Activity Update June 2017: Navegaon-Nagzira

Highlights:

Cleaning a park waterhole with the Forest Department staff

Our volunteers join the Forest Department on patrol in the park

Our volunteers join the Forest Department on night patrol

Our free medical camp at Asalpani - Dr Zanzal with a patient

Our Conservation Officer speaking to students at Bolunda

Inauguration of a nature trail

Jindatola - plastic clean-up drive

Kodebarra - patients waiting at our free health camp

Mangezari - villagers learn about livelihood opportunities
through vegetable farming

Mangezari - World Environment Day celebration

Mangezari - volunteers cleaning the area around a hand pump
and soak pit

THE FULL REPORT

Team:

Mukund Dhurve         - Conservation Officer

Jivraj Salam                 - Field assistant

Salimkumar Dhurve    - Field assistant

Highlights

·      Joined Forest Department staff on 7 patrols

·      3 programmes to clean waterholes in Compartments no. 112, 110 and 108

·      5 community assistance voluntary work programmes to clean areas next to hand pumps at Jindatola, Mangezari, Bodalkasa, Asalpani and Jindatola

·      6 anti-plastic programmes at Jindatola, Mangezari, Bodalkasa, Asalpani, Jindatola and Govindtola

·      Celebrated World Environment Day on 5^th June 2017 at Mangezari

·      Organised 6 education programmes in schools focusing on plantation - 760 students attended

·      Organised 6 education van programmes in schools focusing on nature and wildlife - 760 students attended

·      Conducted medical camps in 6 villages at which 279 patients got treatment

Conservation 

Our team organised 3 programmes in June to clean water holes in Compartments no. 112, 110 and 108.

Our team also organised 5 community assistance programmes in June to clear areas around hand pumps at Jindatola, Mangezari, Bodalkasa, Asalpani and Jindatola. 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 Bagadband and in Compartment no. 108, on June 1, 2, 14, 16, 19, 22 and 25.

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 organised 6 anti-plastic programmes to clean polythene/plastic litter from villages. The programmes were organised on June 3, 17, 18, 20, 21 and 24 at Jindatola, Mangezari, Bodalkasa, Asalpani, Jindatola and Govindtola villages respectively. Mukund, Salimkumar and Jivraj organised 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 organised a total of 4 awareness programmes during June in 4 villages – Boatola, Bodalkasa, Alezari and Umarzari.

On the occasion of Word Environment day, we organised a programme at Mangezari for the village’s eco-development committee members and Forest Department staff. The importance of our environment and the need to conserve it was explained to the gathering. The Forest Department used the occasion to distribute 95 solar-powered lamps to villagers.

Education

There were 6 education programmes during June 2017.

Education van

There were 6 film show programmes in June.

Mobile Health Service

There were 6 health camps in June 2017.

Activity Update June 2017: Kanha

Highlights:

Pramod Maravi of Kutwahi, who got a job at a farmhouse

Sant Kumar Uikey got a job at a farmhouse

Candidates for the driving training learning basics and theory,
Chhindwara

Batwar - cleaning the area around a hand pump

Batwar - the site after cleaning

Desilting and cleaning the well in Bhagpur

Bhagpur - cleaning the well

Dhamangaon - wildlife film screening

Compost pit being dug in Nokhe Lal's property, Kutwahi

Kutwahi - our Field Assistant Sampatlal briefs young villagers about
driving training programme

Mocha - launch of sapling plantation programme at the Gram Panchayat
office

Patpara - Sampatlal shows villagers how to treat seeds
for better yield

Patpara - villagers attend an awareness programme about plantation

Patpara - plastic litter collected by our volunteers

THE FULL REPORT

Team: Amit Awasthi – Conservation Officer

            Sampathlal Dhurve – Field assistant

           

Highlights                                                                                                                                                  

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

·      10 awareness programmes on plantation and improved farming techniques

·      Plantation programme – 2,400 saplings planted in 3 villages during the monsoon

·      6 compost tanks prepared in 5 villages

·      2 anti-plastic programmes

·      8 film shows on nature and wildlife – attended by 260 villagers

·      2 unemployed youths get jobs through our Employment Cell

·      12 youths sent to driver’s training programme at Chhindwara

Conservation

In community assistance work, our team organised one programme on June 10 to clean a well at Bhagpur. Organic litter had accumulated in the well along with other litter blown in by the wind.  3 women and 6 villagers joined Sampath and Amit in the programme in which they removed the litter and de-silted the well.

A similar programme was organised on June 14 to clear the area next to a hand pump at Batwar.

During the month, Amit organised 5 awareness programmes on improved farming techniques so that farmers can improve their yield. During the programmes, the farmers were also taught how to treat seeds before planting. Details of the programmes are given in the table above.

During the month, Amit and Sampathlal organised 5 awareness programmes on the importance of planting trees and increasing the green cover.

As part of our monsoon activities, our teams across the landscape motivate and organise villagers to collect seeds, prepare saplings and dig pits so that a plantation drive can be launched once the rains set it.

During June, our Kanha team helped plant a total of 2,400 saplings in 3 villages. The species planted included mango, kanji, jamun, amrud, awla, bamboo. The saplings were provided by the Gram Panchayat, Mocha. They were planted in Mocha, Chapri and Manegaon.

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 June, we helped 6 villagers dig compost pits –Radha Bai of Chapri on June 8, Gendlal of Batwar on June 10, Bipta Bai of Chapri on June 11, Sabe Singh of Bhagpur on June 18, Muliya Bai of Manegaon on June 21, and Nokhelal of Kutwahi on June 23.     

On June 11, our team organised an anti-plastic programme at Patpara. 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 organised at Manegaon on June 13.

Education  

There were no classroom programmes as schools were shut for the annual summer holiday.

Education van programme

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

Employment Cell

We helped 2 youths get jobs during June.

Driver’s training programme

Ashok Leyland Limited has an institute at Chhindwara where it trains people to drive four-wheelers. The management of Kanha Tiger Reserve asked us to identify suitable candidates for this training programme from villages where we work. We identified 12 candidates and sent them to the Ashok Leyland Institute of Driver’s Training and Research. The month-long programme ran from June 1. The expenses of the trainees were borne by the Forest Department.