Page 3 Tiger

It was a programme devoted to Save the Tiger.

Hence, I found it a little difficult--and forgive me for also being perplexed, foxed --as i tried to place the significance of that beautiful, brassy blonde dressed (or is it the other way around?) in shimmering red silks gyrating to Kiss me..kiss me ..kiss me (i wonder, if she was entreating the tiger, and knew what she was letting herself in for)
No, i am not being a spoilt sport-I do not mind 'em item numbers, and shimmering silks), but not at the backdrop of the desperate, bitter battle to Save the Tiger.

I will not name the function-or the organisers (and not just because this is just one of the many similar 'valiant' attempts in saving the tiger). I am sure they meant well. And i know there were those present, whose heart beat, and bled for the tiger. Even as they cringed at the irony, the weirdness of it all--not quite comprehending, but perhaps accepting that this was the new way to do things.
It has been done before. It will be done again.
Saving tigers--and children-and the starving millions by the Champagne Circuit.

I know--I think--this is how the message was driven home--amongst the politicians, the corporates--people who 'matter', people with the money, and the power, but perhaps not the will to go down to the lonely forest chowki in the heart of the remote forest, to confront reality, and to salute the man who protected the tiger--
without a steady wage, with no protection against poacher and beast..."

No offense meant here(not to People, and certainly not 'beast', but is food for thought. )

A fairy-tale we should have read: Brilliant!

"Once upon a time, in a land far away, a beautiful, independent, self-assured princess happened upon a frog as she sat, contemplating ecological issues on the shores of an unpolluted pond in a verdant meadow near her castle. The frog hopped into the princess' lap and said: Elegant Lady, I was once a handsome prince, until an evil witch cast a spell upon me. One kiss from you, however, and I will turn back into the dapper, young prince that I am and then, my sweet, we can marry and setup housekeeping in your castle with my mother, where you can prepare my meals, clean my clothes, bear my children, and forever feel grateful and happy doing so. That night, as the princess dined sumptuously on a repast of lightly sautéed frog legs seasoned in a white wine and onion cream sauce, she chuckled and thought to herself: I don't ******* think so."

Random thoughts ...on the Tiger..

A tiger must live like a Tiger. Live like a King, not a fugitive, in its domain. Persecuted by poaching. Cornered by conflict. Hounded by Homo sapeins. Tormented in captivity. Struggling in shrinking forests.
Poisoned, trapped, shot, beaten, burgeoned, speared..to death.
Skinned, chopped. Sold.
The Tiger: Forest Deity, Water God, symbol of fertility and immortality. Emblem of Power. Of good over evil.
The tiger: Majestic, elegant, powerful, wild: The most beautiful expression of life on Earth.
A tiger must live,
…And die, like a Tiger.

A New Dawn...

This year, when we raise the toast for a ‘Happy New Year’, I would like to spare a thought for…

*Our wildlife who must battle all odds for survival. May 2012 be an easier year for them. Lord, protect them, and their home.

*Those who protect our wilds. Who will ring in the New Year, away from their family in the remotest of forests, without electricity and other basic comforts that we take for granted--for the sake of the tiger..

*To all those dogs-unwanted,unloved,neglected- residing in homes, but not in hearts. And those who must wander outside, without the security and warmth of home.

I work for wildlife, battle to save the tiger and other animals..it maybe said that there is much i 'do' for them. Maybe, i am not to judge, all I can say, as i ring in the New Year, is what the tiger, the wilds 'do' for me. I am what I am today, thanks to them: My work, and all the goodwill that I am fortunate to have, I owe them.

And as we ring in 2012, a new dawn..I want to thank all of you-who made this year--and my life-special. My family, my friends..and other animals :-)

My mantra...

My mantra (thanks Dr Schaller): "I learned long ago that conservation has no victories, that one must retain connections and remian involved with animals and places that have captured the heart, to prevent their destruction. I am sometimes asked why, given a world that is more wounded and scarred, I do not simply give up, burdenned by pessimism. But conservation is my life, I must retain hope..."

Nature...

"Protected Areas obstruct development. Forests are liabilities. Sanctuaries and National Parks...no, no, we don't want those. They are best not declared.
They will stop 'development.'
Stop mines and super expressways and malls and multiplexes from coming up."
You know, Shining India.
But my friends, India won't shine when the sanctuaries are silent and empty, when the forest vanishes, when the last tree falls.
Our soils nourished by the forests and streams will cease to produce.
The poisoned, sterile land will fail to feed us.
And the rivers, born of the forests, will wither and die.
The foundation of not just development, but life is Nature.
Each one of us should know this truth.
Know and respect Nature, for she nurtures us.
Especially those in whose hands we have entrusted this trust.

need i say more...

