The Hunt!

It was late afternoon. The elusive search for Teliya Female and her cubs had finally come to an end. What came next was simply too good to be true..!

The Teliya Female got her name from the Teliya dam and the lake around which is her habitat.

It had been a while since the last sighting of the Teliya Female and her four cubs. The cubs were over a year old and the mother was not to be seen much with them as they had grown older and stronger and could fend for themselves.

A glimpse of one of the cubs that very morning had brightened our chances for the evening safari. We along with the driver and the naturalist had decided to spend much of the time in the evening around the Teliya dam area.

The safari began around half past two. We kept circling around the Teliya dam area for over an hour looking for signs of movement. Finally,  after all the scrambling around, we simply parked the gypsy close to the water front where the last Cheetal call was heard and decided to wait out the rest of the day. The afternoon sun was still shining bright but the winter haze made the spotting extremely difficult. The metre tall dry grass that grew around the water body and spread all across did not make it any easier for us. Tigers dislike bright sun; they would rather prefer a shady place, like a cosy bamboo thicket, to cool off rather than make themselves visible. All in all, the Sun seemed to make everything and everyone around, hopeless.

We waited at the same spot for the next one hour for the temperature to come down; all the time praying to the Sun God to show us some mercy. We had just another vehicle to keep us company. The whole hour was spent napping, evading flies, cutting the sun out with whatever one could grab and checking our cameras for readiness. We just hoped that cooler temperatures would lure the cats to the water front; a fine idea indeed!

Several Cheetal calls were heard close by, but there was nothing to be excited about.  The forest played many such evil tricks on the in-frequent visitor and this surely was one of those! But then again one never knows; there was still hope, the hope of spotting the elusive tiger.

Suddenly our naturalist who was sitting in the front gave a huge sigh of relief and whispered that magnanimous five letter word…….TIGER!!!  We had been waiting to hear that for a long long time.

There it was, one of the Teliya cubs making his/her way to the water front with only a part of him/her visible in the tall dry grass that lay ahead. The sighting was 100 to 150 metres away on the other side of the bank. The weather seemed to have changed for the better.

It seems life had seeped back out of nowhere. We could sense more movement in the grass far left of where we had spotted the first cub. I tried to focus my camera on the spot in search of the other cubs. Was it really happening! I could see one of the cubs crouching in the dry grass, with only an ear visible. He was surely up to something... something fishy!

I guess it was time, time for the spectacle. The only thing one could see next was the tiger lunging on to the fawn and crashing into the water…..splash! God only knows from where the poor fawn found himself in water. Was it running away from another Teliya sibling? Who knows!

 There was complete silence all round. There were no words to describe or feelings to share. Our hearts were filled with joy and a sense of euphoria pervaded the area. The entire episode was playing out in front of our eyes again and again till we left Tadoba; for that matter, even now. I guess that it was absolutely understandable. Our excitement knew no bounds; after all, we had got to witness a miracle of sorts. It was a ‘once in a life time’ opportunity, so to say.

By this time the news had spread across the reserve and other jeeps had begun to make a bee-line to catch a glimpse of the QUEEN!

We rounded off spotting all the four Teliya cubs. The rest of the time was spent looking at those magnificent tigers go about doing their own.

Let ‘Tadoba’ be synonymous with tiger forever! Let it be a beacon light for the conservation efforts within the country.

Long live the Teliya cubs…Long live the QUEEN…..Long live the KING!

Cheating Death!

There are very few instances in one's life when one came so close to losing life; miraculously one survived and was given a second chance, either by sheer luck, or simply, by God’s grace. Either way, one lived....just to tell the tale.

It was a 45 day back packing expedition to the Himalayan kingdom; the States of Himachal Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir and Uttaranchal; by two of us, very close friends. It had been a plan in the waiting for quite some time before we had decided to take the plunge. I had also quit my job just to make this trip. Such was the commitment to the idea.

This particular incident took place in the pristine locales of Leh & Ladakh (J&K); mid way through our journey, to be precise. It was early June (Beginning of Summer). It was also the beginning of the tourist season with fresh snow cover all across the landscape from the long winter that had just ended. The roads through to the tourist hot spots had hardly opened up; still waiting for the clearing of snow.

The destination was the Khardungla pass. It was the second day of our itinerary in Leh. It is said to be the highest motorable road in the world. We left our guest house in the wee hours; should have been 4 AM -dawn in Ladakhi terms! (Early sunrise is because of the high altitude and the northern latitude). This was to avoid the ‘snow melt streams’ that dot the landscape as the day progressed. Wading through them is always a tough task and they are not one or two, but several. The 39 km road through to the pass was a challenging one with narrow roads, massive cliffs, deep gorges and a fresh blanket of snow accompanying us wherever we went. Landslides, washouts, road accidents and broken down vehicles were a common sight. The journey took us close to three hours to complete. Also, thanks to our experienced Ladakhi ‘driver-bhai’ and his indispensable Maruti Omni, we made it by breakfast time without hiccups, so to say.

After a light snack, and a much needed break, accompanied by hot tea at a military canteen, it was time for us to experience 18,380 ft, Mean Sea Level!

After a short photo session with the local military personnel and having collected the proof of our having ‘been there and done that’; let me say, we were left wanting for more. All this while, I kept wondering what more could one expect at 18,380 ft, MSL, completely covered with snow and having a heavy military presence, if not for the thrill or the exhilarating experience of just having been there!

We had a whole two hours to go before we had decided to head back to Leh. This is when a thought occurred to me of taking a small hike up the mountain adjacent to the canteen where a flag post lay with the tri colour unfurled with all its glory, thanks to the strong mountain wind. The sun was playing hide and seek all this while, much like what one can expect at this altitude. After consulting the locals and taking required permission of the concerned military authorities, I decided to head for the flag post with only a handy-cam for company. 

My friend had decided to stay back at the base as he had some problem with his shoes and it would have been difficult for him to make the hike.

It was a steep climb of about one hundred meters and took a good 30 minutes to reach the flag post.
It was a slow climb with frequent breaks; mostly, because of lack of oxygen at that altitude. After reaching the flag post and having taken time to record the scenery and take photos, I realized that the actual summit of the mountain which I had been climbing was ahead of the flag post but much closer than I had anticipated. Another 30 minutes or so a climb and I could reach the top. That was an easy and natural decision of an avid trekker and a keen climber. Reaching the summit was all that was on my mind then but that is the decision that I regret having made even to this day!

After having decided to go the whole hog, a slow and steady accent began; of course, with some doubts and, some uneasy but unknown, questions in my mind. I was half way through the climb and I began to have serious doubts about my chances of reaching the summit. The terrain was pretty much unstable all through. The fresh snowfall the previous night and a clumsy weather did not help much either. There was a strong head wind all through. I was exhausted and being thirsty had to repeatedly bite into the snow to quench my thirst.

Wading through fresh and soft snow is always a risky affair, especially, if you don't know the terrain well enough. It is very difficult to gauge the amount of snow fall or the depth of snow accumulated at such altitudes. So, every step I took had to be with extreme caution. Most of the times I had to use all my four limbs, my arms to gauge the amount of snow lying in front of me, so that I did not slip under the pile of soft fresh snow and disappeared for ever. It was not a good feeling at all. At that moment, I had to decide again whether to go on or retreat. I held on.

At long last, when I did manage to reach the summit, my mind, along with my body, had gone numb and was unable to ‘synthesize’ all my sensory inputs and make any sense of what all had just transpired. I just knelt down there for some time and kept gazing aimlessly all around. It was all so cold, white, rugged and harsh. I just kept wondering how it must have been for all those people who regularly summit these mountains. It was one of the breathtaking moments of my life. The peak I was standing on was the tip of a crescent shaped mountain with piles and piles of snow sloping down all along. I was at one edge of the hornlike crescent. Even a slight disturbance at the top could trigger an avalanche of such a magnitude that it was unimaginable at the moment. It was beautiful and scary at the same time but the worst was yet to come.

Having had come to my senses, it was time for me to record what I had just achieved. I stood up to get a better view and to record a 360 degree view of the location. Just as I was about to complete the turn, I lost my balance in one foot and slipped into the soft snow beside me, waist deep! 

This was waiting to happen. My heart had just skipped a beat. I thought that I was done for! All this had happened in the spur of a moment. By the time realization crept in I was already waist deep buried in the snow and did not know what to do.

