Team:
Mukund Dhurve -
Conservation Officer
Jivraj Salam - Field
assistant
Salimkumar Dhurve - Field assistant
Highlights
· 3 water conservation activities – programmes
to clean water holes in compartments no.
108, 109, 110
· Joined Forest Department staff on 4 patrols
· 2 community assistance voluntary work
projects – to clean area next to hand pumps at Mangezari & Jindatola
· 1 anti-plastic programme at Pongezara
· Nature Camp for the students of Pindkepar,
Mangezari, Kuradi, Bolunda schools
· Organized 3 Education Programs in which 750
students participated
· Organized 1 film show on wildlife and nature
conservation which was attended by 45 students and teacher
· Organized 6 medical camps at which 97 patients
got free treatment
Conservation
Our team organized 2 community assistance programmes on February 18 and 19 to clear the area around hand pumps at Mangezari and Jindatola respectively. Unemployed youths from Mangezari participated in the programmes which were led by Mukund and Salimkumar.
Water had spilled over while people
drew from the hand pumps and had stagnated, leading to proliferation of
mosquitoes and insects. Our teams cleared the area, removing scum and organic
growth and dug a canal to drain away the water.
Our team joined the Forest Department
in day and night patrols on the road from Mangezari to Kodebarra, Mangezari to
Jindatola, Mangezari to Bagadhban on February 10, 13, 18, 26 Patrolling was intensified in the area after
a tiger was spotted on Feb 07 as officials wanted to monitor the movement of
the tiger and ensure that it was safe from poachers.
The area is known to attract
poachers as power cables are strung on poles erected by the side of the road. In
the past, there have been instances of poaching on this road when poachers used
hooks and wires to draw power from the cables and killed animals by
electrocution. Sometimes, wires are drawn several hundred meters into the
jungle from the cables. At least one gaur and one leopard have been killed over
the past year, using this method. Besides our staff, volunteers from a youth
club at Mangezari also joined in the patrols. The youth club was set up with
our assistance and is mentored by Mukund Dhurve.
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| Volunteers on day patrol |
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| Volunteers on patrol between Mangezari and Bagadhban |
On Feb. 13, we organized a patrol during which our team cleaned one waterhole in Compartment no. 112 and repaired a water hole in the Compartment no. 112. The water body was clogged with organic litter and dust. Our team removed the litter and de-silted the water body.
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| Cleaning the area around the hand pump |
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| Compartment 109: waterhole cleaning |
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| The clean-up in Pongezara |
On Feb. 20, Mukund and Salimkumar led a team of 45 youths and school students of Bolunda school in a programme to clean the area of Pongezara temple. The team picked up plastic litter and stored it away to be sent for recycling later. The team also cleared the area around a hand pump next to the temple where spillover water had stagnated.
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| Mangezari - cleaning the area around the hand pump |
The Government of Maharashtra has issued the buffer zone notification for the Navegaon-Nagzira Tiger Reserve. Following this, doubts have sprung up in the minds of villagers as to how they will be affected by the notification. Due to the doubts, some villagers have started opposing the notification. To clear these doubts and misgivings, we organized a total of 3 awareness programmes during February in 3 villages – Chorkamara, Lendezari and Sodlagondi.
On Feb, 24, 25, we organized a nature
camp in which 31 Students and 5 Teachers from 5 schools participated. The aim
of the camp was to promote awareness among the participants about nature,
wildlife and the need for conservation. Activities at the camp included nature
games, nature trails, Quiz Contests and safaris. The camp was held at Pongezara
in the buffer area of Navegaon-Nagzira Tiger Reserve.
Education
There were 3 environment
education programmes in schools during February.
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| Learning about nature through games |
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| Nature trail, Pongezara |
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| Students and teachers after the nature camp, Pongezara |
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| Cultural show during the nature camp, Pongezara |
Education van
There was 1 film show on nature
and wildlife conservation in February. It was held during the nature camp.
MHU
There were 6
health camps in Feb.
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| Dr Burade examines a patient at the free health camp at Bagadband |
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