From The Hindu. spotted by Paramjit Singh
I am unaware who the cartoonist is, please help, if someone knows, so due credit can be given.

the morning news...

I don't want to read the morning newspaper, To read that Niyamgiri has been thrown open to mines, that children are at the frontline of fire for Posco, as in a 'democracy' they don't want to give up their own land, to read about leopards beaten n burnt to death, or the elephant forests that is going to be ripped apart. I never thought i would say it, but guys: Delhi Times or Ht City with breaking news that Red is lucky for Kat or Ash keeping Karvachauth is is going to go with my morning cuppa!

No place for Ganesha..

This is what the TOI reports today (June 2, 2011) 'Villagers crowd around the carcass of a female elephant near Kalchini tea garden in the Dooars. The jumbo fell into a 20-foot-deep ditch while fleeing from villagers who had burst crackers to chase away a herd of around 15 elephants on Wednesday(June1, 2011).'

Where will the elephants go? we have destroyed the forests, devastated their corridors...mined them, submerged them, pillaged them.
Till the elephants have nowhere to go.
As they scrounge for food and water, struggle for survival and scurry for cover..from fields and villages to slivers and shreds of 'forest'/they are chased by terrified, enraged mobs. they are hit-stoned-burnt.
..Till they meet their death.
Very undignified deaths-for a very dignified, peaceable animal. If we would let them be.
They are poisoned, shot, electrocuted.
Little calves get separated from their mothers-and aunts..
they mostly die. At best, they are doomed to captivity.
And If they are lucky they eke their living a government servant 'department elephant'.



the following is what i wrote about five years back:

Barely five percent of the elephant's original habitat remains, comprising fragmented pockets of forests. Elephants are nomadic creatures dictated by ancient instincts leading them to sources of food and water, especially in times of scarcity. But their forests and migratory paths are swallowed by dams, devastated by mines or taken over by agriculture. Homeless and starved, elephants maraud crops, destroy structures and occasionally kills helpless people protecting their homes. In retaliation, people poison, electrocute or ‘blow up’ elephants, by placing crude bombs in jackfruits or bananas, that unsuspecting pachyderms eat.
Is Ganesha a God? Why, then, don't we have a place for him--in our home, and heart?

for the love of tiger?

I am caught in a traffic jam, amidst about 15 jeeps with passengers in varied stages of impatience. Some mumble, a few curse, others talk languidly about the cricket team’s remarkable victory, while a bored kid yells to anyone who will listen that he wants TV. A few climb up the seat, and onto the hood, one proves his athletic prowess jumping from Gypsy to Gypsy. More jeeps rush in, skidding to a halt, adding to the cacophony. One manages to crawl ahead for a better view…bumping into another in the process, triggering a fresh bout of fury, passengers cuss—dragging in their mother’s and sisters’ good name in the process.

Welcome to Corbett National Park, where all ye have gathered for the love of tiger.

The tiger, actually a young tigress, is on one side of the road, crouched under some bushes. Not unlike some harassed star, genuinely frustrated by the attention of not-so-well-meaning fans. Or should we call them stalkers?
She wants to cross over to the other side. She moves, allowing the gawking public a brief glimpse of tawny gold, but her steps are stalled by the frenzy her sudden visibility creates and she slinks back. Quietly.
And waits.
A few more jeeps come in, more chaos, more noise.
Plus a constant commentary-fever pitched, like the kind you heard in the World Cup as Sachin neared his century.
Give the tiger space to cross, a sensible voice suggests.
Yes, yes, then we can see her, shouts another.
Clamour and confusion ensue as the vehicles rearrange themselves leaving a gap for the tiger to pass by.
We wait...and there is actually a blessed silence for a few minutes.
Except for the langur whose constant cry of alarm at the presence of a predator below had been silenced by the din of his superior cousins.
Then as calm prevails…I sense something...its inexplicable, like a presence, a powerful force.
The langur’s call takes on a frenetic note, and on a branch above my head, a peacock hauls itself through the air, screaming blue murder.
Aaah. The tigress is on the move.
So is somebody else.
A new entrant, bulldozing through the avalanche of gypsies, demanding right of way.
It’s a ‘lal-batti’ gaadi, the kind that carries ‘important’ people or should I say, people full of importance?
Someone forgot to tell them that the tiger (and the elephant, and the deer, and the mongoose and the jungle fowl..) has the right of way here.
Or maybe they did, but the important people were deaf. And dumb.
As they trumpeted their way through, the tigress retreated again.
Emitting a soft growl, then a moan...
She just wanted to cross the road. In her forest.
Perhaps there was water on the other side and she wanted a drink in this hot May day, perhaps she was hungry and this mass of humanity was coming in her way of going on the hunt.
Perhaps she had cubs on the other side. Young cubs, waiting for their mum, vulnerable without their mum.
Perhaps it was none of the above, and all she craved was simply free movement in her domain—‘core critical tiger habitat’ deemed to be inviolate , by humans.
I will not make you go through the details of her third—failed—attempt. Her dash across the road, interrupted, by a Gypsy jostling, bulldozing somehow, anyhow, through the jam.
Mercifully, there wasn’t a hit.
But the Queen of the jungle had had enough. Now truly irate and outraged, she growled. It wasn’t a full-throated roar. Yet, so immensely powerful, so ominous..it chilled me to the bone.
Around us, however, congratulations were in order. They had seen the tigress.
The star in action. It would make a wonderful story, embellished by the hour, to tell back home, over a drink, how they had escaped from the jaws of death when attacked by the Mighty Tiger.
The trip was paisa vassool.
The tigress was still waiting, to cross the road.
I retreated…wanting to bury myself somewhere. Wishing I could jump the species line. Consider the behaviour of the civilised Homo sapien. And that of the 'beast'.
Did anyone of them realise that the tiger could have harmed—grievously, fatally had she wished to. She didn’t.
The tigress is gentlewoman.
How many of us would have stood by—patiently—for hours when our way is blocked by a traffic jam, or a ‘VIP’ passing or whatever?

