May 2013 VANA PREMI

49

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MAY - 2013Vol .14 No.5

JOURNAL OF THE ASSOCIATION OF RETIRED FOREST OFFICERSANDHRA PRADESH

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May 2013 VANA PREMI

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1. President : Ex-Officio President of Assn.2. Editor : Qamar Mohd. Khan

Tel : 40121132, 9849233624e-mail : qamar_asima@yahoo.com

3. Associate Editor : Sardar Iqbal Singh,

: 040-20081143, 98499098774. Member : A.H. Qureshi, IFS (Retd.)5. Convenor : Ex-officio Secy.of Assn

VANA PREMI

Vol : 14 No.5May - 2013

Editor : Qamar Mohd. Khan Associate Editor : Sardar Iqbal SinghThe Association of Retired Forest Officers,

Andhra Pradesh ��������������������President : Sri. S.D. Mukherji, I.F.S. (Retd.)

Tel : 23551065, 9885236493Vice President : Sri. Krishna Bhoopal Rao, I.F.S. (Retd.)

Tel : 23743774, 9866307808Secretary : Sri K. Santokh Singh, I.F.S. (Retd.)

Tel : 27962929, 9848808101Jt. Secretary : Sri. P. Upender Reddy, Dy. C.F. (Retd.)Cum Treasurer Tel. 23342582, 9848754778

Editorial Board

Contents

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VANA PREMI

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Executive committee members1. Sri C. Subba Rao, I.F.S. (Retd.), 9848018796

2. Sri Sultan Mohiuddin,I.F.S. (Retd.), 9440057333

3. Sri M. Padmanabha Reddy, I.F.S. (Retd.), 9849269105

4. Sri J.V. Subba Rao, 9848486146

5. Sri A. V. Govinda Rajulu, 9440764611

Total pages 48

1. Editorial ..................... QMK 22. Letters to Editor ....... 43. Eucalyptus Plantation and its Impact

on Village Economy .. S.D. Mukherji 54. Public Trust Doctrine & Forests

.................................... J.V. Sharma 145. Give the Body what it needs,

Not what we Want...Dr. B.R.R. Desai 196. Soul............P.V. Krishna Murthy 207. The Story of A Muslim Woman

and Brahmin Widow . 228. Crack Down on Fake Documents

to Curb Crime....Gajanan Khergamker 24

9. Experiments of CJ Reddy.................................... V.S. Joshi 27

10. Sparrows Still Chirp here and there....... Govind D. Belgaumkar 28

11. Birthday Greetings .. Secretary 3012. Raja Bahadur Venkatarama Reddy

Kotwal of Hyderabad 1920-1934 3113. Leelabai, A 59-Year Old

Forest Guard in Kanha 3614. Invitation ................... Secretary 3715. Living Monuments...N. Shiva Kumar 3816. News and Notes ....... 4017. =∂#=Ù_® F =∂#=Ù_® .......... "≥·. L+¨ 4518. Legal Notes ............... K.B.R. 4619. Obituary.......................K.B.R 48

May 2013 VANA PREMI

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World No Tobacco Day or World Anti-Tobacco

day: - World No Tobacco Day is observed around

the world every year on 31st May . The day is

intended to draw global attention to the

widespread prevalence of use of tobacco and

the negative health effects, which currently lead

to 5.4 million deaths worldwide annually.

According to a survey by the World Health

Organisation ( WHO), around 10 million

cigarettes are sold worldwide every minute.

Medical research made it clear that the use of

tobacco increases the likelihood of many

illnesses including heart attacks, strokes, chronic

obstructive pulmonary diseases and many forms

of cancer. Unfortunately, many people in today’s

world cannot get themselves to quit, despite

knowing all about its ill effects. However, there

still seems to be hope as new applications aiding

the process of quitting are beginning to come

up on various platforms. It is meant to encourage

a 24-hour period of abstinence from all forms of

tobacco consumption across the globe. The day

has been met with both enthusiasm and

resistance across the globe from governments,

public health organizations, smokers, growers,

and the tobacco industry.

Tobacco is a product processed from the dried

leaves of a plant in the genus Nicotiana. Tobacco

is a name for any plant of the genus Nicotiana of

the Solanaceae family and for, the product

EDITORIALmanufactured from the leaf used in cigars,

cigarettes, bidis, snuff, pipe tobacco, and

chewing tobacco. Virginia tobacco a variety of

tobacco which is used in the manufacture of

cigarettes is now grown chiefly in Turkey, India,

and Russia. In our state it is grown in Guntur,

Khammam, Karimnagar, Warangal, Krishna, East

and West Godavari districts. This is also known as

a cash crop. The addictive alkaloid nicotine is

popularly considered the most characteristic

constituent of tobacco but the harmful effects

of tobacco consumption can also derive from

the thousands of different compounds

generated in the smoke, including polycyclic

aromatic hydrocarbons (such as benzopyrene,

(which is found in the cigarette smoke),

formaldehyde, cadmium, nickel, arsenic,

tobacco-specific nitrosamines, phenols, and

many others. In consumption most commonly

tobacco appears in the form of smoking,

chewing, and in the form of ghutka, a version of

chewing tobacco mixed with areca nut, catechu,

slaked lime and other condiments which is

popular in India. Though Ghutka is banned in

many states including A.P. yet it is used by addicts.

The usage of tobacco is an activity that is

practiced by some 1.1 billion people, and up to

1/3 of the adult population of the globe. The

World Health Organization (WHO) reports it to

be the leading preventable cause of death

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worldwide and estimates that it currently causes

5.4 million deaths every year. Rates of smoking

have declined in developed countries, but

continue to rise in developing countries due to

lack of publicity and awareness.

Tobacco is cultivated similarly to other

agricultural crops. Seeds are sown and then

transplanted into the fields. Tobacco is an annual

crop, which is usually harvested by hand in our

country. After harvest, tobacco is stored for

curing, either by hanging or bundling. Curing

allows for the slow oxidation and degradation of

carotenoids. Following this, tobacco is packed

into its various forms of consumption, which

include smoking, chewing, snuffing, and so on.

Smoking causes lung cancer and other diseases

associated with smoke inhalation.

World No Tobacco Day is a day for people, non-

governmental organizations and governments

to organize various activities to make people

aware of the ill effects and health problems that

tobacco use can cause. These activities include:

✦ Public marches and demonstrations, often

with vivid banners.

✦ Advertising campaigns in print & electronic

media and educational programs.

✦ People going to public places to

encourage people to stop smoking.

✦ The introduction of bans on smoking in

particular places.

✦ Meetings for anti-tobacco campaigners.

Let us all pledge on this no tobacco day that

due to the adverse and ill effects of tobacco we

will not consume tobacco in any and will

discourage others also from consumption of

tobacco in any form to live longer and healthier

and serve the society which has given all of us

everything.. QMK

MY DELICIOUS NEIGHBOUR

This is my neighbour:

She’s single ... She lives right across the street. I can see her house from my living room. I

watched as she got home from work this evening. I was surprised when she walked across

the street and up my driveway. She knocked on my door ... I rushed to open it. She looks at

me, and says, “I just got home, and I am in mood to have loads of fun! I have this Strong urge

to have a good time, get drunk, and enjoy all night long! Are you busy tonight?”

I immediately replied, “Nope, I’m free ... I have no plans at all!”

Then she said, “Good! In that case, could you watch my dog?”

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ToThe Editor, Vana Premi.Sir,Terrorism is one of the grave challenges theNation is facing now and the article titled “Is Indiaprepared for?” by Mr. V. V. Hari Prasad, appearingin April (2013) issue of Vana Premi, is timely. Theauthor deserves all the praise for bringing intofocus the scope and magnitude of the malady.He has also provided an insight into steps takento tackle the terrorism.

Terrorism, whatever may be its objective, by itsvery nature is uncivil. It is also inhuman as it seeksto hurt the fellow humans. It is the extremeopposite end of the concept of humanism. Theterrorism is always purpose driven. As theauthor pointed out, Terrorism in the name ofreligion is only one of the kinds of terrorism weface. It is highly unjust to attribute it to anyreligion or sect. It has no sanction of any religionon globe. If anyone resorts to terrorism in thename of religion, it is due to his/her notunderstanding that religion or misunderstandingit. Excessive display of religion and fanaticismare the seeds from which religious terrorismsprouts. As for the other kinds of terrorism,including the Left Wing Extremism, the causesare mainly socio-economic and political. Meansadopted to achieve the objectives, even whenthe objectives are good, have to be honourable,humane and civilized. Without meaning todiscount various measures taken by theGovernment to combat terrorism, the mosteffective way is to sensitise the society itself toenable it to develop an inbuilt immunitymechanism in the society. Every terrorist is bornin the society and cannot succeed as a terrorist ifthe same society strongly disapproves terrorism.

It is heartening to see that Mr. Hari Prasad is

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

responding to issues that are relevant to society.My compliments to him. I look forward to manymore such responses from him. Vana Premi isbecoming increasingly relevant under thestewardship of its Editor, Mr Qamar MohammedKhan. The editorials bear testimony to hiscommitment to the Journal.

Regards,J.V. Sharma,

✦ ✦ ✦

Dear Editor,Convey my best wishes to C. Jagannath Reddyin his tireless efforts in investigating advancedmethods of raising various forest species bynovel methods based on his field trials. In facthis research needs to give national platform andyou people and your strong association willdefinitely help him. Let God give him more andmore strength and long life.

RegardsSharad varadkar

✦ ✦ ✦

Sir:The article in the April issue on the subject wasremarkably good: Foremost, a well-deservedtribute to the octogenarian, C. Jagannath Reddy-for his continuing interest in a carry-over causeof his career that ended decades ago. Secondthe very uniqueness of effort, involving largetracts of land and other resources committedby him to the cause. It is very gratifying that thewriter Shri Buchirama Reddy, (octogenarianhimself ) took time and troubles to visit the farmand publish an informative article. Salutationsto Shri Jagannath Reddy, and all appreciation toShri Buchirama Reddy!

Sincerely,A.V.Ramakrishna Rao

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ITC initiated social forestry plantations on

private lands in 2001 to meet the twin

objectives- augmenting the production of pulp

wood for its paper mill and supporting the SCs

and STs- under its corporate social responsibility

(CSR) initiative. To understand the impact of the

programme 5 villages - Palamadugu,

Kannapuram, Boddugudem, Rajeevnagar and

Rottagutta- were visited on 27th and 28th of

February 2013. The impression gathered, after

discussion with the beneficiaries and ITC field

officers, is summarized as follows.

Palamadugu village: - Palamadugu village in

Laxmipuram Gram Panchayat of Bhadrachalam

mandal, Khammam district is located about 22

km from Bhadrachalam. Most of the families own

land but remained poor as agriculture was not

profitable under dry conditions and uncertainty

of normal rainfall. Almost fifty per cent of the

land remained fallow due to lack of resources.

Earlier the villagers were able to get some non-

timber forest products (NTFP) from the adjoining

forests that supported the families in hard days.

However, with the degradation of forests it lost

most of its NTFP depriving the tribals of the

benefits.

P.Veeraswamy, s/o Ramaswamy aged about 40

years, Caste: Koya S.T. is a resident of this village.

EUCALYPTUS PLANTATION AND ITS

IMPACT ON VILLAGE ECONOMYBy

S.D. Mukherji

He owns 6 acres of dry land. He was growing

Jowar, Maize, different varieties of Millets, Red

gram and some other crop in three acres leaving

the rest fallow for want of resources. The yield

and income from dry lands due to uncertain

rainfall was not sufficient to support the family.

He worked on daily wages to support the family.

He switched to chilly, cotton and red gram on

one acre each, with the hope of better income.

The cash crops improved the income in a year

of normal rainfall. However, drought, at regular

intervals, became a major cause of poor yield

and income from agriculture. Moreover, he was

not able to supply the required inputs-

improved seed, fertilizer and pesticide that was

necessary for good yield and income due to

financial constraint. Thus, even after hard work

it was difficult to meet the growing expenses

of the family. Almost all the villagers faced

similar situation.

In the year 2001 ITC approached the villagers

to grow Eucalyptus on patta lands with the

assurance to support for land development and

supply of fast growing, high yielding and

disease tolerant ‘ITC Bhadrachalam clones’ for

plantation @ 600 plants per acre to be planted

at an espacement of 2x3metres. The company

assured buy back of Eucalyptus on maturity at

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the prevailing market rate. As sizeable land was

lying fallow due to paucity of resources, 25

families came forward to take up the plantation

in about 36 acres. Mr. Veeraswamy developed 2

acres of his fallow land and planted Eucalyptus

in 2001. Plantation was harvested in the year

2005, yielding about 20 tonnes and income of

Rs 31,936. The second cut was made in 2009,

yielding 22 tons and income of Rs 26,000. He

uprooted Eucalyptus after the second rotation

and planted cotton. With the cash in hand

Veeraswamy was able to buy better quality seed

and provide other inputs to grow cotton that was

more profitable. The return from agriculture

improved as he was able to cultivate on all his 6

acres land and supply the required inputs in time

from the income generated from the plantations.

Thus plantation supported agriculture and made

it profitable. Veeraswamy financial status has

improved. He has constructed a pucca house, his

children are studying and his family is fed well.

He is planning to restart planting of Eucalyptus

as the rate of Eucalyptus wood has gone up from

Rs 1600 per tonne in 2005 to Rs 4000 per tonne

in 2013 and likely to go up further. Moreover,

there is a new agro-forestry model that

accommodates 800 plants of Eucalyptus planted

in rows at spacing of 1 meter by 1.5 meter

leaving 8.5 meter between two rows for

cultivation of agriculture crop. He believes, this

new model would further improve his economic

condition and he would give higher education

to his children.

