This nocturnal bear, with powerful claws, is one of the most feared animals of the Indian jungle and yet its survival is threatened It’s evening time, don’t go towards that hill, the bear will maul you” ( Bhaiya shaam ho gayi, us pahadi par mat jaiyega, bhaluwa pakad leg ), two passers-by returning with heavy loads of fuelwood on their shoulders warned me. I was surprised and curious and wanted to ask more questions, but they were in a hurry. It was the first time I’d heard of the presence of bears in the forests of Mirzapur. It was 2010 and I was pursuing my master's from Banaras Hindu University’s south campus located in the forested landscapes of Mirzapur. Surprisingly, when I discussed the incident with faculty members, no one had a clue, and instead, students were asked not to venture out into forests without a teacher’s permission. However, that didn’t affect me much and I was ever more curious to know more about the bears. My research led me to learn about the sloth bear and
When as a student, Debadityo Sinha saw the forest he loved threatened by the proposed construction of a mega thermal power project, he used an evidence-based advocacy approach to stop the rich private corporation in its tracks! T hink about it. Though 25 per cent of India’s landmass is under forest cover, only five percent is protected for wildlife conservation! I realised this while I was in Banaras Hindu University’s South Campus in 2009, pursuing a Master’s degree in Environmental Science. Our campus was surrounded by the rich wilderness areas of Mirzapur that fell, as most of India’s lesser-known wildlife areas do, under the category of ‘Reserve Forest’ – owned and managed by the state government. As students, we spent all our free time exploring these forests which seemed to us no less than a..... Read More on Sacred Groves