It’s against the law-the Wildlife Protection Act. Section 27 (4) specifies that no person shall tease or molest any wild animal..”
The law apart..., is it beyond us to have the grace to grant the tigress her dignity? And space and freedom in her sanctuary?

The above incident occurred during my recent visit to the park, but it is a common happenstance across most --and the popular--tiger reserves.
PS: This is not an 'anti-tourism' article, I can anticipate the howls of protest on that score. I would appreciate if we don’t take up that debate, not on this platform.

I would like to thank A Ponnambalam for the use of his picture, and Shekar Dattari for helping me get it! this pic, i understand, is from Kanha

Rohan Chakravarty, for the cartoon.

some hometruths...

No, it is not that i don't care about people, just coz i care about animals; yes, i know the girl child/AIDS/street children need attention--dire attention, but you who pointed out to me, do tell what you have contributed to the cause? No, we can't live happily ever after if we don't have forests. We can't live period, they give us, water, and clean air. conserve soil for our food. Do I think i am saving the world? no, i am not a fool. on second thoughts i am. A fool...to try to explain that money and GDP, and all the human brains in the world can't produce water....

the fate of india's tigers...

So, who is going to decide the fate of India's tigers and elephants and other wonderful wild creatures, and her forests and environment? the minister for coal, and power, and mines, and transport and steel and the planning commission, and finance..oh yes, mercifully, they have remembered to throw in the forests & env minister.

vultures don't vote...

the vultures lose, the nesting site of 69 long-billed vultures, a species on the verge of extinction, (99 per cent fall in population) in Girnar will b ravaged. for the sake of a ropeway to take pilgrims, tourists and louts who want a joy ride, in what we call (ha ha) their sanctuary.
why do we persist in this farce of protection?
of course, vultures don't vote too..

on human nature..

i think the saddest commentary on the nature of man is that all animals, be it the mighty tiger or the giant among beasts-the elephant or tiniest of birds or the dog whom we have 'tamed'-is that they consider us their natural enemy. That they know us in fear not in trust. That we are the face of terror..not kindness.

A typical Day

Overnight sms: Hangul poached in Dachgaam,. Man killed by tiger. Mob demanding death to tiger. Beat up forester; Two eles electrocuted-a tusker poached. Morning, leopard beaten to death.
Tiger near Corbett shot by cops-25 bullets-its not the 'man-killer' reportedly, who currently moves around with fatal wounds. Forest staff beaten.critical. two domestic ele's injured. one wild elephant found dead-all in corbett.
over 250 villagers enter dudhwa-cut grass, wood, create mayhem. Highway thru Valmiki TR widened to double. wetland in dadri being cemented over by delhi's biggest builders. Huge timber smuggling in suhelwa. Kaimur sanctuary threatened by cement factory. and trust me i am not telling all.
phew. Help

the hidden cost of a cellphone..

I want a new phone.
My old Nokia's is well, old. It is battered, hangs up at whim and is uncool. I have been eying other models-in-the-market. Cool, swanky models. In neon pink and classy black. Great features: Flash Camera X pixel, Blue Tooth. SMS, MMS, VLAN, 3G, GSM, GPRS and more such acronyms which i don't quite comprehend. I itch to get rid of the old. Its use is over. Almost, and i wanna move onto the Newer-Younger, model.
But before i could close the deal, I had some nasty thoughts, a prick of the ol' conscience.
Truth is, I can't afford one. And not just because i am broke, looks like Planet Earth is pretty broke too.

