Anupma Khanna | Dehradun Religion and nature are one, both being delicate manifestations of the same God, it is said. However, it is not very often that one witnesses as powerful a show of the gospel as around the shrines abutting the Ramganga in Uttarakhand; where people’s absolute faith in Hinduism is saving a magnificent life form from getting wiped out forever. In what is remarkable, Hindu temples dotting the river in Pauri and Nainital have become isolated sanctuaries protecting the mighty, but threatened, golden mahseer from ruthless illegal fishing methods by the locals. Mahseer is a...

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT First of all, On behalf of the Institute of Hotel Management, Pusa, New Delhi, we wish toextend our heartfelt gratitude to Shri Sujit Banerjee, Secretary, Shri Sanjay Kothari,Additional Secretary (T) and Shri Devesh Chaturvedi, ADG (T) Ministry of Tourism,Government of India for giving the opportunity to the institute to conduct the audit/ survey ofhotels, lodges, resorts, camps and guest houses in and around Corbett National Park,Uttarakhand. We take this opportunity to convey our sincere thanks to Shri Rajiv Bhartari, AdditionalSecretary, Tourism, Government of Uttarakhand for...

1 June 2010 was the official start of Mahseer Conservancy’s 2010/2011 vulture programme.  The following report is a summary of the work undertaken during the July 2010 period.  This report is the second of a series of monthly reports will be made throughout the year. 1.      Monitoring of vulture colonies Ringora Village Elsa Legrand was joined by Irena Glatzle in July, allowing them to extend the hours that they spend monitoring at Ringora.  Their monitoring hours are now 5.30am – 8.30am, and 3.00pm – 6.00pm. The birds are still head drooping, but it seems to have lessened with...

1 June 2010 was the official start of Mahseer Conservancy’s 2010/2011 vulture programme.  The following report is a summary of the work undertaken during the June 2010 period.  A series of monthly reports will be made throughout the year. 1.      Monitoring of vulture colonies Ringora Village Elsa Legrand has been monitoring the Ringora Vulture colony over the June period.  Over this time, from the 14 June 2010, it has been noticed that every evening, after the heat of the day, many of the vultures (around 40%) found in the colony are perched in trees with their heads drooped forwards...

Work of Dr. Anil Prakash. Joshi Dr. Anil Prakash Joshi known as Mountain Men has devoted himself to resource-based rural development for the last 29 years.  As a teacher, he guided 19 Ph.D. students and motivated many more to work in the hill villages to use science and technology to solve the basic needs of the mountain community.  An Ashoka Fellow, he has authored over 80 research papers and 10 books dealing with sustainable development of the Himalayas through various means. He has also been publishing other important scientific magazines to popularize science in the villages.  The major...

Background Prerna Singh Bindra Prerna Singh Bindra is an economics graduate, and has a degree in Personnel Management and Labour Welfare. She started her career with Indian Institute of Management (Ahmedabad), as a Research Associate. She has also consulted with NGOs i.e the Friends of Women’s World Banking, where she assessed needs for micro financing for rural women, and helped streamline systems to make microfinance accessible. Career She began her career in journalism, born out of a passion for the wilds, with Sanctuary Asia. Later, she moved on to mainstream media, as she believed that the...

BACKGROUND The following is a report on the findings of a study conducted by Mahseer Conservancy in collaboration with the Wildlife Institute of India on the status of Golden Mahseer populations in the Ramganga River and investigations into possible reasons for their apparent decline. The research was conducted during a 6 week period in March and April 2010. The golden mahseer occurs across the Himalayas and inhabits the streams and rivers that drain the lower Himalayan terrain. The large surface area of its fins, cylindrical body and muscular tail are adapted to suit the montane water environments...

MINING AND DYNAMITING, CAN THE MIGHTY MAHSEER SURVIVE?  The Ramganga River that runs alongside the Jim Corbett National Park is pristine. Casually peering into the river you will inevitably see swarms of golden mahseer darting around in the clear water hunting for small Chilwa. Look along the bank and you may see an Otter swimming in the shallows or a Gharial basking in the sun, point your head skywards and you’ll likely see a flock of Cormorants and perhaps a fish eagle soaring overhead. It is a complete river ecosystem. However, this reality is in stark contrast to the same river just 20km...

Joining Hands to Save Himalayan Aquatic Resources.’ A seminar to raise awareness about Nepal’s aquatic biodiversity.   Save Himalayan Aquatic Resources (SAHAR) kicked off its awareness campaign with a half-day seminar on Friday, 11 June 2010 at the DECC, United World Trade Center, Tripureshwor. It was the intention of SAHAR to use this occasion to raise awareness about the state of Nepal’s aquatic biodiversity, the challenges Nepal faces in protecting this resource so essential to the development of the country, and options to mitigate the loss of our natural heritage. To this end, SAHAR...

In an observation that has alarmed conservation activists and wildlife scientists, the near-extinct Indian White-backed Vulture, inhabiting Ringora village in Ramnagar, has been showing signs of a disturbing illness caused by heat stress, that experts warn will bode the death of the endangered species if not addressed immediately. Researchers of Corbett-based Mahseer Conservancy, who have been undertaking the annual vulture monitoring exercise in the region, report that every evening, after the heat of the day, as many as 90 per cent of the vultures in the colony can be found perched on trees...