Sri Sita Ramayya, another beneficiary from the

same village, planted Eucalyptus on 1.8 acres

in 2001. He harvested the crop in 2004, yielding

18 tonnes and income of Rs 27,000. The second

rotation from the coppice shoot was harvested

in 2009. It yielded 20 tonnes and income of Rs

26,000. The plantation is now in its third rotation

and expected to be harvested in late 2013 with

estimated yield of 25 tonnes and income

exceeding Rs one lakh due to better rate. He

also planted additional 3 acres in 2008. It was

harvested in January 2013 with an yield of 40

tonnes and income of Rs 1, 30,000. With the

income generated from the Eucalyptus

plantations, Sitaramiah has developed his

balance land that was lying fallow and growing

cotton and chilly with good return. He has built

a pucca house, purchased a two wheeler, and

supporting his children for higher studies.

Income from Eucalyptus plantations has given

a new life and he is assured of sustained income

and better days in future.

In Palamadagu village, as on February 2013,

there were 84 beneficiaries and plantation on

166.53 acres. 28 beneficiaries have harvested

62.53 acres of plantations yielding 655 tonnes

of wood and income of Rs 11, 10,074. The

income from the Eucalyptus plantations has

supported agricultural by developing their

fallow lands and supply of inputs for profitable

agriculture. The prosperity among the

beneficiaries is reflected by the use of cell

phones, two wheelers, television, and

May 2013 VANA PREMI

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investment on the education of their children.

Most of the beneficiaries have built pucca houses.

The beneficiaries have formed a ‘sangha’ where

part of the cost of seedlings supplied by ITC was

deposited. This amount was kept in a bank

account and used as revolving fund to provide

loan to the beneficiaries. This has saved the

beneficiaries from the clutches of money lender

to a great extent.

Kannapuram village: -Kannapuram village

comes under Laxmipur panchayat of

Bhadrachalam mandal, about 30 km from

Bhadrachalam and connected by black top road.

There are about 90 families in the village, all

belonging to Koya, ST. Almost all the families own

land. Average land holding is about 6 acres of dry

land. The main agriculture crops grown here are

cotton and chilly. This village has also taken up

plantation of Eucalyptus under ITC social forestry

programme.

Sri S.Bamayya son of Narayana aged about 45

years is one of the beneficiaries. His father had

four sons and 30 acres of land. So each brother

got 7.5 acres of land. Bamayya has 2 sons and 2

daughters. He was growing agriculture crop on

4 acres and the balance land was lying fallow as

he could not develop it due to paucity of funds.

The yield was poor because of uncertain rainfall

and lack of inputs. He was finding difficulty in

meeting the family needs. He wanted to improve

his income so that his children can get proper

education and not remain illiterate like him. He

came to know about the Eucalyptus plantations

in Palamadugu village and found it attractive.

He approached ITC, developed his fallow land

of 3.5 acres and planted ITC Bhadrachalam

clones in 2003. The plantation was felled in the

year 2007. The yield was about 40 tonnes valued

Rs 70,000 (Rs 1750 per tonne). The second

rotation crop was harvested in 2011. It yielded

about 65 tonnes valued about Rs1.17 lakhs (Rate

Rs 1950 per tonne). The third rotation harvest is

expected in 2015 with yield similar to the

second rotation but more than double the value

as the rate of eucalyptus wood has gone up to

Rs 4070 per tonne and likely to go up further by

the time the plantation is harvested. He has

utilized the income from Eucalyptus plantations

in the following manner:

1 Built a pucca house of about 500 sq ft. of

floor area.

2 Purchased an Auto in 2008 by paying Rs

40,000 cash and loan of Rs 1, 60,000. He

put the auto on hire and made some

money. The loan amount was paid partly

from the savings of hire charges and partly

from the amount received from the sale

of second rotation crop of Eucalyptus. The

auto was sold in 2012 for Rs 35,000.

3 Purchased a two wheeler for Rs 32,000 in

2010 for own use.

4 Improved the agriculture land by taking

up soil and moisture conservation works.

The inputs to the crops were supplied in

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time. The impact of this was almost

doubling the crop yield as compared to

past.

5 Provided better education to his children.

The eldest daughter of Bamayya is now 24 years

old. She passed intermediate in 2012 and joined

4 years nursing training. Second daughter,

Summakha, is studying in 10th class. Third son,

Prasad, studied up to 9th class and then

discontinued the study and helping the family

in agriculture and other works. The fourth son,

Durga Rao, is studying in 9th class. Bamayya grows

paddy in one acre and gets about 20 bags of

paddy, each bag of 75 kgs, if the rainfall is normal;

another 2 acres under cotton, average yield

about 5 quintals and goes up to 8 quintals in good

season; another one acre under chilly, average

yield of 10 quintals and goes up to 15 quintals in

good season. The introduction of Eucalyptus has

changed his life. He is a happy man and felt proud

to narrate his achievements after the support

from ITC.

Sri Poonam Venkat Rao son of Passayya, aged 40

years is another beneficiary in this village. He

owns 12 acres of land but was using only 25 per

cent of his land for agriculture and rest was left

undeveloped for want of resources. The yield was

subjected to rainfall. He was finding difficulty to

supply agriculture inputs and hence yield was

far less than its potential. Family was leading a

very difficult life. In 2004 he developed 3.7 acres

of land with the help of ITC and planted

Eucalyptus. The first harvesting was done in

2008, yielding 70 tonnes and income of Rs 1.40

lakh by selling @Rs 2000 per tonne. With this

money he developed additional 6 acres of his

land. 3 acres were put to agriculture and 3 acres

under Eucalyptus. The second crop on 3.7 acres

was harvested in 2012 yielding 85 tonnes. He

got Rs 1.87 lakh by selling the wood @ Rs. 2200

per tonne. In 2012 he also felled his 3 acres

plantation of 2008. It yielded 63 tonnes and sold

@ Rs 2200 per tonne giving income of Rs 1.38

lakh. With the money from the plantations he

purchased a tractor for Rs 6.00 lakh. Made a

down payment of Rs 2.00 lakh and took loan

from Mahindra Finance for the balance amount.

Now he has 6.70 acres under Eucalyptus

plantation and 5.30 under agriculture crop. With

the tractor he is able to improve both his

agriculture and plantation by ploughing the

land yearly twice for conservation of moisture

and loosening the soil for better growth of the

crop. His yield from agriculture has already

improved and expects better yield from the

plantation crop in future. He is able to make

some money by putting the tractor on hire

when not needed for his own purpose. This is

giving good income to pay the loan instalments.

The introduction of Eucalyptus has changed his

life for the better and he expects further

improvement in future.

There are 75 beneficiaries in this village

covering 195.60 acres of land. 122 acres of

Plantations were felled by 51 beneficiaries in

May 2013 VANA PREMI

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year 2006, 08, 10 and 12 yielding in all 1350

tonnes of wood. Total amount accrued is Rs 24,

30,000. The farmers have put about half the land

on agriculture and half under plantation. The

general condition of the families has markedly

improved since the plantations came to

harvesting. Families have improved their houses,

all children-both girls and boys- are going to

school, land that was left unutilized has been

developed and put to agriculture/plantation,

agriculture crop yield has almost doubled,

beneficiaries possess two wheeler, cell phone,

television sets and having two square meals

without exception. Some 30 families have

savings account in the bank and taken LIC Policy

for a secured life. They look forward for a better

future to live in peace and dignity.

Boddugudem village: -Boddugudem village

comes under Gommu Kothagudem panchayat

in Bhadrachalam mandal, 30 km from

Bhadrachalam manadal head quarter. It is

connected by a pucca road. All families are Koya,

ST. All families, except four, have land with

average land holding of about 6 acres of dry land.

Major crop grown are paddy, cotton, Red gram

and chilly. There are 60 families in the village.

Plantation of Eucalyptus was started from 2003.

Smt. Yerpa Kanamma, w/o Late Ramesh, aged 40

years owns 6 acres of land. She was growing

paddy, cotton and jowar mixed with red gram in

2 acres each. The yield was poor as she was not

able to supply proper inputs. In 2003 she

planted Eucalyptus on 2 acres in place of jowar

and red gram. The plantation was felled in 2007

giving income of Rs 55,000. The second cut was

in 2010 when she earned Rs 80,000 and third

cut in 2013 also gave her Rs 80,000. This year

she intends to replant after up rootal of stumps.

She has three sons. The eldest son studied up to

5th class and taking care of the land. The second

son is working as field assistant in MGNREGS on

contract basis with salary of Rs 5000 a month.

The youngest is doing Bachelor of Physical

Education. It is one year course and 8 months

are over. Smt. Kanamma spent Rs 35,000 in

admission to the course and pays Rs 3000

monthly to meet expenses. She says her two

sons could be properly educated because of

the income from the plantation.

Smt. Payam Bhadramma, w/o Virayya, aged 59

years, owns 3 acres of land.1 acre is under paddy,

1 acre under cotton and 1 acre under Eucalyptus

plantation since 2003. She also has a share in

the joint property, her husband with two

brothers, on 8 acres of Eucalyptus plantation

planted in 2003. The plantations were felled in

2007 that gave her Rs 35,000 from her own land

and Rs 60,000 from the plantation under joint

ownership. The second cut of the plantation

gave Rs 40,000 from her 1 acre that was used

for her daughter’s B. Ed course. The share from

the joint plantation was used for house

construction and other expenses, including

education of her children. The income from

plantations has supported the family for better

education of the children, a house to live and

assurance for a better future.

May 2013 VANA PREMI

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Out of ‘52 households in the village 106

beneficiaries have taken up the plantation.

About 220 acres have been planted. All the

plantations have been harvested yielding 4670

tonnes and an income of Rs 85.24 lakhs. The

plantation programme initiated by ITC has

transformed the village economy for a better

livelihood and insurance for the future. The

income from the plantations has been ploughed

in to agriculture. Use of quality seeds,

improvement in soil conditions by up rootal of

unwanted root stocks, levelling and Bunding for

soil and moisture conservation, timely supply of

fertilizer and pesticide has been possible from

the cash in hand from the sale of harvested

plantations. Similarly the families have acquired

cell phones, two wheelers, television sets and

freedom from hunger. The changed economic

condition has made it possible to give better

education to the children, both girls and boys-

including higher education. The future looks still

better as more families are likely to embrace

the plantation programme based on the success

visible.

Rajeevnagar village: -Rajeevnagar village

comes under Amravaram panchayat, Kukkunuru

mandal of khammam district. There are 495

households in the village and total population

of 1730. The lands are dry with no source of

irrigation.

Sri Kesari Bujaru s/o Sarayya, aged 64 years is a

permanent resident of the village where his

forefathers also lived. He passed 8th class and

owns 8 acres of land. He was growing Jowar,

Millet, Red gram and Horse gram but due to

high lands and absence of irrigation the crop

yield was dependent on rainfall. In the year of

poor rainfall there was hardly any crop and even

the fodder for the cattle was scarce. On an

average the yield and income was not sufficient

to take care of the family needs. Therefore, he

and his wife had to go for daily wage works to

look after the three sons.

In the year 2003 ITC came with a package to

help in Eucalyptus plantation programme that

included land development- up rootal of

unwanted root-stock and deep ploughing with

tractors to absorb rain water- and supply of ‘ITC

Bhadrachalam clones’ for plantation @ 600

plants per acre. The company assured of buy

back of Eucalyptus on maturity at the prevailing

market rate. In the light of poor yield from

agriculture the ITC proposal looked attractive.

Sri Kesari agreed to plant 2.5 acres. The land

preparation was completed in 2003-04 and

actual plantation was done in 2004 rains. It was

harvested in 2008 yielding 50 tonnes of wood

and income of Rs 90,000. During that time his

youngest son had sudden attack of cerebral

malaria. The sickness was so serious that boy

was in coma and his life was in danger. He was

immediately shifted to Nagraj hospital at

Kothagudem. Due to timely treatment he

recovered. The expenditure on the treatment

was about Rs 60,000. Bujaru says that the cash

from the plantation came to his rescue to save

May 2013 VANA PREMI

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the life of his son. He also used the income for

better education of his children. Seeing the

benefit from plantation, another 4 acres of land

was brought under plantation in 2009. The 2004

plantation suffered wind damages in 2011 and

hence it had to be harvested, that gave 56 tonnes,

sold @ Rs 1950 per tonne and got an income of

Rs 1.09 lakh. He utilized the amount for the

construction of pucca house. Due to proper

education of his sons from the plantation income

his eldest son is now a school teacher, the second

son has completed B. Ed. and looking for a job.

The youngest son completed his degree and

joined Air force.

The 2009 plantation of 4 acres is getting ready

for harvest this year. He expects an yield of about

80 tonnes and income of about three lakh as the

rate of Eucalyptus wood per tonne has crossed

Rs 4000/- and likely to go up further. The last cut

from 2004 plantation is expected in 2015 and

after that it will be replanted. Sri Bujaru has

plantation on 6.5 acres and agriculture on 1.5

acres. He grows Cotton, Red gram, Jowar and

Cow pea (good for fodder) and getting better

yield as he is able to provide timely inputs.

Sri Kesari Bugaru is now a contended man. He is

living a happy life with his family. Two elder sons

have been married. He is assured of income for

the future and his health reflects the

contentment. He and his family look after the

plantations and agriculture. There is no need for

the family to go out for wage employment. He

has planted number of fruit plants around his

house. He says that with all the trees growing

he wants to prove that the tribals love trees. In

all there are 45 beneficiaries of the plantation

programme in this village with total coverage

of about 78 acres. So far 40 acres have been

harvested yielding 570 tonnes of wood valued

at Rs 11.40 lakh. However, with the introduction

of agro-forestry model where 800 Eucalyptus

plants can be grown in rows 8.5 metres apart,

leaving major area for the agricultural crop,

there is likelihood of more farmers joining the

programme of tree plantation.

Rottagutta village: -Rottagutta village falls

under Upperu gram panchayat in Kukkunuru

mandal of Khammam district. There are 75

families in the village; all are scheduled tribe of

Koya community. The average land holding per

family is about 5 acres. In spite of land

ownership the people were poor as the yield

from dry lands, without adequate inputs, was

uneconomical. The introduction of Eucalyptus

plantation has brought about a major

improvement in the village economy as

discussed below.