The mobile is made up metals and other components, many of which are toxic. I won't go into the fact that many of these are cancer causing, damage human nervous and reproductive systems--in fact the plastic contains phthalates, which are 'gender-bender' chemicals.
Here is another shocker, the green, and actual cost of that fancy cell phone: a typical mobile phone weighs say around 75 gms. To get that 75 gms more than 30 kilograms of rock has to be mined from the earth. Manufacturing the chips requires several hundred litres of water. And the energy to do all this burns huge amounts of fossil fuel.
I read in journalist Fred Pearce book Confessions of An Eco-Sinner that a phones typical two year life (and how many of us use a phone that long?) raises the weight of a phone's overall rucksack to about 75 kg, a 1000 times more than its actual--and we are not including the water.
The clincher is the origin of Colton-a bunch of minerals including Tantalum (guys, its there is just about everything from laptops to watches to jewelery). 80 per cent of this wonder metal is found in Congo. And so are one of the most endangered species on the planet, and a close relative--The Mountain Gorilla. Only about 400 on Planet Earth. Not only is the habitat of this critically endangered gorilla being destroyed and plundered by mining, it is being poached relentlessly. Mainly killed for bush meat by the locals displaced by the mines and pushed into desperate poverty. The western low land gorillas have been heavily poached too, and clearing the forest for mines means their home is shrinking by the day. The forests are being stripped for charcoal, to light the fires of the locals—and the miners.
Horrifyingly, mining for coltan is also funding the worst genocide which has killed lakhs of people. As the world hooked onto cellphones—it is believed there is one for every three people in the planet-- prices for the wonder mineral shot up, and the rebel militia cashed in, amassing fortunes in Swiss banks and using it for arms.
The weight of my mobile has got heavier, and the allure of the new model has dipped.
For the moment, I will give the I-Phone IV, the android or the N 500 a miss, even if my oldie has hung up and refuses to connect.
Maybe, that's a blessing!

@ prerna singh bindra

Environment concerns are not a luxury, Mr Prime Minister

PM's statement on September 6:Environmental concerns cannot emerge as the 21 century’s version of industrial control or license raj. They must not lead to "perpetuation of poverty".
Dr Singh here is news for you, India has amongst the worst environment monitoring and regulations on the environment, which is a major reason why investors flock here, dump their toxic wastes-while they prefer to keep their country clean.
The Env Impact Assessment reports are currently mere PR documents authored by the proponents themselves.
Here is another bit of news: About 90 per cent of projects sail through the MoEF which you deem 'anti-development'
Once cleared, subject, of course, to strict norms, there is simply no system of monitoring compliance of environment laws or standards,
And for the record, ecological damage is irreversible, and compliance with environment standards essentially translates to clean water, air, uncontaminated soil and food--which one would think are the right of the citizens of India.
Environmental concerns do not perpetuate poverty, Mr Prime Minister. They are not dispensable. On them depend our very existence. Unregulated industrialisation and development as defined by mines--with little thought to consequences--severs the poor and the vulnerable from natural resources on which they are dependent, and perpetuates poverty. Ecology helps meet the basic needs of the common man (including the 'privileged us') --and provides him livelihood.
Think, sir, where would your GDP and economic development when there is simply no water?

did you say animals have no feelings?

Who was it who questions that animals have no feelings, feel no pain..no grief? In the train tragedy which mowed down seven elephants, the herd was trying to free two calves trapped in the line. it wasn't just the mother..all the elephants in the herd were making desperate efforts, collectively, to save the young, and lost their lives, brutally killed in the process. Next day, a huge herd of 30-50 elephants revisited the site of the tragedy..they were restless, calling, trumpeting, uprooting nearby bushes and trees, halting the traffic..

the future of the tigers rests on politics

The tigers don't know it, nor do the elephants, those magnificently intelligent creatures--that so much of their survival depends on who walks the corridors of power in delhi. On whether the man in the hot seat will help protect them-or themselves. On whether he saves their home--forests, or sells it. Conservation is all about politics. and politics rarely cares about conservation--for its not about governance and vision-but about greed and votes and power. Exceptions to the rule, that rare political animal who works, please excuse

Tiger-eating men

No of people killed by sharks every year: Approx 20
Number of sharks killed by men for shark fin soup: Conservative estimate: 70 million
some shark species have gone extinct, many are on the verge of extinction.
No people killed by tigers each year: about 60.
three of the eight sub-species have gone extinct, two are on the verge of extinction..and the remaining are critically endangered. Because we have destroyed their home-forests, and also because we eat tiger penis soup and drink tiger bone wine
so, did we say man-eating tigers, or is tiger-eating men
Did you say killer sharks, or should it be killer-men.
think about it