The Fishing Cat: a feline fisher hunting by the night in wetlands
In early August this year, staff at the Coringa Wildlife Sanctuary, in coastal Andhra Pradesh, wrapped up their first census of the elusive fishing cat, a species that is otherwise…
NITI Aayog proposes green cess for the Himalayan region
Every year an average of about 100 million tourists visit the ecologically sensitive Indian Himalayan region (IHR), which is home to about 50 million people. In seven years, the number…
Community protest in the fragile Ladakh Himalayas forces motor rally to change course
A recent stir launched by wildlife enthusiasts and activists in the Ladakh Himalayas over a major motorsport rally intruding upon ecologically sensitive areas of the cold desert, including high-altitude wetlands,…
Women forest guides pave new paths in Chhattisgarh
“We know this jungle like the back of our hands. We have grown up with wild animals around us and already know the basic behavioural limitations,” said 19-year-old Parmeshwari, appointed…
Sikkim’s Khangchendzonga Biosphere Reserve braids nature with culture as tourism expands
Popular among trekking and hiking enthusiasts, the Khangchendzonga National Park (KNP) in Sikkim is the starting point for several stunning trails, taking explorers up and through a dizzying variety of…
This stairway to heaven is breaking: religious tourism in Uttarakhand
Once a haven for pilgrims, the quiet town of Kedarnath in the northern state of Uttarakhand is now abuzz with the sound of helicopters. Hundreds of tourists are ferried on…
Once in a blue bloom: Kerala’s famed Neelakurinji set for rare mass bloom
Starting late July, the Anamalai hills near Munnar in Kerala will be resplendent, clad in a purplish blue carpet. The famed neelakurinji (Strobilanthes kunthiana) will burst into flower – a…
[Video] Binoculars showed the way to this 23-year-old citizen scientist
Uttarakhand has 656 bird species, among the highest in India as recorded on eBird, an online database where birders from around the world update their bird observations in real time.…
Gentle giants suffer for tourists in Goa
Montora, a docile Indian elephant, enters the small, muddy brown lake. She rolls about, letting the water slide on her back. Her mahout shouts out to her in Bengali. His…
Five years since Uttarakhand floods: Continued disregard for the environment is an open invitation for more calamities
Take a disaster-prone area, add some lax administration and generous helpings of construction projects and voila! What do you get? Uttarakhand, the north Indian hill state which is a perfect…