Sri M.Rajiah s/o Bhadriah, aged 37 years owns 5

acres of dry land. He was cultivating Jowar, Red

gram, Millets, and Til. Due to poor yield the

family was surviving mostly on Millet soup and

less of regular meals. Since 2000 cash crop,

Chilly and Cotton was introduced that improved

the income to some extent on normal rainfall

year. However, optimum yield was never

achieved due to lack of proper inputs. Hence

May 2013 VANA PREMI

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the yield from agriculture was never sufficient

to meet the family needs.

In 2003 ITC came with the proposal for

Eucalyptus plantation with assurance of support

on land development, up rootal of stumps and

deep ploughing, supply of ITC Bhadrachalam

clones @ 600 plants per acre and buy back of

wood on maturity. This looked attractive

proposition. Rajiah agreed to plant 3.5 acres. He

completed the land preparation in 2003 and

planted Eucalyptus in 2004. The plantation was

harvested in 2008. It yielded 60 tonnes of wood

and sold @ Rs 1800 per tonne giving Rs 1, 08,000.

The amount was utilized for reviving the LIC

policy for which premium was not paid since

last 5 years. Part of the amount was utilized to

dig a deep bore well for giving irrigation to Chilly

and Cotton crop. He also utilized the money to

purchase hybrid cotton seed and provide

fertilizer and pesticide in time. The cotton yield

went up from 1.5 quintal per acre to more than

6 quintals. However, he was unable to use the

bore well water as the village was not provided

with electricity. In 2012 he felled 1.5 acres and

sold at Rs 1950 per tonne giving a return of Rs

43,000/-. He did not harvest 2 acres of plantation

with the hope that rates were likely to go up.

This has proved a wise decision as the rate has

already reached Rs 4000 per tonne and likely to

go up. He plans to fell this plantation in late 2013

that is likely to yield 40 tonnes and income of

about Rs1.60 lakh. His other three brothers have

3.5 acres of plantation with each, and his father

owns 3 acres of plantation. Thus all combined

the income has gone up significantly. Sri Rajiah

has constructed a pucca house, spending Rs 5

lakh. For this he has taken LIC loan of Rs 30,000/

- and rest from his brothers and father with the

hope of paying the loans from Eucalyptus

plantations. Once the plantation is harvested

for three rotations he plans to switch on to agro-

forestry model of plantation so that both

agriculture and plantation can be done

simultaneously.

Sixty families in this village have taken up

Eucalyptus plantation covering area of about

143 acres since 2004. 111 acres of matured

plantations have been harvested, yielding 1330

tonnes of wood and income of Rs 23, 94,000.

Villagers are very happy with the return from

the plantations. The cash in hand has been

ploughed into agriculture that has improved

its productivity and income. Some of the

villagers have already switched over to agro-

forestry model this year and many more are

likely to follow with the expectation of better

return from plantation and agriculture per unit

area. The cash generated from the plantations

has markedly improved the general condition

of the participating families in terms of food

intake, education of children, housing and other

necessities of modern living.

Conclusion: - The primitive tribal groups,

Koyas, have suffered hunger and malnutrition

year after year in spite of land ownership. Most

May 2013 VANA PREMI

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of the families were forced to leave a major part

of their land fallow for want of resources.

Agriculture on dry lands with limited supply of

inputs and uncertainty of rains was never a

paying proposition. Government effort for

improving the tribal economy lacked

penetration due to administrative lapses. Forests

that were once a source of tribal livelihood lost

its impact due to rapid degradation.

Government decision to give patta to the tribals

on encroached forestlands under FRA was no

relief to the tribal economy as they were unable

to use the land already in their possession. On

the other hand government decision

encouraged forest degradation and new

encroachments. ITC which was expanding its

paper production was facing crisis to meet the

pulpwood requirement as supply from FD had

almost dried out. They were dependent on the

farmers to raise plantations of Eucalyptus with

high yielding variety developed by the ITC

Bhadrachalam. However, the poor tribal farmers

were unable to avail this opportunity as initial

cost was beyond their reach. This opportunity

was picked up by the ITC through its social

forestry programme under CSR. They came to

the door steps of the poor tribal with the

assurance of land development and supply of

quality seedlings for growing Eucalyptus

plantations with the assurance of buy back of

the harvested produce. The tribals having land

but left fallow for want of resources found a new

ray of hope. They came forward to grow

Eucalyptus plantation in their fallow lands. As

the plantations were harvested with good

return their economy improved and more

tribals joined the programme. The total area

under ITC’s initiative in Khammam district

stands at 10,649 hectares involving 5698

families who have supplied 1.2 lakh tonnes of

wood to ITC Bhadrachalam, earning income of

Rs 21.84 crore. The tribal have invested their

earning from the plantations into productive

agriculture, better education to their daughters

and sons, equipped with cell phones, Television

sets, two wheelers, a pucca house to live and

freedom from hunger. The future looks

promising with the introduction of agro-

forestry model that ensures better return from

plantation along with agriculture crops.

Growing trees on non-forestlands increases soil

carbon and offsets carbon emission that leads

to climate change. Therefore, the agro-forestry

model promises a green and better

environment with better income both from

agriculture and plantations. It is a win-win

situation for poor tribals and the paper industry.

Forest Department and Tribal Welfare

Department may look into it and adopt suitable

plantation programme to improve the tribal

economy and the environment.

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According to Article 141 of the Constitution of India, law declared by Supreme Court shall be

binding on all courts within the territory of India. Article 142 empowers the Supreme Court to pass

a decree or an order as is necessary for doing complete justice in any cause or matter and any

decree so passed or order so made shall be enforceable throughout the territory of India. It is an

accepted fact that the jurisdiction and powers of our Supreme Court are in their nature and extent

wider than those exercised by the highest Court of any country. It is at once a federal Court, a Court

of appeal and a guardian of the Constitution, and the law declared by it, in the exercise of any of its

jurisdictions under the Constitution, is binding on all other Courts within the territory of India.

It is of common knowledge that the Executive, at times, tends to embark upon making laws to

meet the political exigencies which do not strictly adhere to the limitations placed in the

Constitution. The Parliament, the supreme law-making body, does not offer the needed resistance

in such circumstances in our model of democracy, in as much as, the majority in the Houses is

controlled by the Prime Minister, the Head of the Executive. In a way, the Parliament with all its

primacy in legislation renders itself captive to Executive. Though the legislature and Executive are

expected to function independently of each other, there is in fact a visible nexus between them.

The Executive intent gets translated into Legislative sanction simply because the Prime Minister

enjoys the confidence of the Parliament. The wisdom of the Parliament in such cases does not go

beyond the demands of the Executive. The Nation has seen too many examples of important Bills

being cleared without sufficient debate in the Parliament. Can anyone say that silence of Parliament

is its wisdom! The President of India, being a part of Parliament, can think of some curative measures

but the scope and extent of such measures can only be limited and restrained.

Case in point is again the Forest Rights Act, 2006. It was passed by both the Houses of Parliament

in a matter of a few hours. In such cases, the wisdom of Parliament has to come into question, for

the issue is important and serious where the interests of the most backward section of the society

needs to be reconciled with the environmental concerns of the entire nation of which the target

group of the legislation is also a part. As against the unconstitutional acts of the Executive the

jurisdiction of the Courts is nearly the same under all constitutional systems. But not so is the

control of the judiciary over the Legislature.

PUBLIC TRUST DOCTRINE & FORESTSBy

J.V. Sharma

May 2013 VANA PREMI

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There is no express provision in the Constitution empowering the Courts to invalidate laws but

the Constitution imposed definite limitations upon each of the organs, and any transgression of

these limitations would make the law void. It is for the Courts to decide whether any of the

Constitutional limitations has been transgressed or not, because the Constitution is the organic

law subject to which ordinary laws are made by the Legislature which itself is set up by the

Constitution.

Having challenged the provisions of the Scheduled Tribes and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers

(Recognition of Forest Rights) Act, 2006 in High Court, it has been my quest to look for areas where

the said legislation transgressed the Constitutional limitations and the law lay down by the Apex

Court. Besides the transgressions already pointed out, Public Trust Doctrine is yet another area

which was ignored by the legislation.

A young Supreme Court lawyer by name Ritwick Dutta has done yeomen service to environment

by bringing out a valuable book ‘Supreme Court on Forest Conservation’. In a way environmental

concerns came to attract the attention of Apex Court in a big way when a Writ Petition was filed to

address specific instances of tree felling was enlarged in its scope to include all the States and

Union Territories. Two petitions viz. Environmental Awareness Forum and T. N. Godavarman Thirumal

pad Vs. Union of India were used as umbrella for filing numerous Interventions/Applications. The

case came to be popularly known as the Godavarman case. Over a period of 10 years from 1996 to

2006 several cases were heard and as many as 157 orders were passed by the Supreme Court in

Godavarman case. Many of the orders are land mark pronouncements which became the law of

the land.

I proceed to extract some important observations on forests, environment and the Public Trust

Doctrine made by a Supreme Court Bench comprising of Y. K Sabharwal, Arijit Pasayat & S. H.

Kapadia, JJ in WP (C) No. 202/95 with I.A. No. 826in I.A. No. 566 in W.P. (C) 202of 1995 (T.N. Godavarman

Thirumulpad V. Union of India) along with other petitions decided on 26.09.2005.

“Natural resources are the assets of entire nation. It is the obligation of all concerned including

Union Government and State Governments to conserve and not waste these resources. Article

48A of the Constitution of India requires the State shall endeavour to protect and improve the

environment and to safeguard the forest and wildlife of the country. Under Article 51A, it is the duty

of every citizen to protect and improve the natural improvement including forest, lakes, rivers and

wildlife and to have compassion for living creatures.”

May 2013 VANA PREMI

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“Forests are a vital component to sustain the life support system on earth. Forests in India have been

dwindling over the years for a number of reasons, one of it being the need to use the forest area for

development activities including economic development. Undoubtedly, in any nation development

is also necessary but it has to be consistent with protection of environments and not at the cost of

degradation of environments. Any programme, policy or vision for overall development has to evolve

a systematic approach so as to balance economic development and environmental protection. Both

have to go hand in hand. In ultimate analysis, economic development at the cost of degradation of

environments and depletion of forest cover would not be long lasting. Such development would be

counterproductive. Therefore, there is an absolute need to take all precautionary measures when

forest lands are sought to be directed for non-forest use.”

“The duty to preserve natural resources in pristine purity has been highlighted in M. C. Mehta V

Kamal Nath & Ors., (1997) 1 SCC 388. After considering the opinion of various renowned authors

and decisions rendered by other countries as well on environment and ecology, this Court held

that the notion that the public has a right to expect certain lands and natural areas to retain their

natural characteristics is finding its way into law of the land. The Court accepted the applicability

of public trust doctrine and held that it was founded on the ideas that certain common properties

such as rivers, sea-shore, forests and the air were held by the Government in trusteeship for the

free and unimpeded use of the general public. These natural resources have a great importance to

the people as a whole that it would be wholly unjustified to make them subject to private

ownership. These resources being a gift of nature should be made freely available to everyone

irrespective of the status in life. The doctrine enjoins upon the Government to protect the resources

for the enjoyment of the general public rather than permit their use for private ownership or

commercial purposes. It was held that our legal system based on English Common Law includes

the public trust doctrine as part of its jurisprudence. The State is the trustee of all natural resources

which are by nature meant for public use and enjoyment. Public at large is the beneficiary of these

resources. The State as a trustee is under a legal duty to protect these natural resources.”

“If there is a law made by Parliament or the legislatures, the courts can serve as an instrument of

determining the legislative intent in the exercise of powers of judicial review under the Constitution.

But in the absence of legislation, the executive acting under the doctrine of public trust cannot

abdicate the natural resources and convert them into private ownership, or for commercial use.

The aesthetic use and the pristine glory of the natural resources, the environment and ecosystems

of our country cannot be permitted to be eroded for private, commercial or any other use unless

the courts find it necessary, in good faith, for public good and in public interest to encroach upon

the said resources.”

May 2013 VANA PREMI

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“….. To further tighten the management and regulation, the Forest Conservation Act of 1980 was

enacted. It became necessary for conservation of forests on realising that there has been large

scale of deforestation which is causing ecological imbalance leading to environmental

deterioration. This led to enactment of FC Act providing for prohibition for use of forest land for

non-forest purpose by any one including the State government or other authorities except with

the prior approval of the Central Government. This legislation was enacted, as already noted, after

Forest and Wildlife were taken out from the State List and placed in the Concurrent List. At the

same time, Article 48A was inserted in the Constitution of India for protection and improvement

of environments and safeguarding forest and wildlife in the year 1977. The basic objectives leading

to the laying down of the National Forest Policy, 1988, may also be noted and also the need and

requirement for its enforcement. This policy was framed on realising that 1952 Forest Policy for

management of State forest in the country had not halted the depletion of forests. It was therefore

considered necessary to evolve a fresh policy for future to lay down new strategies for forest

conservation which had become imperative. Conservation includes preservation, maintenance,

sustainable utilization, restoration and enhancement of the natural environment. The principal

aim of the Forest Policy is to ensure environmental stability and maintenance of ecological balance

including atmospheric equilibrium which is vital for sustenance of all life forms, human, animal

and plant. The derivation of direct economic benefit must be subordinated to this principal aim.

The forest policy has a statutory flavour. The non-fulfilment of aforesaid principal aim would be

violative of Articles 14 and 21 of the Constitution.”

“The damage to environment is damage to the country’s assets as a whole. Ecology knows no

boundaries. It can have impact on the climate. The principles and parameters for valuation of the

damage have to be evolved also keeping in view the likely impact of activities on future generation.”

“Taking an overall view, it is important for the nation that in certain areas where natural forest

exists, the same should be preserved and at the same time the Central Government should consider

whether the deficient States should not be asked to contribute towards preservation of existing

forest cover and the compensation/incentive given to the forest rich States to preserve and

regenerate forests.”

“The national development agenda must recognise the necessity of protecting the long term

ecological security. The problem area is the growing population, high degree of mechanism and

steep rise in energy use which has led to activities that directly or indirectly affect the sustainability

of environment.”

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“It is recognised that the sustainable use of biodiversity is fundamental to ecological sustainable.

