Holocene year 2 issue 8

Year – 2/Issue – 8/April - May’17

World after 5th Extinction

Dwaipayan Ghosh ".... far more pleasure is got from pressing the button of a camera than is ever got from pressing the trigger of a rifle....in one case the leopard can be watched for hours, and there is no more graceful and interesting animal in the jungle to watch....... in the other case a fleeting glimpse.... the acquisition of the trophy which soon loses both its beauty and its interest" - Jim Corbett, in the Man-eating Leopard of Rudraprayag Part Five: The Beast in the Dark The morning wasn’t at all fruitful as far as leopard sighting was concerned. Still I returned to the resort with a great feeling. I managed to

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talk to herd keepers and other inhabitants on my return, about attacks on livestock but never came across a negative attitude towards leopards. And if it was a question of attack on human, they couldn’t even believe that a leopard could kill a human and even live on human flesh. It wasn’t quite familiar with the other part of the country and unthinkable even in many other parts of the world. Every time I talked to them, I found a deep sense of responsibility among villagers. They accepted leopards as a cordial neighbour and not as a demon. Their faith on leopards remained unshaken as there wasn’t a single incidence of man eating for centuries.

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In the evening, around 5’ O clock, I started for Lilora, a small hamlet, together with Natwar. As we spotted the pug-mark of the big male in Pola in the morning and the animal was assumed to cross the hill and move towards Lilora with its dog kill, we decided to sit there and wait. A stray dog is not a big kill for a full grown male leopard. The pug-mark suggested that it would be about 10 years old. So there was a great deal of expectations that it would again come out for another kill with the setting of sun. Lilora was in between Pola and Badalda and there was a good chance to catch a glimpse of last evening’s mother and her cubs somewhere near, if they would come down from Badalda for a medium kill. In first two hours we didn’t notice any single movement except for a few peafowls, flying. Around 07:00pm, a brief but steady leap near the top of the hill made us attentive. It was about a kilometre away aerially and the big male jumped up on a rock from the bush behind. Staring around, it jumped down from the rock and started walking up to the top of the hill slowly but steadily. It was quiet everywhere and the only audible thing was the sound of opening and closing of my camera shutters.

We couldn’t imagine that there would be more surprise for us two. When the male reached at the top, suddenly we saw another one coming from the other side of the hill and it was none other than the mother, followed by its two cubs.

The attitude of the big male towards the cubs was certainly evidential that those were his offspring. We underwent a stupendous wild affair, a family get-together of leopards at the top of the hill. By then it was nightfall and Natwar’s searchlight couldn’t help much for my camera to shoot. When in wild, couldn’t expect every special moment to be framed. One can never shoot everything that meets the eyes, but the memories you have, experiences you gather last for long. I was exuberant and satisfied with the memories and experiences that I gained throughout the day. I met with people 2|Page

honouring the Mother Nature and her beautiful creatures, I encountered the most unlikely and rare moment of wild, a leopard family union. I was happily going back towards the resort, with my transporter cum guide, Natwar. After a minute’s drive, Natwar stopped abruptly and focussed his searchlight on a bush. I thought it was like the last evening when he was showing off his eagerness to spot a leopard. But this time he did something odd. The wrangler got offroad, for what it’s famous. Natwar drove it through the most difficult rocky terrain towards a bush, with the glowing searchlight in his one hand. I couldn’t make out his intension. After 15 seconds or so, a pair of blueish glowing eyes were revealed in the bush. A leopard, the female one, came down from the hill with her cubs with a few jumps and tried to cross the road before us. But as Natwar stalked them with his searchlight, they stopped and waited for our Jeep to go. Now I was absolutely convinced with the leopard tracking and driving abilities of Natwar Lal. I was experiencing the vivid descriptions I read in the writings of the Famous Jim Corbett and Kenneth Anderson.

