- News>
- Newspapers
Mountain man on green mission: The Hindu
Chennai, June 10: This slightly built, soft-spoken headmaster of the Kallakorai Government High School in the Nilgiris appears nondescript and not someone who would be taken seriously. Least of all, by the tough-talking people of the mountains in the Nilgiris, who are upset that it will take at least a few thousand years to reclaim their land. Today, the villagers have fallen in line and are doing their bit to rejuvenate their homeland.
Chennai, June 10: This slightly built, soft-spoken headmaster of the Kallakorai Government High School in the Nilgiris appears nondescript and not someone who would be taken seriously. Least of all, by the tough-talking people of the mountains in the Nilgiris, who are upset that it will take at least a few thousand years to reclaim their land. Today, the villagers have fallen in line and are doing their bit to rejuvenate their homeland.
J. Lakshmi Narayanan is from Thambatti village, which is home to 250 families. He traces his ancestry to the Badagas of Mysore, who were agriculturalists and later moved to the hills.
"In 30 years there has been a vast change in Ooty's landscape. I have been witness to the degradation and commercialisation of the town. People build two room apartments and visit once a year for a week but it has destroyed the pristine beauty of the hills." It is not a sentiment the others will share, he says with resignation.
The two-foot tall grass that grew on the slopes acted as watersheds, as the spongy roots retain rainwater. In summer, the water filters down to the valley and the rivulets feed the tiny hamlets. The perennial canals that took care of the population's water needs have now become sewage dumps.
The British, in their ignorance, converted grassland slopes into tea plantations, which he calls `green deserts.' The planting of the eucalyptus, the wattle and the pine did not help. The eucalyptus and wattle brought in revenue, but the pine leaves neither decompose quickly nor help the soil. "It will take 5,000 years for a full-fledged shola (indigenous tree) forest to come up." The shola trees grow only on the wedges between the slopes and are fed by the seepage from the grasslands. "In the protected forests, where the shola trees have not been cleared for centuries, the leaves form a soft bed and help to retain water," he says. The western catchment area, once home to the sholas and the grasslands, supplied water to Ooty town. Of Thambatti's four natural sources, one is being zealously protected, he says.
Success has eluded the shola species plantation project, though in the past eight years, the Government has listened to the natives and planting of wattle, eucalyptus and pine has reduced. "I tell my children to hug the trees, so that they can feel the warmth and oneness with Nature. That is the only way to teach them the importance of the trees. It is a great feeling to see the birds roosting, the bees gathering honey... We follow the bee's path. The glint of the honeycomb in the sun gives it away."
The villagers are also helping him to maintain the 7,000 cypress and 500 shola trees, planted with assistance from C.P. Ramaswamy Environment Education Centre, which honoured him for his efforts with an award on the occasion of World Environment Day on June 5 this year. At Thambatti he has set up a garden for rare herbs, and has taught the villagers to replant the `samai', an all-purpose cereal, which was abandoned for more lucrative crops.
His `back to nature' programme where he teaches organic farming and vermicomposting has many takers. A roadside vermicomposting pit at a cost of Rs, 20,000 has been set up. He leads 100 teachers and schools each in the Nilgiris, as master-trainer of the National Green Corps. In Kammathi village in Gudalur taluk, he has established a community polytechnic for the tribals. The students train in crafts, tailoring, typewriting and computer programming.
As if he weren't yet an environmentalist, this CPREEC environmental education award winner says, "after my retirement I will be fully working for environment causes. So long, I have only been creating awareness."
J. Lakshmi Narayanan is from Thambatti village, which is home to 250 families. He traces his ancestry to the Badagas of Mysore, who were agriculturalists and later moved to the hills.
"In 30 years there has been a vast change in Ooty's landscape. I have been witness to the degradation and commercialisation of the town. People build two room apartments and visit once a year for a week but it has destroyed the pristine beauty of the hills." It is not a sentiment the others will share, he says with resignation.
The two-foot tall grass that grew on the slopes acted as watersheds, as the spongy roots retain rainwater. In summer, the water filters down to the valley and the rivulets feed the tiny hamlets. The perennial canals that took care of the population's water needs have now become sewage dumps.
The British, in their ignorance, converted grassland slopes into tea plantations, which he calls `green deserts.' The planting of the eucalyptus, the wattle and the pine did not help. The eucalyptus and wattle brought in revenue, but the pine leaves neither decompose quickly nor help the soil. "It will take 5,000 years for a full-fledged shola (indigenous tree) forest to come up." The shola trees grow only on the wedges between the slopes and are fed by the seepage from the grasslands. "In the protected forests, where the shola trees have not been cleared for centuries, the leaves form a soft bed and help to retain water," he says. The western catchment area, once home to the sholas and the grasslands, supplied water to Ooty town. Of Thambatti's four natural sources, one is being zealously protected, he says.
Success has eluded the shola species plantation project, though in the past eight years, the Government has listened to the natives and planting of wattle, eucalyptus and pine has reduced. "I tell my children to hug the trees, so that they can feel the warmth and oneness with Nature. That is the only way to teach them the importance of the trees. It is a great feeling to see the birds roosting, the bees gathering honey... We follow the bee's path. The glint of the honeycomb in the sun gives it away."
The villagers are also helping him to maintain the 7,000 cypress and 500 shola trees, planted with assistance from C.P. Ramaswamy Environment Education Centre, which honoured him for his efforts with an award on the occasion of World Environment Day on June 5 this year. At Thambatti he has set up a garden for rare herbs, and has taught the villagers to replant the `samai', an all-purpose cereal, which was abandoned for more lucrative crops.
His `back to nature' programme where he teaches organic farming and vermicomposting has many takers. A roadside vermicomposting pit at a cost of Rs, 20,000 has been set up. He leads 100 teachers and schools each in the Nilgiris, as master-trainer of the National Green Corps. In Kammathi village in Gudalur taluk, he has established a community polytechnic for the tribals. The students train in crafts, tailoring, typewriting and computer programming.
As if he weren't yet an environmentalist, this CPREEC environmental education award winner says, "after my retirement I will be fully working for environment causes. So long, I have only been creating awareness."