The loss of biodiversity stems from destruction of habitat, extension of agriculture, filling up of

wetlands, conversion of rich biodiversity sites for human settlement & industrial development,

destruction of coastal areas and uncontrolled commercial exploitation. It is thus evident that the

preservation of ecosystems, biodiversity and environment whether examined on common law

principle or statutory principle or constitutional principle eying from any angle it is clearly a

national issue to be tackled at the national level. All initiatives are required to seriously pursue.”

“Dealing with inter-generational justice, it has been rightly observed that posterity shall not be

treated like dirt. In an article published in 2003 Columbia Journal, of Environmental Law (28 Colum.

J. Envil. L. 185), the author says that the way in which a society cares or does not care for its dirt and

its land, reflects the degree to which it cares or does not care for its own long-term future.”

“We may also briefly refer to Public Trust Doctrine and its applicability to the matters under

consideration. The Public Trust Doctrine looks beyond the need of the present generation and also

suggests that certain resources are invested with a special nature. It would be instructive to make

a note of a story given in by Timothy Patrick Brady in Boston College Environmental Affairs Law

Review, spring 1990 under the title ‘But most of it belongs to those yet to be born’. …… ….. ….. The

moral of the story is that we are trustees of natural resources which belong to all including future

generation as well. The Public Trust Doctrine has to be used to protect the right of this as also future

generation.”

“The object of the FC Act and EP Act is protection of environments. These Acts do not deal with any

property rights of any one.”

The law of the land as laid down by the Supreme Court makes it abundantly clear that:

1. The state is the trustee of natural resources and is legally bound to protect and preserve them.

2. The State does not enjoy unfettered liberty to divert forests for non-forest use.

3. Diversion of forest land by executive order in a routine way is not permissible under the law.

4. Even if the diversion is by legislation, it will be subject to judicial review.

5. Natural resources are the public trust.

6. This generation does not have exclusive right to misuse the public trust.

7. Future generation has as much right over the public trust as this generation has.

May 2013 VANA PREMI

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Many years ago a colleague of mine

philosophically asked whether I would give up

eating altogether if food was not needed for my

survival. Though my immediate response was

“yes”, but later while having dinner that evening

I thought about it as I glanced at the few favorite

dishes of mine which were laid on the dining

table, and realized after a rethink that I am too

used to taste and to satiate hunger to give up

food altogether, because it is the taste that holds

the reins while eating!

The caption above appears to me to be a ‘dietary

advice’ rather than a ‘suggestion by a wise health

expert’ because obviously it is mixed with

‘philosophy in the advice’, and appears to me to

be actually ‘food for thought’ in reality. You may

be wondering how?

Please read the caption again: We are to give the

‘body’ what it ‘needs’, not what ‘we want’. You will

now notice that there is an effort to make a

distinction between ‘needs’ and ‘want’ as both

are distinct entities. The health expert

distinguishes between ‘you’ and ‘your body’, and

between what you ‘consume’ as food and what

your body— which is the physical frame full of

bones, blood, muscles etc.,— actually ‘needs’ for

its nourishment.

But are we drawing a distinct line as is being

suggested, or in other words can we really eat or

‘GIVE THE BODY WHAT IT NEEDS, NOT WHAT WE WANT’By

Dr. B Raghotham Rao Desai,

drink only that which our body needs? When

our body is craving for just a glass of plain water,

we gulp down a bottle of ‘Thumps Up’ or ‘Coca

Cola’, which we want but the body doesn’t need

actually. Again, when the body is asking for a

simple ‘desi-chapathi’ we are stuffing the

stomach with a ‘Videsi-pizza’. Poor body, as it has

no means to shut the alimentary-canal to block

what is being thrust through it. It has no

alternative than quietly accept what we feed it

with and can only register its protest in the form

of some ailment or the other.

These days, when clever advertising is creating

new dishes and drinks and eateries, which are

being presented in so many colorful ways, with

endorsements from the ‘high’ and the ‘mighty’

of the glamour-world, our old taste-buds are

being knocked out. The menu-cards are not only

being redesigned but are being redrawn to

create new taste-buds, as ‘presentation’ is being

increasingly found more important than the

‘product’.

Perhaps, the body will surely be grateful if only

we can draw a line to separate the ‘needs’ from

‘wants’, as any dietician will willingly & gladly

suggest, and this holds good particularly for the

generation of geriatrics, which has indeed much

larger readership of ‘Vana Premi’.

May 2013 VANA PREMI

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There is an activity, as we observed, taking place

in the other realm at the time of the departure

from this body. This is compared to the activity

of a caterpillar or a leech when it moves from

one leaf to another or from one spot to another

on the same leaf. What it does is, it thrusts its

hind part forward and then projects its fore part

forward. Then it fixes the fore part on the leaf and

withdraws the hind part, bringing it forward. Then

again it projects its fore part. Like that, it goes on

moving. It will not lift the hind part unless the

fore part is fixed. Likewise – tad yath t[G ajalyuk,

t[G asyntaA gatv, anyam kramam kramya,

tmnam upasaA harati, evam evyam tm – the old

body is not left unless proper arrangement is

already made elsewhere. When you go on a

journey, you do not suddenly go. You find out

where you are going and what arrangements

have to be made there for your stay by

correspondence and enquiries, etc. Likewise,

even without your consciously thinking of the

destination, forces of nature begin to work for

you. They spontaneously work, and that

preparation that is being made there to receive

you to another realm is the foot that you have

kept there already before you lift the other foot

from this world. It is not a physical foot that you

have placed, but a feeler which has connected

you with the future realm in a very subtle manner.

This shows the interconnectedness of all things.

SOULBy

P.V. Krishna Murthy

We are not cast into the winds by forces of which

we have no knowledge. Everything is connected

with us, and all the forces of nature keep an eye

over us. Exactly in the manner in which it is

necessary for us to have experiences in the

future life, in that particular manner alone do

the forces of nature work –

Just as a goldsmith takes a little gold from here

and a little gold from there and puts these

pieces of gold into a melting pot, boils the

pieces making them into one lump and gives a

new shape to this lump, even so a new body is

formed out of the ingredients collected from

nature. The goldsmith does not create new gold.

He only creates a new shape of the gold after

melting it in a furnace. That is how he prepares

ornaments, etc. Likewise, the material forces,

earth, water, fire, air, and ether are the elements

out of which bodies are formed. The present

body is made up of these elements. The future

body also will be made up of these elements. A

carpenter can arrange pieces of wood in such a

way that these pieces form a chair. Or he can

arrange these pieces of wood in another

manner to make a table. He can convert these

pieces into a box, and so on. The carpenter can

arrange these pieces of wood in various ways

according to the need or the requirement of

the time. But the wood is the same. It is not new

wood that he is using. Likewise, they are the

May 2013 VANA PREMI

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same elements that work wherever you go,

whatever be the birth that you take, and

whichever be the shape the soul assumes in

whichever realm, in its new incarnation. Even if

it is in a very highly elevated state like that of a

Gandharva, or a Pit[ , or a celestial in paradise,

even if such a lustrous body is to be assumed by

the soul, it is made of nothing but this same

material. It is formed of these elements only in

their finer essences. When they are gross, they

look like the bodies we have. When they are fine,

they begin to be transparent like glass, for

instance. You know, even glass is made up of

matter. It is as much material as a lump of iron or

a hard brick. But the glass shines. It is

transparent. Light can pass through it because

of the fineness of the structure, notwithstanding

the fact that glass is made up of the same matter

as a hard brick. So, one can take any form; one

can be reborn in any shape, maybe a Gandharva,

a celestial or any other being. You may even go

to the realm of HiraG yagarbha, assuming the

subtlest form of matter known as the Prak[ itis.

Any form the soul can take. It can adjust and

readjust the material elements according to the

need which is indicated by the nature of the

mind that actually rein.

The Ailing Forests of India is written by a famous writer Sri C.K. Karunakaran an Indian Forest Service

Officer retired as Chief Conservator of Forests of Kerala state. He has written 16 other books on

Forestry and allied subjects. The Ailing Forests of India is recently published by National Book Trust

of India.

The author has divided this book into 14 chapters and each chapter is beautifully described. The

author has described these chapters like historical background of the forests, large scale clearance

of forests for raising plantations, national afforestation programme, large scale encroachments in

the forest, restriction on the diversion of forest land without prior approval of the Government of

India, about forestry education, national forest policies, forest types, wild life, the status of our

forests, degradation of our forests, and investment in forestry sector with statics wherever required.

The Ailing Forests of India with 328 pages is priced at Rs 145/-. It is very reasonably priced and

affordable by all. This book is not only to be kept in the libraries of all the forests offices of all the

states, but should be possessed by all the individual working and retired forest officers. This book

should also be kept in the libraries of all the educational institutions, like colleges and universities

as a reference book. In fact this book can be included in the syllabus of all the forest colleges and

other colleges which are having forestry and wild life subjects.

This book can be had by VPP and can be ordered to Deputy Director Sales whose e-mail ID is

nro.nbt@nic.in

REVIEW OF BOOK “THE AILING FORESTS OF INDIA”

May 2013 VANA PREMI

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Thirteen years ago, a

Muslim housewife in

Kerala had stopped

an old and destitute

Brahmin widow from

jumping in front of a

train and ending a life

for which she saw no

hope. The Muslim

woman, then 34, took

the 76-year-old high-caste Namboothiri woman

home, gave her shelter and sowed the seeds for

an unusual relationship that bloomed despite

their religious and cultural differences.

Their story of affection and harmony inspired

Malayalam producer-director Babu Thiruvalla’s

film Thanichalla Njam (I am not alone), which

went on to win the national award for 2012 for

best feature film on national integration recently.

The story began on January 22, 2000 when Rasiya

Beevi, of Ambalapuzha village panchayat in

Alappuzha district, spotted an old, frail frame

standing near the railway track.

“I thought it was a woman passenger who was

stranded after missing the road to the nearest

railway station. When I approached her,

Chellamma Antharjanam got irritated and shot

THE STORY OF A MUSLIM WOMAN

AND BRAHMIN WIDOWback, ‘you will not let

me commit suicide?’”

Beevi recalls. Beevi said

Antharjanam told her

she was waiting to

jump in front of the next

train, after having failed

to kill herself through

other methods. She had

chosen the deserted

spot hoping that no one would spot her and

stop her. Antharjanam missed the train as she

narrated her story to the stranger she had just

met.

Antharjanam belonged to a prominent

Namboothiri family in Central Kerala and was

married to a man with psychiatric problems

who died five years after their wedding. For

about 25 years after that, she worked as a

domestic help and returned to her brother’s

house as age caught up with her, only to be

thrown out. Distraught, she tried to kill herself

several times until Beevi found her.

Beevi said she took the Brahmin woman home

and got her to stay with her family comprising

her husband and three children. “She was afraid

to stay with my family. Initially, she used to ask

May 2013 VANA PREMI

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me whether Muslim organisations would attack

the house for harbouring a Hindu. Her only plea

was to allow her to live as a Hindu,” Beevi said.

So Beevi bought a traditional Hindu lamp used

in Kerala and other items Antharjanam needed

to do pooja and allowed her to recite Hindu

prayers in her Muslim home. Food, however, was

a spoiler as Antharjanam was a strict vegetarian.

“My children insisted on fish and meat. Amma

could not even tolerate a whiff of non-vegetarian

food. As a short-term remedy, I decided to take

her to a Hindu ashram where only vegetarian

food was served,” Beevi said, referring to

Antharjanam as amma. Antharjanam stayed at

the ashram for two years and Beevi paid for it

and visited her regularly too. In 2004, Beevi

managed to get Rs 55,000 from a housing

scheme for the homeless from her panchayat,

chipped in with some of her savings and built a

two-room house for Antharjanam. Political rivals

accused Beevi of using Antharjanam as a front to

pocket panchayat funds and even demanded her

resignation. But the two women held a press

conference in 2006 to tell their story and

silenced them.

Beevi also built a structure to grow the tulsi

plant at Antharjanam’s new house and ensured

a regular supply of rudraksha chains, sandal

sticks and materials for worship. She cooks

vegetarian food at her house and takes it for

Antharjanam and has also been spending time

with the old woman every night for the last year-

and-a-half. “When Amma, now 89, was healthy, I

used to take her to the nearby temple. I would

wait outside the temple when she went inside

for darshan,” Beevi said. “Several Muslim

organisations had asked me why I can’t take

Amma into the fold of Islam. They wanted

Antharjanam to embrace Islam. But my reply

was a firm no. I would live my religion and

Amma her religion,” said Beevi, whose husband

is a small businessman.

“We will live together until one of us bids adieu

to this world,” she adds.

———Courtesy: Indian Express

NOTICE

The 68th General Body Meeting of the Association of Retired Forest Officers of Andhra

Pradesh will be held on 23rd June 2013 (Sunday) at Harina Vanasthali Deer Park

Vanasthalipuram at 11-30 am. All the members are requested to attend the meeting

along with their spouses. Members who need transport may contact the undersigned.

Secretary

May 2013 VANA PREMI

24

Bitti Mohanty changed his identity to Raghav

Rajan to hoodwink the authorities after jumping

parole while serving a seven-year rape sentence

at Alwar, was a clever move. The ease with which

he created a host of documents to prove his new

identity wasn’t. It was the oldest trick in the book

and the police had no business to fall for it.

Bitti had allegedly created a voter’s identity card

issued by the Revenue Taluk Office of Puttaparthi

in Andhra Pradesh, educational qualifications

from the secondary level to MBA, accounts in four

banks including SBT, and a passport issued by

the Kozhikode regional passport officer. Issued

on 26 October, 2012, the passport (J 3306779)

identified him as Raghav Rajan with a B.Tech and

MBA as educational qualifications.

Shamefully, while the innocent common man has

to run from pillar to post for mandatory

documents that range from the age-old ration

card to the more recent Aadhar Card to avail

benefits assured by the State, criminals and

gangsters easily subvert the same procedure to

their benefit and get away with it!

In 2006, Bitti Mohanty, then 25, was convicted of

raping a 26 year-old German woman at a hotel

in Alwar. He had allegedly befriended her

through a common friend when she came to

CRACK DOWN ON FAKE DOCUMENTS

TO CURB CRIMEBy

Gajanan Khergamker

India for a research project. The woman had

alleged that Mohanty had raped her several

times on 20 March 2006 under the influence of

alcohol. As the victim had to fly back to

Germany, the case was tried in a fast-track court.

