Muthawa: NCSA's Nature Education and Community Resource Centre in Melghat Tiger Reserve

Established in 2006: To create a Green Army is our motto

Muthawa is a god of the Korku tribals. Our partner Nature Conservation Society, Amravati (NCSA) has created a small camping facility near the Sipana river on 8 hectares of land and have developed a “Community Resource Centre”(CRC). The CRC is locally famous as the “Muthawa” Centre.

The location is scenic and situated near the village Kotha on the Bori-Kotha road close to Harisal town on the Paratwada-Dharni highway. The CRC is surrounded by forest from two sides and you get a good view of the Melghat Tiger Reserve. The natural regeneration at the CRC land is very high. There are around 80 plant species and it has become a paradise for raptors (birds of prey) specially the Crested Hawk Eagle, Crested Serpent Eagle, Honey Buzzard, Shikra and Common Kestrel. The chital, four-horned antelope and black-naped hare are occasional visitors at the Centre as they get ample fodder and water there.

Presently we do organic farming, agro-forestry and implement many community-based conservation programmes at the CRC.

Melghat Tiger Reserve:

Situated in northern Maharashtra in the Satpuda landscape, the Melghat Tiger Reserve was once the logging and hunting grounds of British people. The river Tapti in the north and five rivers which actually contribute a huge amount of water to Tapti flow through Melghat Tiger Reserve and enrich the flora, birdlife, reptiles, butterflies, spiders and many more creatures. This is one of the best places in the country to see raptors in good numbers and also a newly-discovered family of spider and the endangered Forest Owlet.

Nature Conservation Society, Amravati (NCSA)

Nature Conservation Society, Amravati (NCSA) was founded in 1990 and was officially registered on September 9, 1991 under the Society's Registration Act-1860 and Mumbai Public Trust Act

1950. It is also registered under Foreign Contribution Regulation Act 1976 (FCRA) (Reg no.083740067) and sec.12-A of the Income Tax Act 1976. 

NCSA is a non- profit organization working in Central India, focusing on conservation of wildlife and the biodiversity of this region through education, research, protection and consultation with various sections of the society. NCSA has been fighting on lot of conservation issues in central India for the past two decades and has also earned credibility for being a dedicated grassroots level NGO which has established a unique wildlife conservation model by involving local communities.

Arrangements at Muthawa training and resource centre 

Accommodation: 

Accommodation is provided in tents. There are a total of 8 tents, as big as 10 feet x 12 feet. Every tent accommodates 5 childre comfortably.

The tents are neatly floored with mud and cowdung. We also put a nylon carpet and above it a cotton carpet. Preferably the children should bring sleeping bags. Every tent has a solar LED light. 

Water: 

The drinking water is underground tubewell pure water. We serve it after boiling. It is sweet in taste and pure in quality. But children are free to use their own bottled water.

Karma-Kuti:

There are many places designed and established for message transformation like the one shown below. This encourages the mind and soul to generate new thoughts to change the world for sustainable living.

Chital Hut:

The new Chital Hut has been created close to the meadow at Muthawa. As chitals frequently visit and take shelter at the meadow, the hut is named  Chital hut. It is at a safe distance from the meadow from which movements of Chital can be observed without disturbing them.

Machan:

A view from Machan is the most favorite sight for children. And a Korku 'zula' is equally thrilling for them. 

You can volunteer at Muthawa during the vacation. The work involves

preparing pits, watering saplings etc.

Dining Hall:

Muthawa has a nice dining hall where you can enjoy eating traditionally sitting on the floor. Food is simple but local and delicious. The food is strictly vegetarian. There is plain rice, chapati and a vegetable during lunch, with green salad and buttermilk. Poha, upama, gram, bean are served for breakfast. Fruits are served after meals. Children get tea/coffee in the morning and afternoon.

Lavatory Block: 

The lavatory block includes 3 toilets and 3 bathrooms for girls and a separate set of 3 toilets and 3 bathrooms for boys. They include one each of 'western' type. Hot water  is provided in each block.

Training Hall: 

The indoor training sessions are conducted in the open-air hall of 30 feet x 35 feet. The hall is floored with mud and cowdung and seating arrangement during the training sessions is on the carpet.

