Conserving vultures through a tree climber, spreading clay nest for birds
The cross fertilization of ideas across the country has continued unabated, despite lack of physical exhibitions of grassroots innovations in different parts of the country. Earlier, a Rs. 5000 bamboo windmill innovation by Mehtar Hussain and Mushtaq Ahmed from Assam got transferred to Gujarat to improve the lives of salt workers. Already 25 windmills have been installed by Grassroots Innovation Augmentation Network (GIAN) in Pipavav with the support of Choudhary Designers and Fabricators, Ahmedabad and Alstom Foundation. By December, 50 windmills would have been installed costing about Rs.65000 each making a palpable difference to the lives of salt workers. This time, I want to share few more inspiring stories about how grassroots green innovations are helping in conservation of birds.
Innovation by a small farmer, Late Appachan from Kerala has contributed to the conservation of vultures, a seriously endangered species in Gujarat. The tall coconut trees in coastal areas of Mahuva and Rajula taluka seem to be one of the last resorts for nesting of vultures in Gujarat. Last year, in October, SRISTI and GIAN came to know of a need for a tree climber through a journalist friend and donated this to local community in Nageshri village. Ruchi Dave, a teacher at a high school in Talaja and a vulture conservation enthusiast went with her friends to try out the use of climber. They wanted to make sure that the eggs are properly settled and the young ones were not at risk of falling down. The local farmers and labourers liked the idea and learnt the use of tree climber much faster. The use of the tree climber generated lot of interest among the onlookers. Some of them got so interested as to borrow the tree climber from Ruchi’s place in Mahuva. The checking of vultures’ nests became easier. The local community members would inform the conservation group immediately whenever they saw something odd in this regard. Another tree climber was donated to the community for the purpose. Four more climbers were requested and now the technology is being copied by the local replicators who wish to make their own climbers. NIF (National Innovation Foundation) plans to compensate the family of late Appachan for contributing this innovation for the conservation purposes under the Technology Acquisition Fund [TAF], since the design of the climber is protected by a patent. Given the importance of the cause of conservation of vultures and the ease of climbers use, an institutional solution has to be found to disseminate the technology and compensating the innovator. State governments and Ministry of Environment and Forestry can also come forward in such cases by contributing to the Technology Acquisition Fund at NIF so that more and more frugal and affordable grassroots solution can be made public goods through such a mechanism. It will be unfair to expect the widow of Appachan who has to look after her family to subsidise the cost of sharing this device and its local fabrication by the users. At the same time, the transaction cost of collecting royalty from every user or fabricator is also going to be enormous. We should create such windows of opportunity like TAF for creating green public goods for conservation as well as socio-economic development. In the case of windmill, royalty is paid per windmill to the innovators in Assam because there is only one fabricator.
The issue is that conservation of biodiversity and endangered species calls for commitment of volunteers and creativity of innovators. I hope readers will share more such areas where innovative solutions from the Honey Bee Network database can help in advancing the cause of conservation. Let me share the story of a Principal of a technical college who has distributed lakhs of bird nests made of clay for providing shelter to the sparrows becoming rarer in urban areas.
Dr. Paresh A. Raval, principal of an engineering polytechnic, earlier in Kutchh and now in Ahmedabad is a man with a noble mission to provide these vulnerable birds a home to nest in. In 2010, when he was posted in Bhuj, a personal setback turned his life around. His younger brother’s wife passed away leaving behind two young children. He was distressed seeing the plight of the young ones who had lost their mother at such an young age. One day as he was sitting in his courtyard he observed something unusual. He noticed two sparrow eggs inside an old pair of shoes lying nearby. He was appalled by the sight and felt pity for the plight of these birds that do not have even a place to lay their eggs in. Suddenly he correlated this incident thinking just as humans would suffer when someone close is lost, how would a bird feel when it cannot even bring her young ones to this world, safely? He thought of this as a divine calling and found a way to fill the sad void that his family was experiencing at that time. Life was never the same again. Dr Rawal decided from that moment that he will provide a ‘home’ to these birds.
Soon after, he was transferred to Ahmedabad, where he immediately made a design for clay pot nests. A potter near his college helped him get about 5000 such clay nests made from a nearby village. This passion has taken over him completely and he carries a clay pot nest wherever he goes and gifts one to anyone who needs it (including Honey Bee team). All this has been done out of his own pocket. He says that he gets tremendous satisfaction and a sense of peace when he provides homes to these birds.
He says this is his “return gift” to nature! Dr Rawal even carries special sturdy iron nails and wire along with the clay nests (so as to immediately help in hanging the pot when he gifts that to someone). The SRISTI team recalls a similar incident about ten years back when someone spotted the sparrow eggs inside a urinal, which was unused for many days. The sight was pitiful!
Dr Rawal recalls meeting one of his friends Mr Kabra; who is a keen bird enthusiast himself. Mr Kabra feeds about 150 crows every day. Till date, he has distributed over a lakh such clay nests. He says modern houses do not have a place for our feathered friends. The reasons for the dwindling number of sparrows are heavy cutting of greenery, radiation from cellphone tower, pollutants like lead as emission in exaust of vehicles and heat wave due to global warming. He says all the odds are there, but there are so many old shops and houses having roof of Iron sheet or clay tile on wooden trusses underneath which, these birds make their nest. Since, sparrows are not good at making their own nest, they lay their egg on small holes or behind small support or at any odd places when it cannot bear it anymore. How can we extend them our help? Dr Rawal suggests simple steps for urbanites. He says provide greenery and little space in any odd corner at our house. Provide shelter of card box, bamboos inside covered places, where it is safe in heavy winds and rain; else use stronger clay pots to act as good shelter against rain and wind. Grow trees, plants and shrubs because, one of the feed for sparrow other than food grain is insects, which need greenery. We can rationalize use of cell phone but then why not green bushes or sheltersfor them against heat waves.
It is the zeal, love and compassion of people like him that we still have feathered friends for our company. We remember how the great ornithologist Dr Salim Ali was inspired for life, after he witnessed the “The Fall of a Sparrow”. We hope that more readers will get feather in their caps, sorry nests!!!
I appreciate Hiranmay who brought Dr Rawal in touch with Honey Bee Network and Somya who helped in getting this narration put together for wider awareness through Honey bee newsletter and other media. If you know of other conservation enthusiast who are using innovative strategies to conserve wildlife or augment livelihood of people so as to reduce pressure on nature, pl write back.
Long live the tribe of such conservation volunteers.
Anil K Gupta