The most elusive cat in the world, the animal considered as demon himself in many parts of the world, the cat, responsible for most of the man eating incidences in India for centuries and the most importantly my most favourite animal was within 5 metres of distance from me in the dark, with all its glory. A Supreme killing machine, a master of ambush as well as a mother, the protector. I had nothing to do but to watch the beast in the dark in admiration.

Surprised by the strong searchlight, she took another 5 to 7 seconds to adapt and then slipped in to the nearby thick bushy blackness with her cubs, with a leopard’s pace. I still couldn’t grasp my senses and took some more seconds to fathom. “वह चली गई sir, चचलए चलते ह�” Natwar muttered and started driving the Wrangler back on the dusty village road. …….to be continued

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Year – 2/Issue – 8/April - May’17

some parts of Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Odisha.

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Featured Topic: Panthers of Pali (Part Five)

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Editors’ Desk: Red Soil Erosion in India

Crops Grown: Wheat, rice, cotton, sugarcane and pulses are grown on red soil with the application of suitable fertilizers.

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Story Room: The Scent of Red Soil

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Cohabitation: Amazing Wildlife of Laos – Part two

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Theme Poster: Fire of Forest – State Flower of Jharkhand

It has been estimated that an area of over 80 million hectares or about one-fourth of our total area is exposed to wind and water erosion out of which 40 million hectares of land has undergone serious erosion. Ironically the extent of soil erosion is increasing in spite of our efforts to check soil erosion.

Experts have estimated that about 40,000 hectares of our land is permanently lost to cultivation and much larger area is rendered less productive every year due to wind and water erosion. About 21 million hectares are subject to severe wind erosion in Rajasthan and adjoining areas of Punjab, Haryana, and Gujarat.

Red Soil erosion in India is caused by: 

Editors’ Desk: Red Soil Erosion in India Red soils are formed by weathering of the ancient crystalline and metamorphic rocks.

Their color is red due to their very high iron content. They are found in areas of low rainfall and are obviously less leached than laterite soils. They are sandier and less clayey soils.

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Unscientific process of agriculture in which bare-soil wears away easily by rain wash; Wanton destruction of forest and vegetation-cover on the soil in which natural agents of erosion get easy access and widespread erosion takes place; Over-grazing which withers away vegetation and soil becomes bare open to natural agents for erosion; and Heavy rainfall and turbulent running water which force the bare rocks and soils to wear away.

The Central Soil Salinity Research Institute (CSSRI), a part of the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) system, focuses on reclamation and sustainable management of salt affected soils and on the rational use of poor quality waters in agriculture.

India is losing 5,334 million tonnes of soil every year due to soil erosion because of indiscreet and excess use of fertilisers, insecticides and pesticides over the year.

Experiments conducted by Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) indicated that non-judicious and imbalanced use of inorganic fertilisers (NPK) over years may result in deterioration of soil fertility/nutrient deficiencies.

Red Soil in India is poor in phosphorus, nitrogen and lime contents. The red soil covers a large portion of land in India. It is found in Indian states such as Tamil Nadu, southern Karnataka, north-eastern Andhra Pradesh and 3|Page

The government has launched “National Project on Management of Soil Health & Fertility” during 2008-9 to promote soil test based judicious use of fertilisers for improving soil health and its productivity. Besides location

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Year – 2/Issue – 8/April - May’17

specific bio-engineering measures developed by the CSWCRTI Dehradun for controlling soil erosion vis-a-vis top soil, the government has launched several programmes during different plan periods including Integrated Wasteland Development Programme and National Watershed Development Programme for rain-fed areas.

Twenty-five per cent of India's total land is undergoing desertification while 32 per cent is facing degradation that has affected its productivity, critically affecting the livelihood and food security of millions across the country.

The major forms of land degradation include soil erosion (which accounts for over 71 per cent of the total degradation), and wind erosion (10.24 per cent).

environment ministry and the Indian Council of Forestry Research and Education - said.

Other factors leading to largescale degradation comprise "extension of cultivation to lands of low potential or high natural hazards, nonadoption of adequate soil conservation measures, improper crop rotation, indiscriminate use of agro-chemicals, improper planning and management of irrigation systems and excessive extraction of groundwater".