Mohanty was convicted on 12 April 2006 and

sentenced for seven years in prison. Seven

months later, Mohanty applied for parole to

meet his ailing mother and was granted a parole

of 15 days on 20 November, 2006. However,

Mohanty did not return and had been

absconding ever since. That was till an

anonymous letter blew Mohanty’s cover and he

was arrested on 9 March 2013 as Raghav Rajan

from Kerala.

The ease with which fake documents –

particularly passports can be acquired is the

reason why gangsters manage to dodge the law

and move beyond borders freely. Indian

agencies shamelessly claim that Dawood

Ibrahim has at least 20 fake passports of which

eight were issued in Mumbai, Chhota Rajan has

eight while Chhota Shakeel is said to have six.

Apart from them, Tiger Memon, Ayub Memon,

Ali Moosa and Pathan Izazare are all said to have

bogus passports.

Why, Abu Salem had 12 fake passports before

May 2013 VANA PREMI

25

being apprehended by the police. The police

claim that Abu Salem got three passports from

India while he was absconding in the Middle East

and Europe. They were allegedly in the name of

Akil Ahmed Azmi from Lucknow, Danish Baig

from Bhopal and Ramin Malik from Hyderabad.

While the claims in themselves look like the

regulatory pitch to dilute the gross failure of the

law in apprehending the felons, it must be noted

that the industry of producing fake documents

thrives under the nose of law-enforcers, often

with their patronage.

When asked, the authorities are usually swift to

detail the modus operandi – as a ‘mundi cut’ – in

which an original photograph is cut out of a stolen

passport and replaced with that of the criminal.

But what most gangsters do is get genuine

passports with the help of fake documents. All

one needs to do is bribe a few officials through

an agent. Bitti was provided with a ‘real’ passport

by a Kozhikode regional passport officer.

Travel agents, paid huge sums of money for

creating the documents, are known to bribe

officials who then overlook the verification

procedure to process the document in question.

In the Kandahar hijack case, the terrorists had

obtained forged passports just like the 13/7

Mumbai terror plotters.

On 8 January 2013, police apprehended one

Raheemuddin, a native of Motigalli in Hussaini

alam, for preparing fake documents by using

forged letter heads and stamps of different

institutions to secure visas. Raheemuddin

would charge hefty fees to create fake bank

statements, employment letters from different

companies, pay slips, IT returns, chartered

accountant reports, property documents and

call letters from foreign universities that would

be required for obtaining visas to the US and

other nations. He would allegedly make the

fakes at his residence before submitting them

to consulates to help his clients attend visa

interviews.

Police sources maintain he had even prepared

fake documents of Board of Intermediate,

degree and technical certificates for his younger

brother Shameemuddin who went to London

on a student visa. The forged documents were

seized but Shemeemuddin remained at large.

Later, Raheemuddin with a friend, Sudarshan

Reddy, reportedly, prepared a counterfeit State

Bank of India letter sanctioning an education

loan of Rs 4 lakh for Mohammed Abdul Sami, a

native of Chilkalguda and for extension of visa

too.

Officials at the regional passport office (RPO) in

Madurai are baffled with the surge in number

of passport applications submitted with fake

supporting documents. As many as 104

applications were submitted seeking issue of

passport from 11 districts falling under the

Madurai RPO jurisdiction during 2012 and 2013,

all on the basis of fake documents. Most of the

May 2013 VANA PREMI

26

fake documents were birth and transfer

certificates, alleged a regional passport officer.

By law, submitting fake documents along with

passport applications in order to obtain a

passport is an offence under the Passport Act,

1967 and Cr. P.C for which stringent action could

be taken. The reach of the fake documents

spread across the nation, and the ease with

which they can be procured bears testimony to

the impotence of the system that provides a

perfect breeding ground for criminals.

No statute, however far-reaching in nature, can

stop crime unless there is a corresponding

intention on the part of the enforcer to do so.

And that it is sadly quite suspect.

(Gajanan Khergamker is an independent editor

and legal counsel with over three decades of

experience)

If you believe the dhania patta or coriander is a mere garnishing ingredient, think again...

They don’t just add to the extra garnishing, recent research proves that coriander leaves and seeds

have many health benefits. Here are a few:

✦ Aides digestion and helps settle the stomach and prevent flatulence.

✦ Protects against the Salmonella bacteria, which is a common cause of food poisoning.

✦ Adding coriander to your food can kill these bacteria.

✦ Works as a natural chelation treatment. It cuts down on the levels of heavy metals like lead,

arsenic or mercury, which might have entered the body in various ways.

✦ It has anti-inflammatory properties, too, that may alleviate symptoms of arthritis.

✦ Protects against urinary tract infections as it helps flush out various toxins from the body.

✦ Prevents nausea; - Relieves intestinal gas; - Lowers blood sugar; - Lowers bad cholesterol (LDL)

and raises good cholesterol (HDL); - These leaves are a good source of dietary fibre; - Coriander

leaves are also a good source of iron; - They are also rich in magnesium; - These leaves are rich

in phytonutrients and flavonoid

Make this at home. Ingredients:

✦ A bunch of fresh coriander leaves

✦ Handful of groundnut seeds

✦ Juice of two lemons

✦ Five cloves of garlic

✦ Half a teaspoon of ginger paste

✦ Four green chillies (according to taste) Salt to taste

Method:

Put all the ingredients into a blender and make it into a paste. You can store this in the refrigerator

for a day.

CORIANDER NOT A MERE GARNISHING INGREDIENT

May 2013 VANA PREMI

27

Apropos to the Article ‘ Day in CJR Tree Farms, byK.B.R. Reddy appearing in the April 2013 issue ofVana Premi, I have certain comments to offer.

Firstly, it is mentioned that as the tap root of ateak seedling is cut at 9" below the collar, itenhances the growth of the side roots which inturn boost the growth of above ground bio-massof a teak plant. I sincerely feel that practice ofpreparation of teak stumps initiated by oneChatu Menon way back in the year 1846 (If I amnot wrong in quoting the year) for planting themat a plantation site located in Nilambur Forestsas taught to us in the Forest College, wasbasically out of considerations of logistics thanany scientific reason behind it; as it involvedtransport of the planting stock from nursery tothe plantation site across the river. Secondly, it isnot understood as to how the horizontal spreadof the side roots is going to help the aboveground growth of the plant. It is my firm opinionthat the tap root of teak plant, due to its capacityto go deep into and hold the ground firmly,certainly lends it the stability it requires tobalance its large bio-mass besides providing itwith the nutrients and moisture needed forcontinued sustenance, during its long life infuture. While, the side roots have only asecondary role to play. From my personalexperience during the experiment carried outto utilize the entire root stock of 10 year old teakplant for its replanting at another site, in orderto make use of the tremendous coppicingcapacity of teak and also to obtain theaccelerated growth of future coppices becauseof the advanced biological growth of that rootstock, I found out to my surprise that the teak

EXPERIMENTS OF CJ REDDYBy

V.S.Joshiplant after severing its side roots was toppleddown very easily. This clearly demonstrates thatthe side roots of teak plant don’t hold theground as firmly as its tap root would havedone.

Secondly, pollarding of the leading shoot of 9'to 10' high teak plant (It must be at least 5 to 10year old then, depending on the site) to get theincreased girth at the cost the increased heightdoes not stand to sound logic; as the increasedgirth at juvenile age of teak plant certainly won’thave any sizable proportion of heartwood in itbut would mostly consist of the sap wood,which has very little timber-value. Besides,obtaining two side shoots at the height of 10'would not, in any probability, give the wood ofreal timber-value (Heart wood) in near future.It has been our sad experience in past that thetall promises of the increased bio-mass fromteak (mostly of sap wood) during the short spanof its juvenile age, say up to 20 years, asproclaimed by the unscrupulous Teak-Bonddream merchants (like Anubhav Plantations)during the nineties have dashed the hopes ofmany commoners who had invested their hardearned money into their most luring ventures.

Thirdly, the concept of Green House (ICU) forteak having 10' below ground chamber is notvery well understood which needs furtherelaboration. I would be very much thankful ifMr CJ Reddy enlightens us on the points raisedherein. Incidentally, Mr. CJ Reddy, the mostenthusiastic Plantation Wizard, is same Reddyof our 1959-61 SFRC Batch, whom we fondlyused to address as Reddy garu?

May 2013 VANA PREMI

28

The good news is that house

sparrows continue to chirp

here and there in Mangalore,

though they are rare to come

by. One place where you

cannot miss their singing is at

Shree Gokarnanath-eshwara

Temple in Kudroli.

On Wednesday, I spotted at

least half a dozen sparrows in

the temple and spent a good

90 minutes photographing

them, though initially I

thought it would be too

difficult to focus and frame

them – the amateur photographer that I am. The

hyper-active birds that refuse to sit quiet or stay

put at one place are a feast to watch but getting

a printable picture of them could be quite a task,

I found out. But the pleasure of shooting the

sparrows – which I have grown up watching from

childhood – was an experience on the eve of a

day dedicated to increasing their flock. Many in

Mangalore vouch that they, too, grew feeding or

making nests for the birds. Wildlife biologist

Suryanarayana Rao Addoor tells me he had seen

sparrows even in Hampanakatta when he was

young. Mr Rao, who is also Vice-Principal of

College for Human Resource Development,

remembers that he would make artificial nests

for them.

SPARROWS STILL CHIRP HERE AND THEREBy

GOVIND D. BELGAUMKAR

Disappearance

He attributes the

vanishing act of

sparrows to superstores,

which replaced the

neighbourhood shops

that used serve as source

of food for them. Other

reasons, according for

him, are mobile phones,

reducing green cover,

changing pattern of

agriculture —

plantation crops

replacing paddy.

Bird enthusiast and Assistant Professor in

Biosciences Department of Mangalore

University Prashanth Naik says that use of

chemical fertilisers and pesticides, which kill

pests — the sparrows’ food — is also one reason.

He says that people in cities feed pigeons,

which now occupy the nesting space of

sparrows.

Mr. Naik forwarded a 2008 study by K.K.

Vijayalaxmi, Professor, Department of Applied

Zoology, Mangalore University, which found 30

sparrows in Urva Stores, 45 in Hampanakatta,

25 in Ujjodi, 10 in Deralakatte and 20 in

Thokkottu. It documents sighting of the birds in

Dharmasthala, Moodbidri, and Polali, among

others.

May 2013 VANA PREMI

29

Helping the bird

An old sparrow nest was found at Bayar Co-

operative Society in Kasaragod district, Ms.

Vijayalaxmi records. On enquiry, the researcher

found that it was there for 50 years and every

time new batches of sparrow renew this nest

and use it. The employees of the society helped

these birds by removing the ceiling fan from that

place to make way for the easy flight of these

birds.

The study points out that considering drastic

decline in sparrow population throughout India,

a memorandum has been submitted to the

Union government and IUCN (International

Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural

Resources) in 2011 to include House sparrow

(Passer domesticus) as an endangered species

to give conservation importance.

“Chirp for the Sparrow, Tweet for the Sparrow”

is the theme of the World Sparrow Day 2013.

The objectives are:

Bringing together individuals and organisations

working for conservation of sparrows and urban

biodiversity

Building a network for better linkages between

like-minded people

Using the network to carry out advocacy, doing

collaborative research and form national and

international consortiums

Drawing the attention of government agencies

and the scientific community for conservation

of common bird species and urban biodiversity

Studying the health of the environment since

common birds like sparrows are bio-indicators

of the ecosystem

IS AFRAID OF

May 2013 VANA PREMI

30

We wish the following born on the dates mentioned“ A very Happy Birth Day”

Birthday Greetings

S.No. Name of the member D.O.B.Sarva Sri

1. G.Gurunathudu 10-05-1949

2. Qamar Mohd Khan 11-05-1947

3. P.Laxma Reddy 13-05-1929

4. M.Purushotham Reddy 14-05-1952

5. K.C.Augustin 21-05-1930

6. Shaik Noor Ahmed 22-05-1946

7. S.Rama Rao 25-05-1950

8. K.Pradeep 28-05-1954

9. T.Samboji Rao 01-06-1948

10. Y.Ram Mohan Rao 02-06-1941

11. Gunturu Satyanarayana 04-06-1954

S.No. Name of the I.F.S. Oficer D.O.B.Sarva Sri

1. B.Soma Sekara Reddy 10-05-1954

2. M.A.Waheed 12-05-1953

3. S.Ramesh 21-05-1978

4. Mohammad Diwan Mydeen 21-05- 1978

5. B.S.Yousuf Sharief 23-05-1953

6. Chinmay K Misra 25-05-1957

7. Faujdar 25-05-1954

8. B.Murali Krishna 25-05-1955

9 . M.Ramaprasad 25-05-1955

1 0 . C. Sarvanan 01-06-1978

1 1 . S . S . S r e e d h a r 04-06-1966

S . N o . Name of theS.F.S. Oficer D . O . B .Sarva Sri

1 . S m t . S . J . A s h a 07-05-1975

2 . M . B a b j i 08-05-1968

3 . B . S a i d u l u 09-05-1974

4 . N.Nageshwara Rao 10-05-1971

5. S.Kishan Das 10-05-19551

6. G.Ravi 15-05-1962

7. K.Sekhar Reddy 16-05-1956

8. P.V.Ramana Kumar 16-05-1956

9. Ch.Ganga Reddy 19-05-1966

10. Y.Ramesh 20-05-1959

11. G.N.Pavan Kumar Rao 20-05-1967

12. K.Mahaboob Basha 21-05-1986

13. P.Balaswamy 25-05-1960

14. V.Krishna 25-05-1966

15. K.Ramkishan 01-06-1963

16. D.Chandrasekhar Rao 01-06-1959

17. Smt.N.Kshitija 01-06-1976

18. Ch.Pardananda Prasad 01-06-1955

19. T.Chakrapani 01-06-1966

20. D.Ravindranath Reddy 02-06-1982

21. P.Ramakrishna 02-06-1972

22. K.Srinivas 04-06-1977

May 2013 VANA PREMI

31

RAJA BAHADUR VENKATARAMA REDDY -

KOTWAL OF HYDERABAD 1920 - 1934Raja Bahadur Venkatarama

Reddy was kotwal of

Hyderabad. His tenure lasted

almost 14 years and he

commanded a great respect

among the public for his

outstanding police

administration.

