Activity Update August 2016: Navegaon-Nagzira

Highlights:

 Satpuda Foundation staff join Forest Department officials
on patrol in Compartment no. 114

 Bolunda - Our Conservation Officer Mukund Dhurve
teaches students how to make eco-friendly Ganesh idols 

Chorkamara - Village youths pick up plastic litter 

Kuradi - Students of GES High School watch film on wildlife

Mangezari - Our Conservation Officer Mukund Dhurve
addresses villagers gathered to form bio-diversity management committee

Sodlagondi - Dr. Zanzal examines a patient at free medical camp 

Team:

Mukund Dhurve         - Conservation Officer

Jivraj Salam                 - Field assistant

Salimkumar Dhurve    - Field assistant

Highlights

·      Joined Forest Department staff on 7  patrols

·      6 community assistance voluntary work projects to clean area next to hand pumps at Umarzari, Thadezari, Sodlagondi, Pitezari, Pongezara, Balapur

·      7 anti-plastic programmes at Chorkamara, Thadezari, Sodlagondi, Mangezari, Pitezari, Pongezara, Balapur

·      Organized 6 education programmes in schools focusing on plantation – 1,213 students attended

·      Organized 6 education van programmes which were attended by 1,168 students

·      Organized 6 medical camps in which 178 patients got free treatment

Conservation 

Our team organized 6 community assistance programmes in August to clear areas around hand pumps at Umarzari, Thadezari, Sodlagondi, Pitezari, Pongezara and Balapur respectively. Unemployed youths from Mangezari participated in all programmes which were led by Mukund and Salimkumar. Details of the programmes are given in the table above.

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 canals to drain away the water.

Our team joined the Forest Department in day and night patrols on the roads from Mangezari to Kodebarra, Mangezari to Jindatola, Mangezari to Govindtola, Mangezari to Bagadhband and in Compartment no. 109, 110, 57, 114 on August 5, 10, 15, 16, 17, 20 and 28.

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 our Conservation Officer Mukund Dhurve.  

During the month, our team organized 7 anti-plastic programmes to clean polythene/plastic litter from villages. The programmes were organized on August 1, 13, 14, 18, 21, 26 and 29 at Chorkamara, Thadezari, Sodlagondi, Mangezari, Pitezari, Pongezara and Balapur villages respectively. Mukund, Salimkumar and Jivraj organized the programmes which were attended by villagers and village eco-development committee (VEDC) members. The plastic litter has been kept in our Mangezari office and will be sent to Tiroda for recycling.

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 are opposing the notification. To clear these doubts and misgivings, we organized a total of 4 awareness programmes during August in 5 villages – Chorkamara, Kodebarra, Thadezari, Pitezari and Balapur.

Education

There were 6 education programmes during August 2016.

     

Education van

There were 6 film shows during the month of August.

MHU

There were 6 health camps in August at which 126 patients received free treatment.