India is losing its red soil, Government has launched few schemes to conserve it but result has not yet been seen.

Exploring Nature raises its voice and urges all stakeholders for sustainable cattle farming and agricultural practices to conserve this precious cover of earth.

In its fifth National Report on Desertification, Land Degradation and Drought, the government has conceded that land degradation continues to be a major environmental concern for the country, with consequent implications for sustainable development.

The report has been submitted to the Secretariat of the UN Convention to Combat Desertification, to which India is a party.

The degradation was the result of loss of vegetation due to deforestation, cutting beyond permissible limits, unsustainable fuel wood and fodder extraction, shifting cultivation, encroachment on forest lands, forest fires and overgrazing, the report - jointly prepared by the 4|Page

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Year – 2/Issue – 8/April - May’17

Birbhum is one of the tribal dominated districts of West Bengal, which has been declared as the “tribal district” of the state. With three subdivisions, Rampurhat and Bolpur are the part of the plain areas and Suri (Siuri) is the tribal dominated area of the district. There are 15 types of tribes residing on this region, representing major linguistic groups like Dravidian, Austro-Asiatic and Indo-Aryans.

Santals and Mundas are few imminent pillars of the tribal community, which are specially treated under 5th and 6th schedule of the Indian Constitution.

But for the “bourgeois” Bengalis, largely from the fecund “Gangetic-plain” and beyond, Birbhum symbolizes a philosophy, called “Rabindranath Tagore”, the Nobel Laureate Story Room: The Scent of Red Soil

by Anwesha Ghatak The red soil of Birbhum district, an administrative unit in the Indian state of West Bengal, turns bloodier in the paean of “Santal Rebellion” and its torchbearers, brothers-inarms, Sidhu-Kanhu-Chand-Bhairav, along with 15,000 other martyred souls. Birbhum witnessed rise and fall of numerous dynasties, withstood tales of atrocities and defiance, was blessed with educators par excellence, a pious land for Hindu devotees for the “Shakti Pithas” (shrines and pilgrimage destinations of “Shaktism”). The etymology of the name Birbhum connotes probably “land” (“bhumi”) of the “brave” (“bir”). Another theory says that the district bears the name of Bir kings, who ruled in the area. “Bir” in the Santali language means forest; therefore, Birbhum could also mean woodland.

The history of Birbhum, one of the districts of Rahr Bengal, is very ancient. In the district as a whole, hills and plateaus, dense forests, and hillocks of various heights are to be found. This district, which abounds with ochre colored soil, is full of much diversity and is inhabited by many communities. A large section of the total of population is tribal, and their food habits, habitations, lives and livelihoods are in keeping with the geographical environment.

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Bard and a thinker, our beloved “Robi Thakur”.

Tagore’s “Weltanschauung”, perception of the world, is institutionalized in this district, in a campus, where the world is a canvas, the “Visva-Bharati University”, in Bolpur, Shantiniketan.

The origins of the university date back to 1863 when Maharshi Debendranath Tagore, the “zamindar” (landowner) of Silaidaha in East Bengal, was given a tract of land by Babu Sitikanta Sinha, the zamindar of Raipur, which is a neighboring village not far from Bolpur and present-day Shantiniketan and set up an “ashram” at the spot that has now come to be called “Chhatim tala” at the heart of the town.

The ashram was initially called “Brahmacharya Ashram”, which was later renamed “Brahmacharya Vidyalaya”. It was established with a view to encourage people from all walks of life to come to the spot and meditate. In 1901 his youngest son Rabindranath Tagore established a co-educational school inside the premises of the ashram. On 23 December 1921, Tagore formally started the college with proceeds from the prize money of the Nobel Prize he received in 1913 for the publication of his book of poems “Gitanjali”. The college also became a centre of Brahmo learning in this period. It was granted full university status in

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May 1951 by the government of independent India. The poet's youngest son, Rathindranath Tagore, became the first “Upacharya” (vice chancellor) of the new university. Another member of the Tagore family who performed the role of “Upacharya” was Indira Devi Chaudhurani, a niece of the poet.

When I commenced the journey in my cozy red Hyundai i10 on January 28 th of 2017, it was a clement winter dawn. The car engine sped through National Highway 2 (NH2), which connects our “City of Joy” Kolkata to the nation’s capital. My “one-track mind” that morning was to savor “Kachuri” (fried Indian bread) and “Langcha” (a cylindrical red coloured Bengali sweet, made of cottage cheese dip-fried in sugar syrup) at the popular breakfast joints in Shaktigarh, in the distict of Burdwan. I witnessed several deliciously named eateries alluring numerous highway riders. I decided to try on the shop named “Langcha-Bhuban” and I was sated with the warmth and sweetness of a huge fluffy “langcha”. My next halt was at Nawab Hat, On the Burdwan-Siuri NH, a galore of 108 “Shiva linga” temples built in 1788, popularly known as “108 Shiva Temple”.

Legend says that, Rani Bishnukumari (queen of Burdwan) ordered to build this temple after receiving divine interventions in her dreams.

The uniqueness of this whole temple complex is, two rows of small hut shaped structures, each regarded as a single shiva temple, each having a deity of Lord Shiva within it. Here each year a week-long festival is celebrated on the occasion of "Maha-Shivratri". The campus was serene and well looked after with few devotees offering their homage to the “Lord of Destruction”. When we reached Bolpur, via NH114, it was post meridiem. Our reclusive resort “Park Guest House” was located near the Deer park. A quick bath was a necessity to rejuvenate, followed by a lavish luncheon in the garden restaurant. Being a hard-core Kolkatan, I love anything ‘fish-y” and a delightful non-veg meal with “Bhekti” fish was finger-licking good.

My stay in Bolpur started on a palatable note.

There was little or no time to take a lazy afternoon nap, as I had to rush to the Saturday attraction of Bolpur, the crowd-puller “Sonajhurir Haat”.

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At Sonajhuri, one can enjoy a concoction of rustic village roads, untouched forests, tribal dwellings, the unhurried Kopai River and the” Khoai” region(a canyon created by aqua and air erosions). Sonajhuri is situated very near to the northern side of Visva Bharati, Santiniketan.

The area is between the Shyambati Canal and the Sonajhuri jungle. The unrushed Kopai River and the untroubled Khoai were intimate to Tagore’s poetic heart and mentioned in some of his writings.

The Saturday “Haat” (Market) is a combination of Birbhum’s earthen art and craft with a global appeal. Local culture and creativity flourish with the exhibits of garments, accessories, home-decors. The “Bauls’ rendered soulful Sufi music, the tribes sang and danced with their unshaken indigenous spirit, while I collected few aesthetics for my wardrobe. I was sipping my evening tea at a populous retreat “Basundhara”, finding a secluded corner, as I seek isolation especially during twilight. The paddy fields in front of my eyesight were busy wrapping up day’s work. The peasant couple looked as prostrate as the setting sun, after a tireless heyday. In my mind, I was reciting a portion from Tagore’s poem “Ora Kaj Kore”, they never cease to plough…..”Shoto shoto samrajyer bhognosesh pore, Ora kaj kore”….

Rulers have faded, regimes are negated, the workforce have cultivated……… I was back at my reserved accommodation well before supper and a bowl of steaming mutton stew and “Naan” (oven baked Indian bread) was just what I asked for to end the eventful day. Next morning was proclaimed by a house rooster and the peaceful darkness was transpired by the possibilities of a new day. About time I encountered “Rabi” (the sun) and the epitome of his vision, the “Visva-Bharati” University.

The museum housed in “Bhavana”, comprising of a permanent display section and the five homes lived in by Tagore, collectively referred to as the “Uttarayan” Complex, attracts thousands of visitors. The architecture of the houses, the interior decoration, the pieces of furniture strewn about the rooms bring to life the E-mail: natural_destination@yahoo.com Website:www.exploringnature.org.in

Year – 2/Issue – 8/April - May’17

persona of Tagore. This unit of “RabindraBhavana” has 1580 original paintings of Rabindranath and 554 by others, the photograph collection (11380), the curio collection (3855) and 52 statues. The collection of addresses and certificates also form important sections of this unit. A detailed and descriptive list of the paintings and their items in the museum unit has been serially published in the Catalogue-in-progress. An important aspect of “Bhavana” activities is to mount exhibitions in “Vichitra”.

The “China Bhavan” (Institute of Chinese language and culture), the “Darshan Bhavan” (Institute of Philosophy), the ‘Kala Bhavan” (Institute of Art), the “Sangeet Bhavan” (the institute for Dance, drama and Music), the “Siksha Bhavan” (Institute for Science), “Silpa Sadan” (institute for Crafts and Designs), all resonate the omnipresence of Tagore and his ingenious pupils, with the likes of Nobel laureate Amartya Sen, Internationally acclaimed filmmaker Satyajit Ray, the sculptor Ramkinkar Baij, the painter Nandalal Bose, the singer Kanika Bandyopadhyay and the rest crème-de-la-crème.

The “Santi-Niketan”, peaceful adobes of the intelligentsia, residing in the vicinity of the campus, portrays simplicity, of low-living and high-thinking….. Depicting, “Where the mind is without fear and the head is held high, Where knowledge is free, Where the world has not been broken up into fragments, By narrow domestic walls, Where words come out from the depth of truth…..”

Drawing upon its own rich collection of photographs and other memorabilia, exhibitions depicting different themes from the poet's life, are held regularly throughout the year. But the museum is devoid of the original Nobel medallion own by Tagore, back in 1913, for his collection of poems “Gitanjali”, the first in the Nation. After its theft on March 25, 2004, the CBI was handed over the case. On failure of recovering it, the case was closed during 2007.

The Sweden-based Nobel Panel was gracious enough to bestow with a Replica which still adorns the Museum. I had to be gratified with the duplicate, as it was my first visit to this glorious episode of History in Bengali culture and literature. The day was getting increasingly warm and few local cowboys were selling homemade dairy products just outside the campus.

Sweet yogurt, “Rabri” were some delicacies, not to be missed. A view from far of the renowned “Chchatim-Tala” was one of the points of interest on the “Visva-Bharati” campus. The site is centered with a huge ‘Chchatim” tree (Alstonia scholaris), beneath which Maharshi Devendranath Tagore, father of Rabindranath Tagore, used to meditate. Rabindranath had a huge impact on his life of this serene and tranquil place.

It is under natural surroundings, one can connect with the chaste soul, a philosophy Tagore infused with his lifestyle and body of work. The ‘Upasana Griha” (Prayer Hall), built by Debendranath Tagore, in 1863, is one more embellishment on this reverent ground. Diversity of knowledge can be perceived in different sections of the University.

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In 1912, Rabindranath Tagore bought a large manor house with surrounding lands in Surul, 3 km from Santiniketan, from the Sinha's of Raipur. He set up the Institute of “Rural Reconstruction” in the manor house, in 1922, with Leonard Knight Elmhirst as its first Director. Rathindranath Tagore, Santosh Chandra Mazumdar, Gour Gopal Ghosh, Kalimohan Ghosh and Kim Taro Kasahara joined Elmhirst.

The second but contiguous campus of “VisvaBharati” was subsequently located around the same place in 1923 and it came to be known as “Sriniketan”. “Silpa Sadan” at Santiniketan had already started training in handicrafts.

