Category Archives: Nature

‘Conservation, a vital necessity’

 

Shekar Dattatri
Shekar Dattatri

Population growth, industrialisation and increased demand for resources in rural and urban areas led to immense environmental destruction, said Shekar Dattatri, wildlife filmmaker and conservationist, on Friday.

Speaking at an event organised by the Chennai Chapter of the Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage (INTACH), Mr. Dattatri said the country’s population had grown four-fold since Independence. Due to this, many forest areas had been cleared for agricultural activities, and new industries were being set up, he observed.

“While ancient India had an ethos in which religion, culture and nature were inextricably interwoven, population pressures and the material aspirations of people have considerably eroded these values,” he said.

Speaking about the Western Ghats, he said nearly 65 rivers emanated from the range. Yet, they were being systematically destroyed for short-term gains in the name of economic progress, Mr. Dattatri pointed out. “Conservation is not a luxury, but a vital necessity. While nature can get along just fine without us, we cannot survive without nature,” he said, concluding the talk.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> Cities> Chennai / by Special Correspondent / Chennai – January 11th, 2014

Weaver’s lantana-cotton sari can beat skin ailments

Chennai :

Do you want to clear your skin as well as keep it cool? Then this sari made of the lantana camara plant is your best bet.

City-based weaver C Sekar has made a sari out of the fibre taken from the stem of lantana camara, a flowering plant. He specialises in making garments out of natural fibre.

While lantana is an ornamental plant, native to the tropical regions of America, various studies show that it also has medicinal properties. It can provide relief from itchy skin, soothes skin inflammations and has a cooling effect.

The weaver from Anakaputhur, a city suburb, began the process by blending the lantana fibre with that of a cotton yarn.

Before this, the cotton yarn is dunked in hot water mixed with salt and later in cold water to soften the yarn. Then, the yarns of both the fibres are dipped in dye.

Sekar creates the dyes by combining various herbal ingredients. He said he makes yellow dye with a combination of extracts from lantana leaf, tamarind and neem leaf. “I can make about five colours; like purple with jamun fruit and tulsi, and red with hibiscus. A colour fixer is also added to it,” he said.

After dipping it in dye, Sekar dries it and finally weaves it into a sari. “Tamarind, neem leaf and lantana leaf have antibiotic properties,I decided to weave a sari out of lantana fibre only because it has medicinal value,” said Sekar. Priced at 3,500, Sekar says he takes about a week to weave one sari. , adding that he is expecting orders from fashion boutiques in Chennai and Delhi.

He has earlier created clothes out of 25 natural fibres like banana, pineapple, beetroot, aloe vera, jute and bamboo. “Manufacturers in fashion industry should change with the trend. With this sari, I not just want to create a trend but also add more value to the product with the use of natural ingredients,” he said.

source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India /Home> City> Chennai / TNN / December 29th, 2014

Training given in sea turtle conservation

J. Vinodh, a home guard in Kadapakkam on East Coast Road, has been assisting the police in patrolling the areas and checking vehicles during weekends. Now, he has learnt to collect eggs laid by Olive Ridley turtles and translocate them properly.

Mr. Vinodh was one of the 75 people who underwent training in protecting and conserving marine resources on Saturday. A total of 17 home guards, 20 forest watchers, six panchayat presidents and 31 sea turtle protection force volunteers underwent the training on Saturday.

Jebastian Emmnuel, a forest watcher who completed the training, will now take care of the coastal stretch between Napier Bridge and Lighthouse. He says: “Earlier, I did not know that when the weather is hot, adequate cover is needed around the spot where the eggs are translocated. I learnt this during the training.”

Forest department sources said a total of 15 field staff, including the wildlife headquarters range officer, underwent the training. The department has proposed to post five persons along the Marina stretch, and another five along the Besant Nagar stretch and along the east coast up to Mahabalipuram. These watchers will help local marine life conservationists to relocate the eggs, rescue stranded turtles along the coast and count dead Olive Ridley turtles.