The Commissioner of Police

of the City of Hyderabad used

to be called the ‘Kotwal’. It is

one of the oldest offices and

used to be the most powerful

job in the Government. A

number of foreign travelers to the city have made

references to this office in their accounts.

Raja Bahadur Venkatarama Reddy served in this

job for over 14 years and became a legend even

during his lifetime. Venkatram Reddy was born

in August 1869 in Rayanipet village of

Wanaparthy estate in Mehboob Nagar district.

His father was a Police Patel of some eight

villages and was well off. He was a grand nephew

of the then Raja of Wanaparthy. His mother died

three days after his birth, and the father, when he

was about five. His maternal uncle, William

Wahab, then took care of him. (The name might

suggest that he was a Christian. That was not so.

The Raja of Wanaparthy had

employed a Catholic teacher

to educate some of his boys.

So the boys were given

Christian names, and in

deference to the Muslim

ruler, Muslim surnames). He

was educated in his village

and then at Wanaparthy

where he became a class-

fellow of Raja Rameshwar Rao

II.

Wahab was in the Police and

he brought up Venkatram till

his sixteenth year when, while serving at Raichur,

Wahab died suddenly.

Venkatram stayed on at Raichur and became a

ward of Wahab’s successor, a Pathan named

Nazar Muhammad Khan. By now the young man

had acquired some rudimentary education.

Khan got him the job of Grade IV Amin (a sub

inspector of police) in the Police. He was so lean

and short that he stuffed his dress with cotton

for the interview with the Chief of Police. The

Chief saw through the trick, smiled, and took

him in.

He served in various districts and because of

his diligence rose gradually. While working at

May 2013 VANA PREMI

32

Nizamabad, he helped trace a British deserter

from the army and was given a reward of eleven

rupees. Hemkin, the Chief of State Police,

adjudged him as the best officer in the state He

was appointed head of the district police in 1901

and served in a number of districts including the

Atraf-e-Balda – area around the city. His old class

fellow who was now the Raja of Wanaparthy asked

for his services as Secretary of the Estate, on

promotion.

When Nawab Imadad Jung became the Kotwal

of Hyderabad, he asked Venkatram to be

appointed as his First Assistant. He worked in

that capacity for six years and instituted many

reforms in the City Police. Imadad Jung died in

harness in 1920.

Suddenly, Venkatram was asked to see the

Nizam. Although, he had worked in the Nizam’s

Private Estate, he had never met the ruler before.

He was therefore naturally very jittery. It was a

Friday and when the Assistant Kotwal presented

himself at the King Kothi. After his prayers, the

Nizam looked up the nervous officer four or five

times and then said, ‘Well, you can go’. The next

day he was appointed the Kotwal. From then on

he would see the Nizam not every day, but

sometimes several times a day.

Venkatram Reddy handled his delicate job

adroitly. Not only the Nizam, but also members

of both the leading communities were very

happy with them. That was a time when the

Freedom Struggle was gaining strength.

Hyderabad was engulfed by the Khilafat

Movement. A group of agitators came from

Ahmedabad and joined the local leaders in

demonstration. The demonstration became

violent and the doors and windows of the

Residency court were smashed. Venkatram

Reddy himself went to the site and persuaded

the leaders to adopt peaceful means.

He also ensured peace at the Ganesh

procession by making four policemen the

bearers of the palanquin carrying the idol.

Venkatram Reddy did not know English. When

the Prince of Wales was to visit Hyderabad, he

started learning English. He used to practice

speaking words and sentences loudly in his

room. His orderly, not knowing the meaning,

feared that his master had probably become

insane. He rushed to the Police station to inform

the officer there. On the second day of the

Prince’s stay there was a banquet given by the

Nizam. The Kotwal reached the palace ahead of

the Prince, but was refused entry by the military,

which was in charge of the security inside the

palace. When the Prince arrived, there was no

one who could guide his party to the right

block. That caused acute embarrassment to the

host and the guest. The Nizam then asked

Venkatram to take total charge of the

arrangements.

The Nizam gave him the title of Raja Bahadur

May 2013 VANA PREMI

33

on his birthday. A year later the British

Government awarded him the Order of the

British Empire.

After many extensions of service, he finally

retired in 1934. In relaxation of rules for pension,

instead of half his salary, he was given a pension

of 1,000 rupees a month. Immediately thereafter,

he was appointed Special Officer of the Nizam’s

private estate. He was also made chairman of

the Commission for Inquiry into the

Indebtedness of the Sahibzadas.

Venkatram Reddy was one of those rare officials

who get involved in social work. He persuaded

the Reddy community to get educated and take

up Government jobs. To facilitate their stay in

Hyderabad, he established the Reddy Hostel

through donations raised from the Rajas, leading

landlords and businessmen. He also established

the Reddy Women’s School. Since the Osmania

University did not grant recognition to a Telugu

medium school; he got it affiliated to the Karve

institute at Pune. Now the school has become a

college. He also established a number of other

educational and philanthropic institutions. As a

member of the State Legislature, he supported

the bills for the eradication of child marriage and

for widow remarriage.

When he died in 1956, he had only thirty rupees

in cash on his person. His first wife died a few

months after the birth of his son, Ranga Reddy.

His second wife had already two children. The

daughter, Narsamma was married to a

contractor who built Pathergatti. The son, Laxma

Reddy did Bar-at Law, married two English

ladies one after another and became a judge of

the High Court. He had three sons and a

daughter who are no more.

His own son became commissioner of excise

and because of the job, he was known as Abkari

Ranga Reddy. A bachelor, he adopted

Madhusudan Reddy as his son. Now going on

seventy, this charming gentleman lives in

Banjara Hills. He is the sole surviving descendant

of the great Kotwal of the city.

A statue of Vekatram Reddy stands in the circle

opposite the YMCA at Narayanguda. He had

given the institution the land.

POLICE SYSTEM DURING NIZAM PERIOD: The

erstwhile State of Nizam comprised areas

covered of the present Telangana of AP State,

Bidar, Raichur and Gulburga, districts of present

Karnataka State and Osmanabad. Beed, Nanded,

Latur, Aurangabad and Parbhani districts of the

present Maharashtra State. Hyderabad was the

Capital of Nizam. As per the available records,

the Police Commissionerate system existed

way back from the year 1847. The Nizam of

Hyderabad used to appoint the Commissioners

of Police who were officers of the Hyderabad

Civil Service and they used to function during

his pleasure. They were answerable to the

Nizam directly on various matters of policing

May 2013 VANA PREMI

34

in Hyderabad city. However as far as

administrative matters were concerned the

Commissioner of Police used to correspond with

the Home Department directly. The

commissioner of Police was popularly called as

“KOTWAL” and was responsible for maintenance

of law and order, prevention and detection of

crime etc. The correspondence used to be only

in Urdu. Kotwal enjoying a high position and look

upon with great respect of fear had always been

appointed from an early period and he had under

him a public force composed of various

nationalities and a number of detectives.

The “Kotwal” combined in his office not only the

powers and privileges of the police head, but

also was in enjoyment of certain judicial and civil

powers. He had direct access to the king and had

his ears. He was the chief adviser to the monarch

in all police matters. He was primarily

responsible for the maintenance of law and

order, for the prevention and control of crime,

and prosecution of criminals. He occupied a

unique position not only in the administration

of criminal justice but also a very honourable

place in the king’s “Durbars”. He received the

“Roznamachas” (Daily reports) from the

Thanedars about the happening in the city, kept

a watch on the British Residency and maintained

a number of paid informers. The “Kotwal-e-Balda”

was both respected and feared by the general

public. The powerful “Kotwals” was Raja Bahadur

Venkatrama Reddy during the reign of Nawab

Mir Osman Ali Khan, Nizam-VII. He even

resolved major litigations between Gadwal and

Wanaparthi “samasthans” through negotiations.

In the big “Samasthans”, policing was being

done by the big feudal lords, who owned vast

chunks of land, and organized their respective

police forces and a separate judicial service.

The Head of the “Thana” (Police Station) came

to be called “Amin” The rank equivalent to

inspector was known as “Sadar Amin”. The

Assistant Commissioner of Police and the

Deputy Commissioner were called “Madadgar

Kotwal” and “Naib Kotwal” respectively. The

entire city police force had distinctive uniforms

and badges of rank. At the “Thana” level there

was a “Jemadar” (General Duty Head Constable)

and a Moharrir (Writer Head Constable). The

Constabulary was called Barkandaz in the

beginning and later called “Jawan”. He was

getting Rs. 6-00 in 1902 A.D. as pay and two

annas per day was his daily allowance,

whenever he had to travel outside Hyderabad

City.

(Editor’s Note; On 28-3-2013 passing out parade

of S.I trainees was held and on this day A.P. Police

Academy was renamed as Raja Bahadur Venkat

Ram Reddy A.P. Police Academy in memory of

Hyderabad Kotwal sab).

Names of the Commissioner of Police who

worked in Hyderabad City right from 1847

are shown below

May 2013 VANA PREMI

35

S. N NAME DATE OF ASSUMPTION OF CHARGE1. Sri. Md. Vazir Jamadar 8 Dec 18472. Sri. Fazzuddin Khan 5 Oct 18513. Sri. Mohammed Syeed Hussaini 5 Jan 18534. Sri. Nawab Ghalib –Ud-Dawlah 10 Nov 18535. Sri. Grand Son of Zafar-Ud-Dawlah 9 May 18556. Sri. Nawab Zourawar Jung 6 June 18737. Sri. Inayat Hussain Khan 23 Apr 18748. Sri. Nawab Akber –Ul-Mulk 5 May 18849. Sri. Vazir Ali Nawab (Sulthan Yawar Jung) 8 Apr 190510. Sri. K.B. Abdul Kasim Lal Khan 25 Apr 191211. Sri. Mir Mubarak Ali Khan 17 Sept 191212. Sri. Nawab Emad Jung – II 8 Nov 191213. Sri. Raja Bahadur Venkat Rama Reddy 23 Mar 192014. Sri. Nawab Rahmat Yar Jung Bahadur 1 July 193415. Sri. Nawab Deen Yar Jung Bahadur 6 June 194516. Sri. Rusthum Ji Shapur Ji. 1 Aug 194717. Sri. S.N. Reddy M.A, 21 Mar 194918. Sri. Shiv Kumar Lal I.P.S., 1 Sept 195119. Sri. A. Sundaram Pillai I.P.S., 1 July 195320. Sri. B.L. Khadar I.P.S., 15 May 195421. Sri. C. Ranga Swamy Iyengar I.P.S., 26 Sept 1954

Again 14 July 196222 Sri. S. Vijaya Rangam I.P.S., 19 May 195723 Sri. V.N. Kaliyan Rao I.P.S., 14 May 1959

Again 22 May 196724 Sri. S.P. Satur I.P.S., 03- Apr 1961

Again 19 Feb 196325 Sri. Prahlad Singh I.P.S., 1 Sept 196426 Sri. Abdus Salam Khan I.P.S., 1 Feb 197027 Sri. P.V.G. Krishnama Charyulu I.P.S., 14 July 1973

Again 11 June 197628 Sri. K.N. Sreenivasan I.P.S., 15 Dec 1975

Again 9 July 197629 Sri. M.A. Shafiullah Khan I.P.S., 23 Aug 197630 Sri. Muni Swamy I.P.S., 28 Dec 197731 Sri. P.V. Pavithran I.P.S., 22 Apr 197832 Sri. C.G. Saldanha I.P.S., 2 May 198133 Sri. T. Ponnaiya I.P.S., 27 Aug 198134 Sri. S. Chandra Shekaran I.P.S., 10 Nov 198235 Sri. Vijaya Rama Rao I.P.S., 14 Apr 1983

Again 7 Apr 198936 Sri. R. Prabhakar Rao I.P.S., 28 Aug 198437 Sri. T. Surya Narayan Rao I.P.S., 05 Mar 198638 Sri. V. Apparao I.P.S., 15 Feb 1989

Again 25 Dec 199439 Sri. I. Pullanna I.P.S., 5 May 199040 Sri. S.V. Narasimhulu I.P.S., (

Incharge C.P.(Addl.C.P.) 06 July 199041 Sri. G. Gurunath Rao I.P.S., 16 Aug 199042 Sri. M.V. Bhaskara Rao I.P.S., 29 Nov 199043 Sri. H.J. Dora I.P.S., 16 Apr 199344 Sri. C. Rama Swamy I.P.S., 30 Jun 199645 Sri. R.P. Singh 30 June 1997

Again 13 Oct 200346 Sri. S.R. Sukumara 12 Sept 199847 Sri. P. Ramulu I.P.S., 15 Dec 200048 Sri. M.V. Krishna Rao 25 Feb 200249 Sri. V. Dinesh Reddy 1 Dec 200450 Sri. A.K. Mohanty 30 Sept 200551 Sri. Balwinder Singh 12 Jan 200752 Sri. B. Prasada Rao, I.P.S., 20 Jan 200853 Sri. A.K. Khan, I.P.S., 21 Jan 201054 Sri. Anurag Sharma, I.P.S., 19 May 2012

Courtsy: Capt BS Kaoosji Malaysia

Contributed by Sri Sharad Varadkar with thanks

May 2013 VANA PREMI

36

“I was walking back to the

field camp, when a tiger

decided to take the same

path as me. It looked me

straight in the eye and kept

moving in my direction. The

tiger came close... and then

just trotted off into the

bushes,” Leelabai

reminisced. “The tiger must

have seen the uniform and

understood that it’s the malik

(owner) out for a walk.”

