Walk for the Tigers !
A collaborative awareness programme in the Sundarbans
 In
a unique tiger conservation initiative, thousands of people took part
in a five-day ‘Bagher Jonyo Hatun’ (walk for the tiger) from 9th to
13th November 2009, through villages on the fringes of the Sundarban
Tiger Reserve. The campaign, which was coordinated by Joydip and
Suchandra Kundu of Sanctuary Asia, was a collaborative effort of
Sanctuary Asia, Bengal Tiger Line, Wildlife Conservation Trust,
Wildlife Protection Society of India, WWF-India and ICNL, in
collaboration with the Sundarbans Biosphere Reserve and the Sundarban
Tiger Reserve authorities.
The objective of the march was
to improve the relationship between the Forest Department and the local
people towards the protection of wild tigers and the mangrove forests
of the Sundarbans.
“The campaign focused on the importance of
villagers and forest officials to work together during incidents of
tigers entering into villages. This problem has surprisingly increased
since cyclone Aila devastated the area in May 2009, and close
cooperation between the field staff and the local people is essential
to tackle these difficult situations”, said Joydip Kundu of Sanctuary
Asia. “The tiger is also a key tool for the survival of the mangrove
forests and to mitigate climate change in the Sundarbans”, he added.
The
colourful ‘parade’ was flagged off on 9th November from Bijoynagar
Adarsha Bidyamondir, a high school on Bali Island. More than 7,000
people took part in the march, including students, teachers, forest
staff, NGOs, village leaders and local government officials. A group of
traditional tiger dancers from Orissa accompanied the Walk for the
Tigers and performed in villages along the way, to the great delight of
both children and adults.
Towards the end of the march on 12th
November, when participants were returning in boats from Shamshernagar,
a large male tiger was sighted beside the Jhila River at two in the
afternoon. In full view of the boats, the tiger continued to stride
through the mangroves along the riverbank “swimming and jumping across
a number of creeks” for over three hours, covering many kilometres.
The tigers of the Sundarbans were clearly giving their blessing to this unique conservation initiative.
Photo credits
top photo
Traditional tiger dancers performing during the march
© Joydip Suchandra Kundu/Sanctuary lower photo
The large male tiger walking along the river bank
© Joydip Suchandra Kundu/Sanctuary
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