Outdoor learning:

Children learn more in nature. NCSA staff provide many opportunities to children visiting Muthawa to learn about tribal culture and their development through well-articulated/designed programmes.

Open Air Theatre (Nisargakatta) and play ground:

Children learn more in nature outside the classroom. The playground is floored with mud which attracts children to play more. We have also converted a nullah into an open air theatre by constructing seven water conservation structures. This is a unique concept and the kind of architecture that you can experience at Muthawa.

Library: 

The library was established in 2009.There are some books for sale on environment, organic farming and stories.

Power: 

There is no power supply from the State Electricity department. The CRC produces its own power with mahua-based bio-diesel. In 2009 the training centre was made fully solar-based.NCSA generates solar power and bio-fuel to run the CRC. Recently in May 2013, the organization has installed a solar-wind hybrid power system. The Muthawa centre has also installed some innovative items like a sewage treatment plant, gravitational water distribution system, biofuel plant, solar cooker and solar water heater-like appliances, water conservation structures and a spot feeding fence for livestock.

Solar water heater:

With financial support from Wildlife Conservation Trust, Mumbai, Muthawa is now equipped with solar water heaters.

NCSA generates solar power and bio-fuel to run this centre under the guidance of energy expert Prof. Nishikant Kale. 

The 500 litre water-heating system has actually increased the ecological contribution of this centre. We have now shifted from natural gas-driven geysers to solar water heaters. Students, researchers and community leaders using this centre will enjoy this new facility.

NCSA set an example by constructing a lake at Muthawa

With no financial support from any Government department, NCSA has constructed a lake at the CRC. NCSA has set an example for others with this water conservation work. The lake was inaugurated on July 2012 by wildlife conservationist Kishor Rithe.

The lake is called Nishisagar and stores approximately 13 lakh litres of water, doing a great amount of water conservation work every year.

"The lake will also help to conserve more water as we had already constructed another percolation tank downstream of this lake,",said Nishikant Kale, former President of NCSA and architect of this project. It has cost us around Rs. 2 lakh and a lot of work has been done through shramdaan (voluntary work) by our members during the summer.

NCSA has developed three nurseries including one exclusively for medicinal plants. Artificial water holes have been created for wild animals along with the grasslands around the water bodies. 

"It has actually attracted chital, sambar and some carnivores to the community centre,"said Neharu Yewale, CRC in-charge.

Late Dr. Marathe Udyan: Conservation area helping in education

This 2 ha area of CRC was delineated to allow the natural forest to regenerate. The experiment is now showing results after three years. The grass has invited a good population of reptile and insect fauna. The sightings of birds of prey have increased and many prominent raptors are regularly visiting now.

Deer like chital, sambar and four-horned antelope have also been visiting regularly.

Looking at the education potential of the area, our conservation team organized orientation
programmmes for teachers, community leaders and tribal students at the Centre. This plot would promote the concept of eco-tourism and would encourage community to generate income
from eco-tourism.

Teacher training workshop

Chital at the horticulture plot

Setting up a Nursery at CRC

Employment generation activities for landless families and specially tribal youths are a must in the tribal villages situated around any Tiger Reserve. NCSA decided to demonstrate their conservation-based employment model. As part of this NCSA has established three nurseries at Muthawa. A nursery of forest species can become a source of income generation of tribal families and also useful in restoring degraded habitats around villages.

NCSA set up the first nursery in 2009 and has presently raised around 20,000 saplings (in three such nurseries) of mango, karwanda, mahua, karanj, smala, jamun, custard apple, orange, neem, jack fruits, behada. One nursery is exclusively for growing medicinal plants.

These four nurseries at CRC also provided employment to 4-5 local villagers for 365 days. This will now help us to demonstrate to community leaders of buffer villages so that they can also start such nurseries.

Vermi-composting unit inaugurated at CRC

As part of demonstrating the conservation-based employment sources to tribal villagers, our conservation team in Melghat also set up a vermi-composting manure unit at CRC. The unit has started converting one tonne of agricultural waste per month into organic manure.

The manure helps the CRC to increase the productivity of the agriculture land. It is attracting the attention of visitors.

Bamboo Plantation at CRC showing the way

Around 600 bamboo saplings planted along the fence in CRC land during September 2006 have now grown up to the height of 15 feet. This has inspired villagers visiting the CRC and many community leaders have now started spreading this idea among the tribal villagers.

Foundation Day at CRC Celebrated

August 15: The CRC was inaugurated on 15th August 2006 and since then we have decided
to celebrate the day as its Foundation Day. The members of NCSA celebrate Foundation Day every year by arranging a workshop for media and conservationists to discuss the needs of the Satpuda tiger landscape.

Around 60 members and well wishers of NCSA gather every year on 15th August. Around 20 members and staff of Satpuda Foundation, mainly conservation officers working in six Tiger Reserves and the media people from Amravati/Nagpur also join them every year.

Horticulture at the CRC

NCSA has planted many indigenous agro-forestry plants, an orange and mango orchard and other forest fruit species like chironji and custard apple. The plantation has come up very well and started producing fruit. You can also see many nest boxes erected on trees and adopted by birds. The regular appearance of chital, sambar and Barking Deer have been recorded now.

Muthawa started organic farming operations in 8 acres on the CRC to create a model to reduce crop depredation by wildlife and to enhance income by horticulture. By following pesticide-free farming, we hope to set an example to tribals in the area and educate them so that they also stop using pesticides and insecticides. Crops like soyabean, jawar, urad, tuar, corn, rice etc are the usual crops at Muthawa.

Muthawa focused on horticulture in 2008. During the rains of 2012, the team planted around 150 plants including orange, mango, lemon, sweet lemon, pomegranate, guava, chiku, amla, jack fruit, fig and karvanda and sagargoti plants along the fence. The plantation has come up very well, specially the mango trees which have started producing fruit.

(see pictures below)

Percolation Tank Conserves Water

The conservation team also sought help from various nature lovers visiting CRC and created a percolation tank for water conservation just downstream of Nishisagar lake. The tank was completed in 2007 and conserves a huge amount of water during the rains.

Fish come from the river Sipna straight into this tank while traversing the water course during rains. The team showed these efforts to tribal children, youths and community leaders. It has brought about tremendous change in the attitude of the community.

Livestock Management programme

Though livestock is part and parcel of rural India, livestock management has been a complex issue which needs huge education, awareness and systematic efforts for its success. Rather it has been essential to ensure that growing numbers of livestock do not freely overgraze in a area. 

NCSA  had started efforts towards this with two non-productive cows. NCSA improved them in the last two years (2011 and 2012). Now we have procured two high-yielding milk productive cows. The two cows have joined NCSA's family at Muthawa on Sunday 24th February 2013. 

They are:

Jersey cattle are a small breed of dairy cattle. Originally bred in the Channel Island of Jersey, the breed is popular for the high butterfat content of its milk and the lower maintenance costs attending its lower bodyweight, as well as its genial disposition. Jerseys are adaptable to hot climates and are bred in the hottest parts of Brazil.

Sahiwal is a breed of Zebu cattle which is primarily used in dairy production. Sahiwal originated from the Sahiwal district of Pakistan, a region in the Punjab province of Pakistan. They produce the most milk of all zebu breeds, followed by the very similar Red Sindhi and Butana breeds. Today the Sahiwal is one of the best dairy breeds in India and Pakistan. Due to their heat tolerance and high milk production they have been exported to other Asian countries as well as Africa and the Caribbean.

Thanks to livestock expert Mr. Ravi Patil who helped us get these two cows at Muthawa. With this arrival our livestock population reached five cows. NCSA accepts cattle fodder in donation for the cows. They also eat grass which is ample at Muthawa.

The livestock programme will help NCSA to showcase results to Joint Forest Management and Eco- Development committees visiting the centre.

Hanging bridge and windmill at CRC:

Communication: For communication- CRC- 09325088197 (Reliance).

How to reach: Khandawa or Akola / Badnera. From both stations the distance of Muthawa Community Resource Centre is the  same and approximately 135 km. Please contact Mr. Kunal Potode (09890262677) Executive Director of NCSA, Mr. Vishal Bansod (9422916150), Education Officer of NCSA at Amravati for any specific help in booking some vehicles and sending them to Khandawa/ Badnera/Akola station. _____________________________________________________________________

Amravati office: 1st Floor, "Pratishtha", Bharat Nagar, Akoli Road, Near Sainagar, Amravati-444607 cell- 9422917672, 0721-2510966, email