Sixty students from two high schools from Mayong area – Gyanpeeth Jatiya Vidyalaya and Mayong Secondary School – located close to the rhino abode of Pobitora Wildlife Sanctuary in Morigaon district of Assam participated in a day-long wildlife conservation awareness workshop-cum-interaction held at Pobitora Village Eco Camp on April 27 under the collaboration of Rhino Research Conservation Division (RRCD) of Aaranyak and Pobitora Wildlife Sanctuary authority with support from Zoo Berlin.
The objective of the workshop was to educate the students on the ecological importance of the state animal of Assam, Greater One-horned Rhinoceros which has a sizeable population in the Pobitora WLS, and the role the common people and even young students can play in conservation of the rhino and its habitats.
Various sessions conducted in the workshop, including a hands-on biodiversity documentation session, were designed to inculcate in the students a sense of love and belonging to nature that sustains the animal kingdom on this planet.
Coordinated by Aaranyak’s RRCD project officer and researcher Ujjal Bayan under the guidance of Deputy Director RRCD Dr. Deba Kumar Dutta, the workshop was anchored by Ms Jinti Das, a PhD scholar from Cotton University, who also made a power point presentation on ‘Basics of Wildlife and Conservation’ at the beginning of the technical session.
It was followed by a lecture on ‘Role of Forest Department in Conservation and Protection’ by Ujjal Choudhary, the Range Officer of Pobitora WLS, who highlighted the role of the community members in complementing efforts of Forest Department personnel who have to work under challenging circumstances in protecting wildlife and their habitats.
Researcher of Aaranyak Ujjal Bayan made a lucid presentation on “History, Behaviour and Conservation of Rhinos” much to the enlightenment of the students about different types of rhinos living on the planet, their ecological importance, various characteristics, conservation status etc.
Consultant (documentation) of RRCD, Bijay Sankar Bora during the session on importance of setting up local level ‘Students Conservation Network’ highlighted how such a network would facilitate sustained interaction on nature and wildlife among the students that will help them learn many aspects of nature beyond the pages of their course contents. He initiated students to an impromptu hands-on biodiversity documenting exercise in the venue of the workshop under the guidance of resource persons.
Reputed wildlife filmmaker, photographer and pioneer conservation expert from Pobitora landscape Champak Deka during the session on “Role of Community in Wildlife Conservation” on the basis of his personal experience explained how even the young students could contribute towards conservation of wildlife in Pobitora and how satisfying could be a career in biodiversity conservation if someone has passion for protection of nature and its resources. He screened his acclaimed short film on Pobitiora WLS much to the entertainment and awe of the students.
The workshop which was overwhelmingly assisted by Priyanku Sarma, PhD scholar of Cotton University and Aaranyak’s K9 handler Rupak Das, concluded with a rhino, Pobitora WLS -centric quiz competition and subsequent prize distribution.
