason for my using his quote about social media & the subject of sharing i.e. tigers & plastic & tourists, well sure you must be confused, so let me explain. Recently there was a video of a tigress picking up a plastic water bottle from a water body & carrying it in her mouth. The clip went viral on social media & no wonder if news media roped in to encash the popularity of this viral clip! Most of the newspapers printed photos of the tigress with water bottle in her mouth & how we are polluting the forests & how forest dept is incapable of protecting wildlife & how the tourism in forests is hazardous (read as threat) to the wildlife, here is a living proof etc! Keeping due respect to hard-core studied journalists, I thought of writing to one of the leading newspapers just to clarify the facts about such news & its wrong impact on society, as of-late journalism about wildlife (about anything) has become social-media journalism. Means instead of going to actual such sites (forests in this case) most young journalists prefer to research on google & make some calls with people around at such spots & write what they think is right! In present case of tigress carrying plastic water bottle video news, I don't say plastic bottles use is right or this image is wrong but these things do happen in buffer of tadoba or any Project Tiger (protected forest) where villagers are supposed to move around freely and there are nearly 200 plus villages and 1 lakh human population with 200 tigers among them in tadoba buffers!! In Nimdhela buffer (from where the clip is supposedly shot) itself right at the heart of this forest there are temples of local gods and residents visit them at their will and tigers also are around. The bottle may be outcome of such visitors & not thrown from any tourist, rather tadoba is first national park where plastic water bottles are not allowed to be carried in the safari & yet the media blatantly made an allegation on the forest dept & wildlife tourism for this plastic bottle which finds its way to the tigress!!  Rather the tigers are going to survive by coexistence, this doesn’t mean we stop tourism or curse it but take proper care, make local people aware about the right way of living with wild animals instead of getting panic or glorifying such news is what I feel. Rather it’s the wildlife tourism which is making the locals around the forests able to survive so we must promote this activity & off-course without disturbing wildlife as this tigress’s video got shot because it’s by some wildlife tourist & in tourism zone but there are hundreds of such tigers & other wild animals which are moving out of tourism zones, who is looking after them, is the question the media should ask! And this is why it is high time to make the media i.e. journalists first aware about facts of wild life & right ways to conserve it as then only they can analyse such stories in the right spirit & convey them to the society!

To my surprise when I shared these views with Mr Sangoram, a very senior & respected name in journalism, he immediately asked me to email me my views & published the same in his newspaper. And then one reader wrote me a mail after going through the same, actually I have shared my above-mentioned views & pressed the issue of space being reduced of the tigers & look the way this gentleman has twisted my views & cross-questioned me & my intentions which shows ignorance about understanding the needs of wildlife leave apart accepting its importance! This person called me an environmentalist using that term as a curse or taboo & challenged the need of giving space itself to the tigers! This is what we are fighting with as I don’t blame this man as he at least read my article & shared his view but even when I replied his email still, he was of opinion that tiger conservation is being over-glorified & asking to give them space is against the development, on which I could only say thanks of your insight!  ...

Sharing our conversation over email as it is, for genuineness…

--

*Xxxxxx Pandit writes:

 

हल्ली अनेक लेखांत शेवटी लेखकाचा ईमेल देतात. त्या वर प्रतिक्रिया लिहिल्यास लेखक उत्तर देने तर दूर, acknowledge पण करत नाहीत असा अनुभव आल्या नंतर प्रतिक्रिया लिहिणे बंद केले होते, पण तुमच्या लेखात काही गोष्टी अश्या आहेत की प्रतिक्रिया लिहिण्याचा मोह आवरेना

 

1: आपल्या देशामध्ये माणसांची संख्या १५० कोटी आहे तर वाघांची संख्या ,७५० आहे. म्हणजेच जवळपास चार लाख माणसांच्या मागे एक वाघ आहे वर्षभरात २०० वाघांचा मृत्यू म्हणजे वर्षभरात जवळपास आठ कोटी माणसांचा मृत्यू होण्यासारखे आहे. आता तुम्हाला या आकड्यांचे गांभीर्य समजू शकेल. तुम्ही असे म्हणू शकता की ही तुलना मूर्खपणाची आहे किंवा मला वेड लागले आहे.

 

"मूर्खपणाची" हा जरा कठोर शब्द झाला, पण ही तुलना निश्चितच excellent arithmetic, but absurd logic आहे

Pinta Giant Tortoise. The last known Pinta giant tortoise (Chelonoidis abingdonii) was Lonesome George, an icon of the Galapagos, who died in captivity on June 24, 2012.

2012 मध्ये संपूर्ण जगाची जनसंख्या 715 कोटी इतकी होती. आणि त्या वेळी फक्त एक Pinta Giant Tortoise होते. म्हणजे दर 715 कोटी लोकां मागे 1 Pinta Giant Tortoise. ते मेले (sad, but it did), म्हणजे  सर्व 715 कोटी लोक मेल्या सारखे आहेexcellent arithmetic, but absurd logic

 

2: या सर्व मृत्यूंमागचे मूलभूत कारण एकच आहे ते म्हणजे वाघांसाठीची जागा कमी होणे.

 

No, that is your assumption. You have not offered any data to say that lack of space was the sole cause of death. अश्वत्थामा अमर होता/ आहे. पण वाघ म्हणजे काही अश्वत्थामा नव्हे. इतर सर्व प्राण्यां प्रमाणे त्याला पण कधी तरी मृत्यू येणारच.  200 वाघ मेले, त्या पैकी किती Natural death होते; किती मृत्यू due to poaching; किती मृत्यू इतर कारणे; . . .  वगैरे कोणतीही आकडेवारी तुम्ही दिलेली नाही. Poaching is illegal. Crime. But, please note it is not related to tiger area. i.e. reduction of tiger area does not result in increased poaching. No relationship.

 

 

3:    वाघांसाठीची जागा कमी होणे.

       परंतु त्यांना जगण्यासाठी आवश्यक असलेली जागा उपलब्ध करून देण्यात आपण अपयशी ठरत आहोत

      त्यांची स्वतःची जागा असेल, अशा एका जगाची निर्मिती करण्यात आपण अपयशी ठरलो आहोत

तीन वेळा तुम्ही तेच लिहिल, की त्यांना जगण्यासाठी जागा पाहिजे. पण एकदाही तुम्ही ती जागा किमान किती असावी, ( किती Sq Km)  यांचा अंदाज दिला नाहीत

पर्यावरणवादी लोकां बरोबर कोणताही संवाद होऊ शकत नाही त्याचे हे एक मुख्य कारण आहे. (इतर पण आहेत). त्यांना काहीतरी हवे असते, पण ते नेमके काय ते त्यांना माहीत तरी नसते, किंवा माहीत असले तरी ते सांगत नाहीत. Perhaps because त्यांना हे पण उमजते कि आपली अपेक्षा अव्यवहार्य आहे. This sets environmentalists apart from anyone else. viz. If an economist says 4% GDP Growth is not enough, he/she also says, to be a developed country it should be at least 7.5%. (or some such figure). If a doctor says 100 mg dose is not enough, he/she also says, increase it to 500 mg. A couple looking for a house, if they say 1 BHK is not enough, or 450 SqFt is not enough, they say, we need at least 1.5 BHK, preferably 2 BHK, or we need at least 750 SqFt. Workers negotiating a pay rise / bonus have to say how much hike, or bonus they expect. etc. etc. From a very learned economist or a doctor, to a simple housewife or workers, everyone understands that merely saying something is not enough is meaningless unless you say how much it should be. 

 

Except environmentalists. They only say this is not enough, but never say how much is required.  Only saying space for tigers is not enough, doesn't serve any purpose. You have to make an estimate how much it should be, and only then one can examine whether or not that is feasible….

 

*Sanjay Deshpande writes:

dear chetan...

thanks a lot for your detailed email, 

first thing I am not "Paryavaran wadi”, rather I am not any "wadi", i am a civil engineer & i go only by facts & logic! 

about your points... the writeup was covering your few aspects but has been cut short for space issue..

 

1. about arithmetic, which is absurd for many as they dont understand what is wildlife conservation.. if you want to save the tigers then first you must ask to save from whom & then the answer is obviously, save from humans, that's why the arithmetic analogy with human population vs tigers population!

2. You are right, tigers do die natural death but these 200 tigers have died not by natural death & but are the outcome of territorial fights, or poaching or road accidents or conflicts with humans etc! All of these are not natural reasons & the conflicts, may it be between two tigers or humans is due to reduction in space. And all this data is available on NTC's website, so i didn’t wasted time & space in it!

3. A male tiger's territory is 50sq km & a female tiger's nearly 12-15 sq km (its space they need)! You didnt get my point, we cant provide them space as its not just space like flat but they need interiors i.e. habitat( complete forest with animals & shelter) which we won't ever be able to now as we are already using that land for us, what i was telling is, make the humans learn to live with the tigers in the space, It mean use wildlife tourism & try reducing more encroachment in the forests around the project tigers where these tigers are living already! 

 

you can read in detail about the subject on the link below & do ask for any more clarification, will be happy to answer in my best capacity...

 

https://visonoflife.blogspot.com/2023/11/no-more-dead-bajrang.html

 

https://visonoflife.blogspot.com/2024/02/project-tiger-wildlife-hope.html

 

thanks for your interest

 

sanjay

*xxxxxx Pandit writes:

Paryavaranwadi is not a formally conferred title. It is a way of thinking, that gets revealed from what one speaks/ writes. You wrote :

आपल्या नियोजनामध्ये केवळ माणसांवरच लक्ष केंद्रित केल्यामुळेआपण इतर प्रजातींना संपवत आहोत. कारण आपण केवळ माणसांच्या गरजांसाठी नियोजन करत आहोत. माणसांमुळे दररोज केवळ वाघांनाच नव्हे तर बिबटेहरीणगेंडे हत्ती अशा सर्व प्रजातींना प्रचंड धोका निर्माण झाला आहे. कारण आपण अक्षरशः त्यांच्याच वाट्याचे अन्न खात आहोतत्यांचे पाणी पीत आहोत आपल्या गरजांसाठी (म्हणजे हव्यासासाठी) त्यांची घरे नष्ट करत आहोत. केवळ वन्यजीवनच नाहीआपल्या १५० कोटींहून अधिक जनतेला राहण्यासाठी जागा हवी आहेम्हणून आपण आपल्या नद्यातलावटेकड्यासमुद्राचा विनाश करत आहोत.

Now it is for the readers to interpret this, and as a reader I perceive it as typical Paryavaranwadi.  

A lot of above is not true. viz. आपल्या नियोजनामध्ये केवळ माणसांवरच लक्ष केंद्रित (करत आहोत) is not true. Any new major infrastructure requires environmental clearance; the process involves preparation of a EIA and EMP report; which is examined by a multi-disciplinary Expert Appraisal Committee in the MoE&F. The project is cleared only if the EAC recommends it. The process can take years. The environmental laws are very strict and MoE&F has veto power, i.e. in a infrastructure ministry versus MoE&F tussle, the MoE&F will prevail, always. A project also needs clearance from the National Wild Life Board, that factors in the requirements of wild life.

If not satisfied with the environmental clearance given by MoE&F, there is the NGT and then the SC. Now a days, a PIL is the NGT is a norm. Many projects, cleared by the MoE&F  have been shut down by court orders, even if to the detriment of economy. Viz. the Sterlite Copper plant at Tuticorin was shut down by Madras HC, which overnight made India dependent on China for copper. But, it was shut down. The Ken Betwa link is now under examination by the NGT, for its impact on Panna Tiger Reserve. And can be taken up only if NGT clears it.

A project cleared by MoE&F can be challenged in NGT/SC; but there is no “inverse challenge”. i.e. if MoE& says ‘Yes’ to a project, NGT can make it ‘No’. But if MoE&F says ‘No’ to a project, people can’t go to NGT to make it ‘Yes’.

The point is, the statement आपल्या नियोजनामध्ये केवळ माणसांवरच लक्ष केंद्रित (करत आहोत) is wrong, baseless. Perhaps what you meant was, what we are doing is not enough. Had you said that, perhaps the readers would have perceived you differently. BTW - 3750 tigers x 50 Sq Km per tiger = 1,87,500 SqKm. Sparing so much area only for tiger, is impossible. This is another typical Paryavaranwadi way of thinking. काही तरी अप्राप्य अशी मागणी करायचीआणि मग ते मिळल नाहीकी विकासाच्या नांवाने आक्रोश करायचं. असोहा विषय खूप विस्तृत आहे.

*sanjay deshpande writes:

thanks  for your insight, I. will keep it in mind :)

I concluded conversation with last single line reply, btw, in the year 2021 our country’s forest cover was approx. 7,14,00 sq km which is 24% of our total area i.e. 32.87 lakh sq km & it’s getting reduced every hour is a fact & that is major problem in conservation of wild life, is what I was trying to point & never said we stop development, but ok! I could have replied all above things again in detail to this person’s second email where he mentioned NGT, Ministry of Environment & Wildlife Board etc, agreed, all these systems are in place but had that been enough then I wouldn’t have been writing this sharing in the first place, right? And this is where the role of news-media & journalism is going to play a very vital role in making the society understand facts of wildlife & unless the media understands wildlife in the right way, we can’t expect them to convey the essence to the society! While I was writing this sharing, one more news came about some drunk tourists in tadoba; well, in a country with 150 crores plus humans there will be bad elements & they are everywhere, even in places like Taj Mahal you will find bad tourists! Same way, drunk driving is a crime even in the cities yet we get thousands of cases of drunk driving but we don’t close all roads for all people because of such news about drunk driving, right? This is why, role of forest dept (pro-active role) & NGO’s is vital as they must take lead & make media people aware about wildlife facts. Wildlife tourism is the only rational & sustainable link between humans & wild animals, making them learn to coexist & one wrong news about wildlife tourism is like a virus, killing this link itself, mind it, adios with this note!

Sanjay Deshpande 

smd156812@gmail.com

Sanjeevani Dev.

Please view my sharing about finding a Right Home/ Office in Pune, at YouTube link below & share if liked...

 

https://youtu.be/27j3I3rwGPQ?si=-ODYBxVI2Dl_C345

 

Please do visit my blog links below to read about real estate & home buying! 

https://visonoflife.blogspot.com/2024/01/choosing-your-home-along-with-future-of.html

http://jivnachadrushtikon.blogspot.com/2023/02/blog-post.html


Creating Togetherness; team Sanjeevani Way (Click link below) 

https://www.flickr.com/photos/65629150@N06/albums/72157627904681345

For any of your complaints about city, log in at link below

www.punecorporation.org

Take your issues to Hon PM at link below...

https://secure.mygov.in/

Think Green, Think Life

www.sanjeevanideve.com / https://junglebelles.in/