“Sriniketan” took over the work with the objective of bringing back life in its completeness to the villages and help people to

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Year – 2/Issue – 8/April - May’17

solve their own problems instead of solution being imposed on them from outside. An emphasis was laid on the scientific study of the challenges of rural livelihood, before a solution was attempted. My journey to the center of modern Bengali illustrious heritage was uplifting and nostalgic. My next stopover was “Srijani Shilpogrm”, a place that showcases the homes, lifestyle and handicrafts of the Eastern and North-Eastern states in India. Spread across sprawling grounds, the place is designed to be a hub for rural artisans to sell their fabrics, handicrafts. A government of India initiative, “Srijani Shilpagram” started in the year 2008 and includes representation from states such as West Bengal, Odisha, Bihar, Sikkim, the seven sisters in North-East and Andaman Nicobar islands too.

Bolpur, Santiniketan is all about the alliance of native sustenance with the universal optimism. I was in awe with the vows this influential district retained, oaths to be free from Imperial slavery, from economic retrograde. Let’s direct our efforts towards relieving the plight of illiteracy, ignorance and lack of sagacity and be a constant learner. Let the Red soil of Birbhum show us the way.

For Team Exploring Nature Editorial Board: Anwesha Ghatak Dwaipayan Ghosh Arnab Basu Title & Logo Design: Arijit Das Majumder Saikat Chakraborty Newsletter Design: Dwaipayan Ghosh Arnab Basu

“The Reddish Soil Road leading from the Village has made my Mind get lost far far away…..

Oh! towards whom has my Mind stretched out its hands and then rolls down on the Dust?...”

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Year – 2/Issue – 8/April - May’17

Cohabitation: Amazing Wildlife of Laos – Part Two Compiled by:

The Outlander

bank of river Mekong. The town was smallscale, rest of the area was largely unpopulated, except for a few cattle farming. Almost every Sunday I was hiking in nearby hills, all by myself. My inquisition passed with ‘flying colours’ after I witnessed some pretty creatures of nature – butterflies, symbols of glorious natural metamorphosis. The count and the types of those beautiful bugs were really massive. During that period, I sighted 150 species of butterflies (some of them are unidentified till date), alongside 5 species of birds, 2 species of Geckos (including Tokay Gecko), 3 species of Moths ( including Atlas Moth), 2 species of Lizards, 1 species of Bat (unidentified), 2 species of Frogs (1 unidentified).

In Laos, from May 2016 to January, 2017, most of my time was spent at Pak Lay – a small town in Xayaboury Province. My dwelling was just beside the bank of great river Mekong. Due to busy work schedules, I was unable to move here and there, my territory was confined. At times it saddened me, but human wanderlust expands till the horizon. I never gave up hope to perceive the unseen and started to explore surrounding areas. There was a foot hill in the

The list of butterflies identified by me is given below, in subsequent issues of Holocene, few more species of butterfly and other spotted and identified species will be published.

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Year – 2/Issue – 8/April - May’17

BUTTERFLY FAMILY : NYPHALIDAE

Stripped Tiger(Danaus genutia )

Common Sailor(Neptis hylas )

Striped Blue Crow(Euploea mulciber)

Twany Rajah(Charaxes bernardus)

Autmn leaf (Doleschallia bisaltide)

Common Duffer ( Discophora sondaica )

Common Barron ( Euthalia aconthea )

Great Nawab (Polyura eudamippus )

Grey Count ( Tanaecia lepidea )

Magpie Crow ( Euploea radamanthus )

Red spot duke ( Dophla evelina )

Spotted palmfly ( Elymnias malelas )

Australian lurcher ( Yoma sabina ) FAMILY :HESPERIIDAE

Common Branded Awl(Hasora chromus)

Brown Awl(Badamia exclamationis)

Chestnut Bob(Lambrix salsala)

Common Grass Dart(Taractrocera maevius)

Grass Demon

Indian Grizzled Skipper

Indian palm Bob

Fulvous Pied Flat

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Theme Poster

:: Fire of Forest – State Flower of Jharkhand – Photo by Dwaipayan Ghosh ::

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Exploring Nature has launched its first project on Biodiversity Exploration, contact us at n a t u r a l _ d e s t i n a t i o n @ y a h o o . c o m , if interested to participate :

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