An Indian Bureaucrat's Diary

When I was about 9 or 10 years old (well,                                                          

that was a good five and a half decades ago),

I first read about the Flamingo in Lewis Carroll’s

wonderful book – Alice in Wonderland.

So strange was the depiction that I thought the Flamingo was an imaginary bird.

Flamingoes are truly strange looking birds.
And they feed in a peculiar fashion.
They immerse their entire heads in the mud in the bottom of the water – upside down.

Description

There are six species of flamingoes in the world.
Of these, only two species – the Greater Flamingo (Phoenicopterus roseus) and the Lesser Flamingo (Phoeniconaias minor) are found in India.

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Sariska Tiger Reserve in Alwar, Rajasthan has been
in the news for the past four years – unfortunately for
the wrong reasons.

Sariska Tiger Reserve

The Sariska Tiger Reserve (866 sq. kms.) was originally a hunting preserve of the Kings of Alwar in Alwar District in the state of Rajasthan.
The area was declared a wildlife reserve in 1955.
In 1978, it was declared a Tiger Reserve and is now a part of India’s Project Tiger scheme.
It became a National Park in 1979.

The Sariska Tiger Reserve is larger than Ranthambore Tiger Reserve with similar topography, but is far less commercialized.

Sariska Tiger Reserve in the news

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the largest mass nesting site of
Olive Ridley turtle
in the world

Gahirmatha Marine Sanctuary is the only marine sanctuary in Orissa (Eastern India).
This Sanctuary is extremely important because it is the largest mass nesting site of the Olive Ridley sea turtles (Lepidochelys olivacea) in the world.

There are only four mass nesting sites of the Olive Ridley turtles in the world.
Of these four, the ‘Playa Ostional’ is in Ostional village in Costa Rica.
The other three are in Orissa.

The three mass nesting sites of the Olive Ridley turtles in Orissa are: Read the rest of this entry »

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 ……….Save the
              Leopard                                                
                                               

The Tansa Wildlife Sanctuary is located in Thane district.
It is 90 kms, or one and a half hours drive, from Mumbai.
It covers an area of 355 sq. kms. – more than three times the size of the 103 sq. kms. Sanjay Gandhi National Park.

Yet, according to census reports, Sanjay Gandhi National Park had 20 Indian Leopards in 2007.
Tansa Wildlife Sanctuary had seven leopards in 2005. The number fell to five in 2006, and to two in 2007.
The number has dropped to one in 2008.

And this is a cause for serious concern amongst all environmentalists and lovers of wild life.

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    ……….. on the brink of
                        extinction                                               

The Great Indian Bustard (Ardeotis nigriceps) is a highly endangered, ground dwelling bird.
In fact, it is the most endangered member of the bustard family in the world;
and has disappeared from almost 90 per cent of its former habitat.
The total population of the Great Indian Bustard is estimated to be around 700. The Great Indian Bustard is found in sanctuaries located in Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Gujarat, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh.
You can see the Great Indian Bustard in the Desert National Park (Rajasthan) and in the Lala-Parjau Sanctuary in western Kutch (Gujarat).

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Backdrop of Rudyard Kipling’s
Jungle Book

You can imagine the beauty and fascination of Kanha National Park by the fact that Kanha National Park was the backdrop of Rudyard Kipling’s ‘Jungle Book’.
Today, Kanha National Park is one of India’s largest and finest National Park and Tiger Reserve located in Madhya Pradesh, India.In the 1930s, Kanha was divided into two sanctuaries, Hallon and Banjar, of 250 and 300 sq. kms each.Kanha National Park was created on 1 June 1955.Today, it covers an area of 940 sq. kms in the two districts of Mandla and Balaghat.
Together with a surrounding buffer zone of 1009 sq. kms, and the neighboring 110 sq. kms Phen Sanctuary, it forms the Kanha Tiger Reserve.  

Flora

There are dense forest zones with good crown cover.
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Land of the romantic Marble Rocks
and Kipling’s Jungle Book

When you think of a romantic cruise amongst marble rocks, think of Jabalpur.
And when you think of Snooker, think of Jabalpur again, because snooker was invented here.

Overview

Jabalpur is located almost in the centre of India.
It is the first district in India which obtained the ISO-9001 certificate.
This has come into force from April 1, 2007.

The present city dates from the nineteenth century and has wide and well planned roads.
Jabalpur is famous for beautiful formations of Marble Rocks (Bhedaghat) through which flows the holy Narmada River.

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The Golden City 

Where would you go if you wanted to see sand, desert and sand dunes in India?The best place is Jaisalmer – in the middle of Thar Desert in Rajasthan.JaisalmerThe small town of Jaisalmer, nicknamed “The Golden City” – because this is what the town looks like – stands on a ridge of yellow sandstone on top of the Trikuta Hill.
It is crowned by a fort, which contains the palace buildings and beautiful Jain temples. Even today, a fourth of the population live within the Fort.
Many of the houses and temples are beautifully sculpted. 

History

According to legend, Lord Krishna told Arjuna that a remote descendent of the Yadav clan would build his kingdom on top of Trikuta Hill.

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 Ladakh is unique.
It is unlike any other place in the world.
It really belongs to a bye gone era forgotten by time itself. Ladakh is the enigmatic land of sand and snow.
You can see snow covered mountains and sand dunes in the same place – at heights exceeding 11,500 feet (3,520 metres).
You can ride on long haired two humped camels or watch highly endangered birds and animals.
You can amble through ancient monasteries dramatically perched on high mountains and join the monks in their daily prayers or explore the mysterious corridors of old palaces.
You can indulge yourself in white water rafting or trek through the enchanting wilderness for a couple of days or more. Read the rest of this entry »

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Gateway to the Himalayas  
   
                                              
Rishikesh is a picturesque holy city on the banks of the Ganga or Ganges River at the foothills of the Himalayas.
Rishikesh and its surroundings are ideal for Vedic learning, yoga, spiritual meditation and similar activities. You can climb into the ice and snow covered mountains; stroll through the dense forests harbouring a variety of animals and birds; or engage in a number of adventure sports.Rishikesh is also the starting point for onward travel to the Char Dhams – Badrinath, Kedarnath, Gangotri and Yamunotri  (the four holy pilgrimages) - and is therefore known as the gateway to the Himalayas.

Mythology


Lord Rama performed penance here after killing Rāvana, the demon King of Sri Lanka (Ceylon). Read the rest of this entry »

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