Supraja Dharini of TREE Foundation said the training was scheduled just before the commencement of the nesting season of Olive Ridleys along the Chennai coast. The training focussed on the integrated sea turtle conservation programme, which is imparted in association with the wildlife wing of the State forest department, she said. Protocols, interaction and exchange of information on sea turtle monitoring and conservation methodologies were part of the training, she added.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> Cities> Chennai / by P. Oppili / Chennai – December 21st, 2014

V Balasubramanian, Vikatan editor and animal lover, dead

Chennai :

Veteran media personality and Vikatan group chairman V Balasubramanian passed away at a private hospital in Chennai after a brief illness. He was 79. He had served as editor and publisher of Ananda Vikatan, a widely read Tamil weekly founded by his movie-moghul father S S Vasan.

During his tenure, Balasubramanian launched Junior Vikatan, a racy, tabloid-like weekly that set a new trend by dishing out an exciting fare consisting of political reporting, investigative stories and serialized historical novellas.

Balasubramanian became a test case of the extent of legislative privileges when in 1987 the assembly speaker ordered his arrest for publishing on the cover of his magazine a cartoon on legislators. M G Ramachandran was chief minister at that time. While speaker P H Pandian insisted he had “sky high” powers, Balasubramanian stuck to his guns and went to jail.

Observers at the time couldn’t miss the irony of Balasubramanian having produced an MGR-starring film ‘Sirithu Vazha Vendum’ (Live life smiling) earlier.

“He was released in two days after protests erupted all over the country but our editor was not satisfied with that. He filed a lawsuit against his wrongful arrest, asked for token compensation and won his case,” cartoonist Madhan, who served as joint editor of the Vikatan group, said. “He framed the cheque for the compensation amount and displayed it in his room,” said Sudhangan, veteran journalist who started career with Vikatan.

Balasubramanian was an expert farmer, with special interest in the cultivation of high-yielding winter crops. A dog lover, he bred German shepherds. He was a successful aviculturist and is known for having bred many types of parrots.

His father, S S Vasan, was a celebrated journalist, freedom fighter and film magnate – he was the proprietor of Gemini Studios.

source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / Home> City> Chennai / TNN / December 20th, 2014

Country chicken rearing receives a boost in dist

Trichy :

Due to changes in lifestyle, the country chicken ‘naatu kozhi’, once a common sight, has largely vanished from the homes in the state.

It has been replaced by the juicier, cheaper and more easily available broiler chicken. However, country chicken varieties are slowly making a comeback in the district, thanks to the efforts of the department of animal husbandry.

Under a scheme to boost country chicken breeding, the department is providing individuals and women self-help groups (SHGs) money and other incentives.

It enables eligible applicants to get Rs 1,29,500 for every unit of native chicken breeding. One unit consists of 750 chickens, which will be given in three dues of 250 each.

Half the money would be provided by banks, which has to be repaid later. The state government and the national bank for agriculture and rural development (NABARD) will provide 25% each of the total cost.

The beneficiaries have to set up a shed and lights to create an atmosphere conducive for chicken breeding. For 2014-15, 160 people are receiving the units, worth Rs 2,07,20,000.

The number of beneficiaries in 2013-14 and 2012-13 were 240 and 35 respectively, with a total cost of Rs 2,80,80,00 in 2013-14 and Rs 40,95,000 in 2012-13.

Unlike broiler chicken, which has been said to create health problems in the long run, country chicken is bred in natural circumstances. Under the scheme, the chickens are fed with greens for healthy rearing. It takes around 75 days for a chicken to attain its full growth of 1.5 kg. Each kilogram of country chicken costs around Rs 300.

District collector Jayashree Muralidharan said that the scheme had benefitted a lot of women and it gave an impetus to rear country chicken.

Dr R Mohanarangam, joint director, department of animal husbandry, said that immunization drops were provided to the country chickens to protect them from diseases.

source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / Home> City> Trichy / December 09th, 2014

Coconut plucking: women take giant strides

A woman undergoing training in coconut plucking at Parangipettai in Cuddalore district.
A woman undergoing training in coconut plucking at Parangipettai in Cuddalore district.