Leelabai is not a celebrated ‘wild lifer ’ or

photographer, nor has she published any

research papers or been a part of any

conglomeration of conservationists. She has

spent the last nineteen years of her life living in

the forest, armed with nothing but a stick and

sheer raw pluck and courage, guarding the forest

as part of the forest department. She and Wild

life Trust of India’s Jose Louis probably would

have never crossed paths had the organisation

not conducted Crime Prevention Training for the

frontline forest staff, an initiative supported by

IFAW, at Kanha National Park.

Fondly called amma (mother) by her colleagues,

including many officers, Leelabai will be turning

60 this December and it’ll be time for her to

LEELABAI, A 59-YEAR-OLD FOREST

GUARD IN KANHAretire from the forest

department. Here are some

excerpts from Jose’s

conversation with her.

What made you join the

department? ... I got this job

as a forest guard in 1985,

after my husband was killed

by some poachers. I was left

all alone with four children-

two boys and two girls. The

department offered me the

job as a means to make ends meet and I decided

to take it up.

What’s your daily routine like? ... We go patrolling,

at least around 10 km every day inside the forest.

There isn’t an animal that we don’t come

across... whether it is a tiger or a gaur, we see

them all!

What do you think about the tiger? ... Oh... what

do I think? (Laughs) You tell me what I should

be thinking about when a majestic animal like

the tiger crosses my path! Simplyput, it’s the

pride of our forests. After all, you’re sitting in

the land of the tiger and people come from all

across the world to see a tiger here! So yes, I

feel very proud about our tigers.

Have you ever caught a poacher yourself? ... What

May 2013 VANA PREMI

37

do you think, kid? That I’ve been in this position

for so long but haven’t done anything? As a forest

guard, I’ve been part of quite a few seizures and

seen them detaining a lot of suspects. Once, in

fact, during my patrolling with two casual

workers we came across a father-son, duo who

was jungle fowl hunters who were setting traps

in the forest. As soon as they saw us they tried to

run away but we caught them easily. I gave two

tight slaps to the kid and asked him why he’s

spoiling his life by getting into this murky

business and leading a life of crime. We went

back, collected all the traps and handed them to

the senior officials later. So many incidents like

these have happened; it’s hard for me to recall

all of them. It’s all a normal part of our life here.

To read the rest of this exchange and see what

else this amazing lady had to say, go here.

Leelabai is symbolic of those hundreds of

unknown and unheard of ‘glorified’ protectors

of our forests and the wildlife in them. It’s not

just a job for them but literally living in the

middle of the jungles, they risk their lives every

day for the cause. It’s not an easy life, patrolling

for kilometres on end, living in minimalist field

camps to survive, braving the harsh varying

Indian weather all year round, battling against

all odds to act as the first line of defence for our

wildlife.

Here’s hoping that her story and her

contributions are now known to the world and

helps inspire more people to join forces for to

help save wildlife. (Contibuted to by Shri R.K.

Rao with thanks)

The Association of Retired Forest Officers, Andhra Pradesh, Hyderabad Congratulates the following

Forest Officers, who are retiring from service on attaining the age of superannuation on 31-05-

2013 and cordially invites them to join the Association of Retired Forest Officers to keep in touch

with their old colleagues and to keep themselves occupied.

Name of IFS Officer Name of S.F.S.Officer

1. Sri M.A.Waheed 1. Sri S.Kishan Das

2. Sri B.S.Yousuf Sherief 2. Sri Ch.Parthananda Prasad

For further details they may contact the following –

Sri. K. Santokh Singh, Secretary Mobile Number…. 9848808101

Sri. P. Upender Reddy, Jt.Secretary Mobile Number…..9848754778

-Secretary

INVITATION

May 2013 VANA PREMI

38

ByN. Shiva Kumar

Three holy rivers merge with their gushing

waters here; so do millions of pilgrims from

across the country congregate at the Sangam in

Allahabad for a holy dip to ward off their sins. At

this very same venue stands a massive,

magnificent yet lonesome tree. Probably one of

the largest and longest living trees in India, this

monolithic tree has been thriving albeit

precariously by sipping water at the confluence.

Reportedly over 1000 years old, this Baobab tree

is a living monument and a mute witness to

numerous Kumbh Melas held under its boughs.

On my recent visit to the Maha Kumbh Mela in

the last session of this nearly 60-day-long

festival, I found the tree forlorn and neglected.

Neither the organizers of the Mela who have

spent crores of rupees in creating the ‘overnight’

township nor the Botanical Survey of India (BSI)

LIVING MONUMENTS

has bothered to protect the tree. Even NGOs,

naturalists and the millions of pilgrims have not

paid heed to its ordeal of deterioration and

destruction.

Bearing a bloated hole of nearly 50-feet in

circumference, the tree stands imposingly with

widespread branches that are 40-feet. It’s

strange appearance and enormous trunk which

tapers into thick branches were naked and

devoid of leaves. Looking from a distance, it gave

the impression of a deliberately grafted giant

bonsai. Up-close its ancient trunk was all

covered with humps, bumps and plenty of

bulges. Some of the bark has been ruthlessly

striped, sliced and peeled off exposing the soft

tissues. (Compare the photographs taken in

2008 and 2013).

Baobab (Adansonia digitata) at Sangam: The healthyspecimen in 2008. Photos: N. Shiva Kumar

The vandalized tree in 2013

May 2013 VANA PREMI

39

Considered by some to be of “immense rarity

and antiquity”, Baobab’s scientific name is

Adansonia digitata. It belongs to the

Bombacaceae family. The District Gazetteer of

Allahabad (1968) contains an account that says:

“A gigantic tree supposed to be more than 500

years old locally called vilaiti immli which has not

been identified botanically. It is growing on the

left bank of the Ganga at Prayag and is sacred to

Hindus and Muslims alike.”

According to Professor H.Y. Mohan Ram, a

prominent botanist from Delhi, “This enormous

tree supposedly has its origin in the African

continent and brought in by sailors who came

to establish trade links with India; they thereafter

planted them across the Indian subcontinent.”

However, a handful of scientists believe Baobab

trees to be a part of Indian culture and attribute

their existence to have been influenced by

various mechanisms of evolution. According to

the theory of continental drift, the super-

continent Pangaea broke up some 50 million

years ago creating new continents and

subcontinents. The resultant fragmented

landmass drifted away across the oceans to form

Africa, India and Australia. These drifting

continents carried away the ancestors of the

Baobab species.

A minority of botanists have suggested that this

tree is an Indian tree which has been mentioned

in historical books, etched on some of our ancient

temple walls and even worshipped for ages as

Kalpa Vriksha — the mythical wish fulfilling tree.

Another theory floated by an American

taxonomist said that sturdy seed pods of Baobab

might have been swept by sea currents and

reached India. Thus the Baobab trees which love

arid zones have been found growing as

stragglers in the Indian subcontinent, including

Sri Lanka.

Strangely uncommon, some of the mega-sized

Baobab trees do occur in remote locations of

our country. A few even managed to exist in

busy cities like Aurangabad, Mumbai and

Hyderabad but people are not aware of their

existence. Even the BSI and various universities

with botany departments have not shown any

inclination to conduct research, catalogue or

even save them from destruction.

“The amazing thing about Baobab trees is how

invisible they are despite their outsized vital

statistics,” says Thomas Pakenham of Ireland,

who has travelled the world writing books

about remarkable trees. He showers praise

about the tenacity of the Baobab and says that

they may live for 500 to 5,000 years.

In any case, the historic Baobab tree at the

Sangam deserves a better deal. It needs urgent

protection, not only from vagaries of nature and

vandals, but also from an eroding riverbank that

has exposed its huge roots.

May 2013 VANA PREMI

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Incredible Hand Crafted Art; What Came First?

Kyle Bean is an incredible young talent,

specialising in hand crafted models, set design

and art direction. Since graduating in 2009, Kyle

has worked for a variety of international clients

for a diverse range of projects including

installations, window displays, editorial

illustration and advertising.

Kyle’s work has been recognised by the

prestigious Art Directors Club in New York and

the International Design Biennial held

throughout Europe. His work has been featured

in a range of international art and design

publications, praising him for both his

conceptual thinking and craftsmanship. Kyle

splits his time between working from his studio

by the sea in Brighton and London where he often

collaborates with photographers and directors.

Kyle is represented by Blink art.

What stands out most about Kyle’s work is his

diverse range. While he has a clear gift for paper

craft, the variety in materials used and the

creativity in which he employs them is truly

exceptional. Many of his pieces, especially those

for magazine covers and editorials, are often

cheeky, akin to visual puns.

Please see last cover page for photo

NEWS AND NOTES

Birds are honoured guests here: - Jhareppa

Machche of Dongar gaon hamlet on top of a hill

in Aurad taluk fetches water every day from an

open well 4 km downhill.

Mr. Machche, in his forties, fills the pots and

buckets in his house in a practised order: first a

small pot kept in front of the Shiva idol in a

corner of the kitchen, and then a large pot kept

in the hall, and then a small pot that hangs from

a lamppost outside. The small pot is meant for

birds, including sparrows and pigeons. Once

they are all filled, he starts filling the steel

buckets in the bathroom.

Mr. Machche is not the only one who cares for

these birds in Dongar gaon. The village has

dozens of bird boxes and pots. The people care

for the birds though it is difficult for them to

find enough drinking water, says Bheemshi

Pawar “Every farmer keeps at least one pot,

though they don’t spend much on bird care.

Once in every three days or so, women throw a

few freshly plucked heads of grain into the bird

boxes ... We are happy to hear the birds chirping

all the time,” he said.

Shailendra Kavadi, president of Parisara Vahini,

a non-governmental organisation, said, “On

World Sparrow Day every year, while NGOs try

hard to create awareness among city residents

May 2013 VANA PREMI

41

about the need to protect birds, particularly

sparrows, village residents in the backward Bidar

district seem to offer time-tested traditions as

an answer.”

In several villages in the district, residents have

put up pots, drums or boxes on walls, poles or

wires for birds to build the nests, he said. “This is

an age-old practice. It is a great tradition that

shows how a lot can be achieved by the

initiatives of the public, without any government

support,” said Sanjeev Reddy, biodiversity expert

from the Government First Grade College in

Bidar.

“We seem to neglect sparrows and other small

birds because they lack the majesty of big

animals like the tiger or the beauty of birds like

peacock. There are government projects to

protect the tiger and other animals and birds.

But unlettered villagers teach us how important

it is to protect small animals and birds too. On

World Sparrow Day — March 20 — it is time to

salute such people and laud the folk traditions

that help protect the wildlife,” he said.

HIGH COURT BUILDING of HYDERABAD: The

High Court stands on the south bank of the River

Musi. This is one of the finest buildings in the

city, built in red and white stones in Saracenic

style. The Plan of the High Court was drawn up

by Mr Shankar Lal of Jaipur and the local engineer

who executed the design was Janab Mehar Ali

Fazil.

The construction started on 15th April, 1915 and

was completed on 31st March, 1919(less than

4 years). On Tuesday 20th April, 1920 the High

Court building was inaugurated by the Ruler.

It is interesting to note that while digging the

foundation for the High Court, ruins of the Qutb

Shahi Palaces, namely Hina Mahal and Nadi

Mahal were unearthed. The High Court looks

beautiful and impressive from the Naya Pul at

sunset.

After its construction, a silver model of the High

Court with a silver key was presented to the

Nizam by the Judiciary during the Silver Jubilee

Celebrations in 1936. The facsimile of the

buildings was perfectly carved in a thick sheet

of silver weighing about 300 kgs. The model is

now in the Haveli Museum.

The main building of the High Court was

constructed in the year 1919 by the then

Government of Hyderabad accommodating Six

Judges besides accommodation for the Office

Staff, record rooms and Advocates Hall.

When the High Court of Andhra Pradesh was

formed in 1956 as a consequence of States Re

organisation Act, the Judges strength was

increased to 12. The existing accommodation

at that time was only inadequate to meet the

requirements of the larger High Court and so

the additional building was constructed in

1958-59. The entire office rooms, record rooms,

May 2013 VANA PREMI

42

chambers of advocates (42 in all) and the rooms

for law officers were located in this building. The

record rooms, Officer Rooms in the main building

were modified to provide chambers and Court

Hall accommodation for 14 Judges.

By 1970, the institution of cases of the High Court

has gone up to 35,000 as against 20,000 in 1958.

The Judges strength had also risen from 14 to

21. To provide additional accommodation for

Judges, Staff and Advocates and Law Officers, the

third building was proposed and the main

building and Annexes buildings can locate 24

Court Halls and 26 Chambers.

One-rupee ‘idli sambar’ a hit in Chennai: -The

aroma of freshly-prepared sambar wafts through

the air as hungry people line up for breakfast

outside one of the 73 centres that provide idli,

sambar rice and curd rice — all staple diet in

Tamil Nadu — for a paltry amount in

Chennai.Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Jayalalithaa’s

latest venture to win the hearts of the masses is

gaining steam, as serpentine queues spill out

on the pavement outside these breakfast

places.And it is cheap! Idli @ Re 1, sambar rice @

Rs 5 and curd rice @ Rs 3! It’s no scam, but a state

government-sponsored scheme. As I stood

outside one of the centres, I saw two young men

order 20 idlis each. They drowned the idlis in

sambar, mashed them and downed the mixture.

