Palakkad,
He may be the answer to the debate on tiger versus
tribal, where tiger conservation and livelihood of forest-dwelling
tribespeople fail to find a common ground. A school dropout from the
Sunkam tribal colony inside the Parambikulam tiger reserve, he has
designed a website to bring to the outside world the biodiversity of the
reserve and highlight its tiger conservation efforts.
Babu,
the 39-year-old Malashar tribal man, who works with an eco-tourism
initiative of the tiger reserve, is uploading hundreds of photos he had
clicked of the flora and fauna of the reserve on the website,
www.savetigerland.com. It could soon be a powerful repository of tiger
conservation materials and invaluable photographs of Parambikulam, which
shares its borders with the Anamalai tiger reserve in Coimbatore.
Computer training
“I
have been engaged in conservation efforts from childhood. A few years
ago, the Forest Department computerised the Parambikulam Tourism
Information Centre and Divisional Forest Office. The officials there
trained me in computers and photography,” said Mr. Babu, on the marriage
of his interests.
Three years ago, he bought a
computer with a bank loan, and six months ago, a camera. The then deputy
director of the tiger reserve K. Vijayanandan inspired him to start a
website on Parambikulam and its conservation efforts. Software expert M.
Deepesh helped him design the website.
When the
website was launched in October this year as part of Wildlife Protection
Week, it carried only basic details of the park. However, the uploading
the data is fast progressing. Apart from English, it has pages in
Malayalam and Tamil.
“The Parambikulam Tiger Reserve
has many firsts to its credit, made possible through the participation
of tribal people. Tribal people have become part of the Social Tiger
Protection Force and are combating forest and wildlife-related
offences,” Mr. Babu said.
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