Even though Cuddalore district abounds in coconut trees, the price of coconuts is high. The reason trotted out for such market behaviour is the lack of manpower to pluck coconuts or the high wages the workers demand.

It has created a situation in which even the ripe coconuts are left either to rot on the trees or fall. It has become consternation for the coconut growers to find the workforce on time to harvest, not to speak of the plight of the households having a few coconut trees in their garden.

To overcome the problem, the M.S. Swaminatan Research Foundation (MSSRF) has launched the “Friends of Coconut Tree” programme for farmers and the unemployed youth.

R. Elangovan, Project Officer of the MSSRF, told The Hindu that the six-day training programme organised under the aegis of the MSSRF Village Resource Centre at Parangipettai was intended to help the farmers and unemployed youth learn to climb trees to pluck the coconut.

To start with, 20 persons, including four women hailing from Killai, Nochikadu, Manikkollai and Parangipettai, joined the programme conducted recently. It was conducted in coordination with the Coconut Development Board that provided the device for climbing the trees free of cost.

In-house training

It was a sort of an in-house training as the trainees would stay at the Parangipettai centre throughout the training programme. Besides mastering the tree climbing techniques, they were also taught yoga and pranayam.

Mr Elangovan said the Coconut Development Board had made it mandatory that 30 per cent of the trainees ought to be women.

It was a surprise that four women had come forward to enroll their names in the programme.

One of the trainees, Kausalya, 24, told this correspondent that initially she had hesitation in joining the programme as she lacked courage in climbing tall trees.

But, the device provided by the centre made the job simple and easy. She gained confidence gradually.

However, the centre has prescribed a dress code for women — they should either wear salwar kameez or a pair of trousers to avoid risks.

Mr Elangovan said that after completion of the training programme, Parangipettai Town Panchayat Chairman Mohammad Yunus gave away certificates and the climbing device (free of cost) to the participants.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> National> Tamil Nadu / by A.V. Raghunathan / Cuddalore – December 18th, 2014

Marigold flowers fetch good prices

Dindigul :

Marigold flowers that are in full bloom in fields in Dindigul district are bringing good returns to farmers this season.

These orange and yellow flowers are cultivated in Ambaturai, Uthupatti, Kamalapuram, Perumalkovilpatti, Jathikoundanpatti and Theppampatti near Chinnalapatti in Dindigul district. These flowers gain popularity during the wedding season and the Ayyappa season, as they are used in making garlands and in other decorations.

Women and farmers in the region enter the fields early in the morning to pluck these flowers, when they are in blooming stage, and transport them to the markets. A kilogram of these flowers is sold for Rs 50, which is a good price, according to the farmers. The flowers are taken to the markets in Nilakottai and Dindigul district. Senthil, a farmer from Ambaturai, said that these flowers are propagated through seeds, which are first sown in large numbers and later the tiny plants are planted in beds. The flowers gain their colour based on the quality of the soil in which they are grown.

The plants that were cultivated in September have started flowering in late November. The crop in one acre of land produces about 300 to 400 kilograms of flowers once a week, a quantity that most of the farmers consider to be very good.

Kumaresan, a farmer, said that the rains this season had resulted in big buds being produced and the flowering was also good. ‘We expect the price to go up by another Rs 50 as the pilgrimage season progresses,” he added.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> City> Madurai / TNN / December 08th, 2014

‘Sthala Vriksham’ to be preserved through cloning

The Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments (HR&CE) Department has asked the executive officers of temples and departmental inspectors to adopt cloning to preserve Sthala Vriksham or tree unique to each temple.

Describing every Sthala Vriksham as a unique germplasm, a recent communication of the department urges the officials to take the help of experts from the Agriculture Department or the Tamil Nadu Agricultural University (TNAU) for the task.

