Activity Update August 2015: Kanha

Team: Amit Awasthi – Conservation Officer

            Sampathlal Dhurve – Field assistant

           

Highlights                                                                                                                                                  

·      2 voluntary work projects for community assistance – area next to hand pump cleaned at Bhagpur and area next to well cleaned at Manegaon

·      4 awareness programmes on snake bites, organic farming and plantation

·      4 compost pits prepared in 4 villages

·      2 anti-plastic programmes

·      Environment education programme conducted in 12 schools - attended by 355 students

·      7 film shows on nature and wildlife conservation in 8 villages  - attended by 394 people

·      One unemployed youth gets job through our Employment Cell

           

 Conservation

On August 8, Amit and Sampath led a team of 7 people in a programme to clear wild growth around a hand pump at Bhagpur. Due to heavy rains, wild growth had proliferated around the well and access to the well was affected. Our team, which comprised 5 youths and 4 women from the village, removed the wild growth and cleaned the area. Photos below.

A similar programme was organized on August 21 to clear the area next to a well at Manegaon. Photos below.

During the month, Amit organized 4 awareness programmes on snake bites, organic farming and plantation.  During the monsoon, snakes come out of their pits as these get flooded and there is greater occurrence of humans being bitten by snakes. Our awareness programmes focussed on teaching villagers how to identify venomous and non-venomous snakes. We also explained to the villagers what to do when bitten by a snake.

Awareness programme at Chhapri

As part of our monsoon activities, our teams across the landscape motivate and organize villagers to collect seeds, prepare saplings and dig pits so that a plantation drive can be launched once the rains set in. During August, we helped plant a total of 26 saplings at Shambhu Lal house’s in Chapri. The species planted included mango, papaya, jamun.

Our team encourages organic farming as part of our strategy to reduce the impact of chemical fertilisers on fields adjoining prime wildlife areas. Part of our work includes assistance to villagers in setting up vermi-compost tanks and compost pits. During August, we helped 4 villagers dig compost pits – Dhannu Singh Maravi of Patpara on August 7, Ghurolal Kartik of Kutwahi on August16, Lakhanlal Uikey of Bhagpur on August 27, Shiv Kumar Tekam of Samaiya on August 28.

Samaiya: compost pit being dug at Shiv Kumar Tekam's house

On August 8, our team organized an anti-plastic programme at Manegaon. Amit and Sampath spoke to the villagers about the harmful impact of plastic/polythene on the environment and motivated them to remove such litter from the village. The team of villagers and students went around the village, collecting plastic and polythene litter/waste, which were then buried in a pit on the outskirts of the village. A similar anti-plastic programme was organized at Chapri on August 26. Photo below.

Education  

During the month our team organized environment education programmes in 12 schools in the villages in our area of operations.

Kutwahi education programme

Education van programme

There were 7 film shows on nature and wildlife conservation in August.

Dhamangaon - villagers including students watch a film screening

Employment Cell

We helped one youth get a job during the month of August.

Sukhdev Singh Maravi, at his new place of work, a farmhouse in Mocha