All I could do at that moment was lay still like a rock, so that I would not slip further from where there was a point of no return. I simply did not want to believe what had just happened to me. It was nightmarish. After gathering all my senses, I slowly spread out my hands in search of some hard ground. After groping for a long time in the soft snow, I chanced upon somewhat a hard surface slightly to the left of where I had been stuck. Without disturbing the snow all round, I tried to inch towards it moving my feet ever so lightly. It was a slow and delicate maneuver. Just as I could feel the hard rock solidly by my toes, I leaned on it without losing the foot hold, slowly and firmly set my palms on it and leveraged myself up to where I stood a little while earlier. Then, it was just a step backwards to relative safety.

I was lucky enough to pull myself out without costing me my life or a limb. It could very well have been otherwise.  It was my day!

I had got a lot more than what I had bargained for. My only thought at that moment was to get back to the warmth of the camp below as soon as I could. As I began my decent, I followed the same route that I had come up climbing, but this time, with more care and caution. I simply did not want to think of or even believe in what had just happened. It took a good 30 minutes to the base, the flag post.

Finally, when I did manage to get back to the army camp below there was a huge sigh of relief and much silence. All this while, my friend had kept wondering where I had been gone for so long and for what. Much later, when I narrated to him what had transpired, there was a look on his face that told a thousand tales.

Later, I got to know from the local military personnel that the peak I had climbed was around 19000 to 20000 feet high. The highest I have ever been to so far. All said and done, to this day I truly believe that it was not worth the risk.

We all take many decisions in life; some of them are life changing in nature. The consequences of some of these decisions linger with us till the end; some may be for the better and others for worse. It is perhaps always prudent to take note of even the slightest of hesitation in circumstances like these. A sense of uncertainty or a genuine doubt may not be brushed aside or things taken for granted. If you are new to a place or do not know the location well, you are placed at higher odds of facing a bad situation.

In my case, it was a folly on my part to have made that decision to reach the summit. I may well have fallen short of my wits in getting back. Who knows, I might not have survived to write this story. Enthusiasm may not be an alternative to clarity of thought.

In the end, I lived to die another day!

One decision, too many ???! :-

July 24, 2012, can be said to be a red letter day for various conservation efforts within the country, not simply because it is regarding, the pride of the nation, our national animal ,"The Tiger"..! This because on this day the country's highest judicial organ spelt out it's stiff stance on what reverence it gives to it's national animal and it's consequent repercussions.

The supreme court of India, bench comprising of justices Swatanter Kumar and F M I Kalifullah came out with a unanimous decision to ban all kinds of tourism activities within the core areas of all the 41 tiger reserves within the country. A decision many would call, not so wise! This order one must say came about on a PIL filed by Bhopal based environmental activist Ajay Dubey.


This decision by the supreme court read straight on seems to suggest that the supreme court has taken a decision that many hardline conservationists would suggest should have come long time back :- "The time for co-existence of the man and the beast has far surpassed it's prime"! The only way to save the tiger and the wildlife of the country would be to keep humans out of it!


This is where the liberals disagree.
Many would say, man has become irrepressible for the survival of the Tiger and this fact simply cannot be sidelined.
The latest decision by the supreme court many say lacks substance. The issues to be addressed are far too many and complex. For instance, the revenue (for conservation efforts) and employment generated (for local communities) by the tourism industry would be lost forever. Then there is the question of independent monitoring and authority, obviously one would not want a Sariska or a Panna happening again where the STATE (forest department) was all gaga over number of tigers present in the reserve, when there where none left. Checks and balances are very much a part of democratic setup. Moreover, there seems to be no clarity with respect to the categorization of core and buffer areas within the reserves. The wildlife (protection) act 1972 stipulates the states to notify the core and buffer area of tiger reserves, but not much has been forthcoming from the states in this respect. Several states like Karnataka (state with the highest population of tigers) have even gone on to declare "ENTIRE" tiger reserves within the sate as core areas/zones.

However, there does seem to be some consensus  on the issue of regulating tourist inflow in tiger reserves and establishing a contiguous stretch of forests for their safe being.
As noted wildlife biologist, Dr Ullas Karanth has stated, "Care should be taken to ensure that non commercial and educative values of nature tourism and public support to conservation they generate are not lost sight of".

The supreme court has put onus on the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) to set the guidelines before taking any further decisions on the issue. All in all, a stage has been set for some serious discussions and long lasting decisions to be made  for the well being of the KING !