They even went up four times to the counter to

get a refill for the sambar. The lady at the counter

never hesitated as she served them over and

over again. The diners seemed gratified. The idlis

are checked to make sure they weigh 100

grams each. Sanitary Officer K Vasudevan checks

the cleanliness of the premises and also the size

of the idlis to make sure they are uniform. “I have

nine centres in my area and I manage to check

at least six every day,” he says with a smile. He

did not see any reason to complain after his

inspection.I walked up to Ravi, an auto rickshaw

driver, and asked him what he thought of the

food. Ravi said he found the idli a bit hard, but

people around him disagreed. They all said it

was great. A few of the young men and women

said they come to the eatery every day for

breakfast and lunch. “We work nearby and this

place is perfect for us. The food is good and it’s

cheap.” There is a notice prominently displayed

announcing that there won’t be any takeaways,

perhaps to ensure that people don’t buy from

here and sell elsewhere for a profit.Most of the

people eating at the centre are labourers, but

not all. “If it is cheap, clean and available on my

way to work, why not?” says a bank clerk, one of

the many customers. Many children too are

eating from their mothers’ plates and some are

packing the idli sambar in tiffins to take to

schoolEvery 15 minutes a woman sweeps the

entire place clean. She also wipes clean the

tables, which are actually writing boards. The

place is spic-and-span. The scheme started only

last month, so everything looks new.In the

May 2013 VANA PREMI

43

kitchen, I’m impressed with the huge shiny

vessels in which the sambar is prepared. A young

girl sat cutting tomatoes while another placed

idlis into a huge vessel. The idlis seemed to be in

great demand. Every 10 minutes the servers

called out to the cashier to stop selling coupons

as they ran out of idlis. It takes 20 minutes for one

batch of idlis to be ready. Some people waited

patiently while others left. “I am already late for

work, I cannot wait another 20 minutes,” said one

customer.The employees are happy as are the

customers. Vasudevan says the centre sells

around 3,000 idlis a day, 750 packets of sambar

rice and 500 packets of curd rice. When asked

how they manage to keep the prices so low, he

says, “The government subsidises everything,

there is a subsidy of 90 paise per idli, Rs 5 for

sambar rice and Rs 3.50 for curd rice.”The rice,

urad dal and oil are bought from ration shops at

subsidised rates. The Chennai municipal

corporation is in charge of the scheme but the

centre is manned by 16 women from a self-help

group. “Actually I have only 12 women in my

group. I have employed four from another

group,” says S Shanti, head of the self-help group.

“There is no holiday, so we take leave in turns.

We get Rs 300 per day as salary. We buy only

vegetables; the rest is supplied by the

corporation. The vessels, furniture and the

electricity bill are paid for by the corporation.

The self-help group supplies only the labour

component,” adds Shanti. These women are not

bothered about the profit or loss in the scheme,

but are quite happy with the daily wage they

earn. In the back room, two women vigorously

wash plates which pile up at an astonishing

pace. Idlis are served on stainless steel

plates”There are 73 centres in Chennai but we

still have not covered the entire city,” says

Vasudevan. When asked about rural Tamil Nadu,

he says, “As of now we are sticking to the

corporations, maybe amma (Jayalalithaa) will

announce a plan for the rural areas later.”

Customers waiting outside said they were

satisfied with the scheme. To twist a saw around,

the way to a voter’s heart seems to be through

his stomach. (Please see last cover page for photo)

March 2013: - THIS IS THE ONLY TIME WE WILL

SEE AND LIVE THIS EVENTThis year March has 5

Fridays, 5 Saturdays and 5 Sundays. This happens

once every 823 years. This is called money bags.

Mon 4 11 18 25

Tue 5 12 19 26

Wed 6 13 20 27

Thu 7 14 21 28

Fri 1 8 15 22 29

Sat 2 9 16 23 30

Sun 31 3 10 17 24

Capital Gate Building: The Leaning Tower of

Abu Dhabi: - Abu Dhabi’s 160 metre-high

Capital Gate skyscraper leans a gravity-defying

18 degrees to the west and has been verified as

the world’s furthest leaning man-made tower

by the Guinness Book of World Records.It has

more than four times the lean of the Leaning

Tower of Pisa at about 3.99 degrees. The 35-

May 2013 VANA PREMI

44

storey tower, which opened less than a year ago

after five years of construction, is fast becoming

one of Abu Dhabi’s most famous landmarks.A

visit to the skyscraper requires a switch of

elevators along the way, because the lifts can’t

operate all the way up the leaning building in

one go. The flashy lobby features an enormous

glass chandelier that screams luxury. The

extravagance continues high up in the building:

the five-star hotel Hyatt Capital Gate occupies

the 18th to 33rd floors. It includes 189

guestrooms including the Presidential suite,

which costs from approximately $3500.

(Please see last cover page for photo)

Omar Ali masjid in Brunei (Made out of Pure

Gold): - Sultan Omar Ali Saifuddin Mosque is a

royal Islamic mosque located in Bandar Seri

Begawan, the capital of the Sultanate of Brunei.

The mosque is one of the most spectacular

mosques in the Asia Pacific and a major landmark

and tourist attraction of Brunei.The mosque is

built in an artificial lagoon on the banks of the

Brunei River at Kampong Ayer, the “village in the

water”. It has marble minarets and golden domes

with courtyards and lush gardens full of fountains.

The mosque is surrounded by a plethora of trees

and floral gardens which in Islam symbolize

heaven. A bridge reaches across the lagoon to

Kampong Ayer in the middle of the river.

Another marble bridge leads to a structure in

the lagoon meant as a replica of a 16th Century

Sultan Bolkiah mahligai barge.

A real-Life Mermaid Who Swims With the

Sharks: -Hannah Fraser, 36, is a professional

underwater swimmer, ocean activist, model and

artist. This Australian real-life mermaid has been

fascinated by mermaids since the age of three.

She made her own mermaid tail using orange

plastic material at the age of nine after watching

the mermaid movie splash starring Daryl

Hannah. Since her childhood, she has been

practicing free diving and breath holding in her

pool. In 2002, she made her second mermaid

tail which was a long tail much evolved and

functional than her childhood tail. This tail was

made of a plastic boomerang, flippers and two

hangers with a lot of duct tape inside the suit

material. This ocean environmentalist has swum

with various ocean creatures like sting rays,

dolphins, sharks, sea lions, turtles, etc. in the

open ocean. Being an ocean activist, Hannah is

presently working on a project with Cetaceans

and Whaleman Foundation to end the slaughter

of thousands of Whales and Dolphins all over

the world. (Please see last cover page for photo)

“Don’t worry about failures, worry about the chancesyou miss when you don’t even try.”

May 2013 VANA PREMI

45

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«# K«~°‡"≥∞ _è»OHÍÜ≥ÿ∞ <å Œ=Ú`À =Ú Œ=ÚѨOK«∞#∞.D Éèí∞qÖ’ „Ѩu„áê}˜, „ѨHõ$u èŒ~°‡=∂K«iOz,

èŒ#º « K≥O Œ∞K«∞O_»QÍ, =∂#=Ù_®! h [#‡‰õΩ ™ê~°÷Hõ « =∞iKå"å?^•#= «#∞ WOHÍ g_»ÖËÕ"å?=∞#K«∞@∂ì [~°∞QÆ∞ «∞#fl, Œ∞~åQÆ «=Ú Öˇ<Àfl K«∂ã¨∂Î...q∞#fl‰õΩO_»@O h‰õΩ <åºÜ«∞=∂! =∂#=Ù_®!g∞ J=∞‡#∞ „Ѩu =∞Ç≤Ïà◊Ö’ K«∂_»QÆÖË"å?P"≥∞‰õΩ ~°HõΔ} Hõ~°"≥· P„HÀtã¨∂ÎO>ËJ<åºÜ«∞O J}QÆ„ ÀH˜ , h"Õ P Œ∞H˘O>ËWÅÖ’ ''D—— Ѩ Œ=Ú#‰õΩ (=∂#= «‰õΩ) JѨÙ_Õ ™ê~°÷Hõ «h h[ « «fiO QÆ∞~°∞ÎOK«∞HÀ JkÜ≥∞ =∂#= «fiOKÕã¨∞HÀ... h [#‡‰õΩ ™ê~°÷Hõ «fiO ™êkèOK«∞ èŒ#º «fiO!

=∂#=Ù_® F =∂#=Ù_®~°K«# N=∞u "≥·.L+¨.

May 2013 VANA PREMI

46

This case is an example how forest officers in

trying to safeguard the public interest get

harassed by abuse of the process of law. D.

Nagabhushanam, DFO, Hyderabad and D. Ramraj,

ForestRange Officer, Hyderabad ( South) Range

were threatened with contempt proceedings in

the High Court and they were on the verge of

punishment for the alleged contempt of court

order. It was sheer the tenacity and

perseverance of the D.F.O and his staff that saved

him and his subordinate officer from the

predicament.Royyala Shankaraiah and others

claimed in Writ Petition No. 23177 of 2012 that

they are in possession and enjoyment of their

patta land of an extent of Acs. 36.39 gts in Sy, No.

46 (Acs.17.37gts) and Sy. No.47 (Acs.19.02gts)

situated in Kothapet village of Keshampet

Mandal, Mahbubnagar district. They complained

to the court that the staff of Forest Department

of Hyderabad Forest Division are causing

obstruction and are interfering with their

possession and enjoyment. They succeeded in

getting an interim direction on 26.09.2012

restraining the forest staff from interfering with

their possession of the land. Though the village

is in Mahbubnagar district, the forest of Porandla

Block including the two survey numbers is under

LEGAL NOTESRoyyala Shankaraiah and 19 others Vs.D.Nagabhushanam, DFO and another

Hyderabad Forest Division. The staff of Forest

Department duty bound as they are resisted

the attempt of the petitioners to occupy the

land,The petitioners with the interim order of

the court in their hands resorted to contempt

proceedings against the DFO and the Range

Officer. The DFO filed a counter affidavit

opposing the contempt petition. He felt he was

not on strong ground to escape punishment.

He therefore made a deep probe and got

sufficient material to oppose the claim. He filed

an additional affidavit stating that the

petitioners suppressed material facts. In fact,

they had filed a Civil Suite in O.S. No 79 of 1988

for injunction against the respondents in the

Court of Junior Civil Judge at Shadnagar. The I.A.

No. 189 of 1988 for a temporary injunction was

dismissed on 29.08.19888 and the suite itself

was eventually dismissed on 08.06.1999. An

appeal was filed in the District Court,

Mahbubnagar which was also dismissed on

16.02.2004.On the forest side, Pongondla Block

was proposed to be constituted a reserved

forest which among others included the two Sy.

Nos. in question and a notification under Sec. 7

of theHyderabad Forest Act, 1326 was issued

which was published in the Government

May 2013 VANA PREMI

47

Gazette dated 04.02.1341 F. Consequently the

Forest Settlement Officer issued a declaration

under Sec. 10 of the said Act inviting claims and

objections. This declaration was published in the

Government Gazette dated 26.07.1343 F. The

Forest Settlement Officer considered the claim

in respect of Sy. Nos. 46 and 47 of Kothapet village

and passed order on 03.05.1344 F. holding that

the patta was granted after issuance of the

notification under Sec. 7 of the Forest Act

without the sanction of the Government and the

claim for exclusion of the land from the

proposed reservation was therefore rejected.

Porandla Block was finally declared by the

Government as Reserved Forest under Sec. 19 of

the Forest Act. This notification was published in

the Government Gazette dated 28.04.1955.The

matter was heard by the Hon’ble Justice C.V.

Nagarjuna Reddy. It was held that the petitioners

have approached the court with unclean hands

and secured an interim direction pleading that

they are in possession of the land suppressing

the fact that the trial court disbelieved their

version that they are in possession of the land;

and dismissed the suite for injunction. The Court

held further that, the plea of the petitioners that

they are in possession of the land and that the

respondents are interfering with their

possession is not acceptable.The contempt

petition is dismissed on 22.02.2013. Since

contempt petition was filed with false and

misleading averments, the petitioners are

awarded exemplary costs of Rs.10,000 which

according to the court order has to be credited

to Government account,Contempt Case No.

1654 of 2012.

K.B.R.

FELICITATION OF NANOGENERIAN MEMBER OF

ASSOCITION

Sri A.Ramakrishna IFS, Retd.Prl.Chief Conservator of Forests was greeted on his 90th BIRTH DAY

(10th April,2013) at his residence ,by the SECRETARY & Jt.SECRETARY of the Retired Forest Officers

Association-A.P. , and Felicitated him with a Bouquet & Shawl on behalf of the Association and

wished him many more happy returns of the day. Alhough Sri Ramakrishna garu is ailing for some

time with old age problems and confined to the bed, he his mentally very alert and expressed his

gratitude for the good gesture of the Association. Specially Mrs.Ramakrishna was overwhelmed

with happiness & profusely thanked the Association for the felicitation & for remembering them.

-SECRETARY

May 2013 VANA PREMI

48

Sri K. A. Madhva Raja, aretired AssistantConservator of Forests,passed away on31.03.2013 at his at hisdaughter’s place inNalgonda town. He wasailing for some timeand received

treatment at the Kamineni Medical CollegeHospital, Narketpally. He was 86.

Kallimbille Ananda Simha Madhva Raja was bornon 10.01.1927 in Anantapur town. He was theeldestamong the fifteen siblings of Sri K.P.Ananda Simha and Srimati Seetamma. He hadeducation in Anantapur and Nelamangala ofBangalore district and passed B.Sc. from theMadras Christian College in 1946.

Between 1947 and 1954, Madhva Raja workedas Storage Entomology Assistant under the Boardof Revenue of the Madras Government. He wasselected in 1954 for appointment as ForestRanger by the then Govt. of Andhra. Heunderwent forestry training at the Madras ForestCollege, Coimbatore (renamed in 1955 as theSouthern Forest Rangers College) during 1954 -’56.

During 1956 and 1959, he worked as RangeOfficer of Territorial Ranges of Bairluty,Madanapalli, Nandyal, Kodur and as AssistantChenchu Officer at Nandyal and Instructor atForest School, Yellandu.For a longer period,between 1962 and 1971, he worked as ResearchRange Officer at Araku and Rajahmundry.

OBITUARYK.A. Madhva Raja 10.01.1927 – 31.03.2013

In 1971, Madhva Raja was promoted andposted as Soil Conservation Officer atHyderabad, which post he held for five years.He did monumental work as Pines ResearchOfficer at Anakapalli between 1976 and 1983.He retired on superannuation on 28.02.1983.His interest on Pines was so mu ch that, afterretirement he revisited the Pine plantations inVishakhapatnam district and authored a bookon Tropical Pines. While in service and afterretirement, Madhva Raja participated in manysilvicultural conferences, Seminars on TropicalPines, Agro Forestry, Eucalyptus, Bamboo, Canesetc. He is a unique example of working as a full-fledged employee / consultant between 1983and 1993 for Industries like Harhar Poly Fibres,Visakhapatnam Steel Plant, