Sanctuary | Cover Story
Nikit Surve
Leopard researcher, communicator
and trend-setter
Nikit Surve is not your average city
slicker. Drawn to the wild side from
early on, in school he was inspired
by an Environment Science teacher
who told his class “Even if one of you
goes out and does something for the
environment I would be satisfi ed with
my job”.
While studying Zoology and Botany
from St. Xaviers College, Mumbai,
Nikit decided to put his theoretical
knowledge to use and volunteer on
various research projects. Thus, he
found himself in the fi eld, sometimes
studying mega herbivore densities,
including that of the gaur and the
elephant, and at other times collecting
tiger and leopard scat for DNA studies.
It was during one such project, that
Nikit encountered leopard biologist
Dr. Vidya Athreya. Her work on the
interaction between big cats and
humans struck a chord with this young
naturalist and in a fl ash of clarity he
understood what he wanted to focus
his energies on.
Emboldened by this recognition of
his calling, Nikit went on to conduct
the fi rst-ever offi cial, scientifi c census
of leopards in the sprawling urban
wilderness known as the Sanjay Gandhi
National Park, as a part of his Master’s
dissertation for the Wildlife Institute
of India. Using camera-traps to collect
data, he calculated leopard-prey
densities and also studied the bigcat’s feeding habits. Nikit then
conducted similar studies in
Tungareshwar Wildlife Sanctuary in
Vasai and in Shimla, Himachal Pradesh
along with his team members.
Apart from being an accomplished
researcher, Nikit is also a fantastic
communicator. “Other than
conservation of course, my interests are
walking, talking and reading,” he laughs.
He ingeniously marries these interests
in the impactful awareness campaigns
based on his research fi ndings that
he conducts in schools, colleges and
even in the remote sugarcane fi elds of
Maharashtra, where communities live
cheek-by-jowl with big cats.
At 25, Nikit is a Research Associate
with the Wildlife Conservation Society- India, and has already fulfi lled his
school teacher’s dream, working
with dedication and passion on a
complex and burning conservation
issue – that of sharing space with
our wild cat neighbours. But even as
he continues to observe, study and
analyse human-leopard interactions,
his dream remains humble: “All I want
is for my friends and young people
to act responsible and contribute to
healing our environment”.
And for this, we honour him.
WIND UNDER THE
WINGS AWARD
We looked for an organisation that had
enabled an employee, or had supported
someone to defend nature by making
resources available and by providingthe intellectual space for them to
follow their own green mission.Tongam Rina and The
Arunachal Times
Fearless writer, fi ghter and
exemplar journalist
The Associate Editor of The Arunachal
Times, Tongam Rina was shot outside her
offi ce in 2012. She had also had her offi ce
ransacked and received multiple death
threats (before the ill-aimed bullet). When
intimidation did not work, Tongam was
shot in the hope that the bullets would
silence her. Little did her attackers know,
that the might of her pen would outweigh
the barbarity of their sword.
Known for her incisive writing,
Tongam has reported on issues
concerning the environment, illegal
activities in the name of development.
Her articles cover the hydro-dollar
mission and power generation surge set
to ravage her state. She courageously
called out the then Chief Minister for
squandering the state’s precious natural
resources, by giving hydro-power leases
en-masse to private corporate lobbies
and public sector undertakings.
Through her column ‘Ring-side
View’, she has shed light on the
environmental unviability of the
hydroprojects in Dibang Valley, Tawang
and Siang basin. Tongam also became a
voice of dissent through her extensive
and honest reportage of the anti-dam
protests that were held in 2016 in
Tawang, where two protestors were
killed and scores injured.COURTESY: NIKIT SURVE COURTESY: TONGAM RINALEFT: YOUNG NATURALIST AWARD Nikit Surve conducted the fi rst-ever offi cial, scientifi c census of leopards in the Sanjay Gandhi National Park, as a
part of his Master’s dissertation for the Wildlife Institute of India.
RIGHT: WIND UNDER THE WINGS AWARD Tongam Rina was shot outside her offi ce in 2012 in a bid to silence her. Known for her incisive writing,
Tongam has reported on issues concerning the environment, illegal activities in the name of development and has become the voice of dissent.