Transact method being adopted

With the recent wildlife census in the North Division of the Nilgiris Forest department having revealed that the population of most of the wild animals was healthy, a two-day census got under way in the South division on Monday.

Speaking to The Hindu, the District Forest Officer, Nilgiris South, Anurag Mishra said that it was being conducted by forest officials with the help of volunteers from the World Wide Fund (WWF) of India and the Nilgiris Wildlife and Environment Association (NWLEA).

The District Forest Officer, the Nilgiris North, S.Ramasubramanian said here on Tuesday that a wild animal census in the North division would be conducted on May 2 and 3.

About 70 volunteers including students of the Government Arts College and forest staff would participate in the census operations to be conducted by the department in association with the Nilgiris Wildlife and Environment Association.

Massive rally planned in protest against the civic body's resolution seeking legal action against those who oppose cutting trees

A meeting of nature conservation groups and green enthusiasts on Sunday resolved to write to Chief Minister Jayalalithaa expressing their anguish over a resolution passed by the civic body seeking legal action against those who oppose tree cutting. The meeting also resolved to seek an appointment with the Chief Minister.

Study in the wild to create awareness of conservation

The last significant vulture population in the Western and Eastern Ghats are threatened by the indiscriminate use of pesticides, say researchers watching vulture habitats. A team of researchers from CareEarth Arulagam has taken up a detailed study in the wild and creating awareness of conservation of these forest scavengers. The organisation has its field station located within the vulture habitat at Bhavanisagar in Erode district.

The 300-odd small farmers, belonging to Thummanatti vegetable growing cluster in the Nilgiris, are an aggrieved lot. The hailstorm which struck the area recently has affected garlic, radish, beetroot and peas crops. “These crops were fully grown, ready for harvest, when the hailstorm struck the area,” says the Promoter-Director and Chief Executive of the Nilgiris Horti Tech Co (P) Ltd, Mr H.N. Sivan.

With a call to put an end to the exploitation of ground water in the ecologically sensitive Nilgiris district, World Water Day was observed under the aegis of the Public Awareness Association of Udhagamandalam here on Thursday. A signature campaign marked the occasion. Participants pointed out that the sinking of bore wells which was until a few years ago unheard of in Udhagamandalam and many other parts of the district is of late on the rise.