Among the prominent examples of Sthala Vriksham are the Kadamba at the Meenkashi Sundareswarar Temple in Madurai; the Vanni at the Magudeshwara Temple at Kodumudi and the mango tree at the Ekambershwara Temple at Kancheepuram, the last two being 3,000-3,500 years old.

The communication, issued by Additional Chief Secretary R. Kannan to HR&CE Commissioner P. Dhanapal, also asks the executive officers to ensure that enough clones are kept in carefully quarantined, separate places in nandavanam or flower garden. Even in private temples, the HR&CE inspectors should take steps to preserve Sthala Vriksham. The operation should be certified by an international body for its quality.

A notice board, giving the Tamil, English, Sanskrit and botanical names of each species with details of the legend, should be put up prominently. It should also give the details of the cloning operation, such as the method used and the persons involved, the letter says, citing the case studies of cloning carried out in the past 10 years, including those of the Vanni of Kodumudi and the mango tree of Kancheepuram.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> National> Tamil Nadu / by T Ramakrishnan / Chennai – December 03rd, 2014

Plans afoot to regain Vaigai’s historical value

Madurai :

City mayor V V Rajan Chellappa on Wednesday undertook an inspection of the Vaigai river where cleaning operation is being carried. Meanwhile, the Vaigai River Restoration Pageant has planned to recover the grand waterway by restoring its historic value.

The mayor has ordered cleaning operations of the Vaigai river after appointing 200 corporation workers. An initiative was also being taken to plant trees along the Vaigai to add beauty to its existence.

Chellappa said, “We have also planned for an eviction drive to remove all the encroachments along the Vaigai river and expand the roads along it to make it useful for commuters.”

Moreover, the Vaigai River Restoration Pageant in collaboration with Dhan Foundation, an NGO plans to recover the grand waterway by introducing various ideas like social credit to the public and assuring to keep the river clean.

The social credits shall help the public redeem them in the form of health insurance and enrolling themselves for English speaking classes. A Gurunathan, chief executive officer of Dhan Vayalagam (tank) Foundation said, “We are trying to restore the forgotten history of Vaigai river by introducing mythological aspects like that of Lord Shiva so that the people residing in Madurai understand the significance of the river.”

The project is more about making the people understand the importance of river for the farmers and potters. In its bid to sensitise the issue, the project also plans for a walk through the Vaigai river starting from Fathima College to Albert Victor Bridge.

Ahead of Chithirai festival, Dhan Foundation in collaboration with Earths Celebration, an US-based NGO has also planned for a series of 20 to 25 artisans who will be placed along the Vaigai river wearing kavadi dresses and people wearing paper masks showcasing the cultural aspects of the city. The preparations for the restoration pageant will start in the month of December ahead of Chithirai festival.

source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / Home> City> Madurai / TNN / November 27th, 2014

Wildlife institute nears completion

Reproductive biology, animal care sciences, conservation ecology and a wildlife forensic lab will form part of the institute

An advanced institute for wildlife conservation, research, training and education is nearing completion in Vandalur, near the zoo.

Forest department sources said an announcement in this regard was made last year. The government had sanctioned Rs. 27.13 crore for establishing the institute.

Taking up research to aid the survival and recovery of species and their habitats, exclusive breeding programmes by creating captive breeding centres, training youth on conservation, finding solutions for man-animal conflict, advanced training for zoo management and captive breeding are some of the main objectives of the institute.

Reproductive biology, animal care sciences, conservation ecology with a field station in Kanyakumari, conservation education, centre for conservation and evolutionary genetics, migratory birds, species survival and a wildlife forensic lab will form part of the institute.

The first consultative meeting to develop a road map for the institute was held on October 13, on the zoo premises.

More than 20 forest service officers participated.

In the future, the institute will offer courses on wildlife conservation.

A sum of Rs. 7.13 crore will be spent on the building, and Rs. 20 crore on developing infrastructure, different centres and laboratories with state-of-the-art equipment.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> Cities> Chennai / by P. Oppili / Chennai – November 12th, 2014