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Reimagining ‘Baloo’ of Central India
Working as a Kanha-Pench Landscape Coordinator
with The Corbett Foundation’s Kanha division enables
Aniruddha Dhamorikar to experience life in the
jungle the way Rudyard Kipling imagined in his classic
The Jungle Book. Based on the fi ndings of a research
project titled ‘Dynamics of Human-Sloth Bear Confl ict
in the Kanha-Pench Corridor’, he highlights how
competition for shared resources can lead to stress for
these normally shy and reserved animals.Herping in Thar
Even after countless trips to the wonderland that is
the Thar, Catherine Christian and Vipul Ramanuj
say that the search for amphibians and reptiles leaves
them routinely awe-struck. They showcase species
found here through images that draw attention to
what we may lose in the race for ‘development’.In Pursuit of Small Cats in Bhitarkanika
As a project biologist with the Wildlife Institute of
India, Dehradun, Vivek Sarkar was part of a team
mandated to nominate Odisha’s Bhitarkanika Wildlife
Sanctuary and National Park as a UNESCO World
Heritage Site. A photography expedition to the park led
him to encounters with three small cats on the top of
his wish list.fi nanced by institutions such
as the World Bank and it
is time that tax payers in
other countries added their
voice to ours asking for a
stop to such illegitimate
loans. Similarly, within India
agricultural encroachments
are encouraged by politicians
in exchange for votes.
These elephants were driven
away from their natural
home thanks to habitat
destruction. Both elephants
and local farmers are victims
of faulty planning and land
management. Tragically,
mobs have also taken to
traumatising elephants.
Sanctuary is working to
protect the pachyderms
by highlighting their plight
and working for the
#RightOfPassage of these
#GiantRefugees. Such images
serve to bring the force
of public opinion to bear
on both Central and State
Governments. The image
was taken two years ago
and despite super-human
eff orts no eff ective action
to redress the problem
has emerged. We want the
elephants saved. We want
the trauma to end. We
believe revealing reality will
have a much greater eff ect
than hiding the truth. -Ed.BIRDS AND BEASTS
A multi-specialty naturalist,
Sumit you are a great
illustrator, photographer
and writer, the other qualities I
am not mentioning! Wonderful.
Kushal Mookherjee,
KolkataBANKE RESTORED
Great to hear about the
restoration of Banke
National Park. Hope it is well
protected and managed in
the future too.
Ashok Vashisht,
[email protected]SANCTUARY
WILDLIFE FESTIVAL
I thank you and the entire
team of Sanctuary Asia for
organising a brilliant wildlife
photography workshop and
the awards ceremony on
November 5, 2017. As part
of the advanced wildlife
photography workshop I
picked up both technical
and conservation skills
from some of India’s most
renowned photographers.
Vishal Dave,
AhmedabadBIPLAB HAZRA/ENTRY-SANCTUARY WILDLIFE
PHOTOGRAPHYAWARDS2017BIPLAB HAZRA/ENTRY-SANCTUARY WILDLIFEPHOTOGRAPHYAWARDS2017ANIRUDDHA DHAMORIKARNOVEMBER 30, 2015 15:51:20 NOVEMBER 30, 2015 15:51:21BELOW LEFT TO RIGHT The date
stamp on these images, submitted
by Biplab Hazra, Sanctuary’s
Photographer of the Year 2017,
reveal that the elephants were
being chased to and fro and not
away from crop fi elds. Also that
the calf was not ‘on fi re’ as many
mistakenly presumed, though it
was singed and scared witless
by the mob of young men. It is
Sanctuary’s position that the
onus of peace between man and
animal lies squarely on humans.
Our purpose will be well served if
policymakers at the central and
state levels are moved to come
up with practical solutions to
mitigate the problem. Hopefully,
from these images where faces
are visible, arrests and exemplary
punishment will follow.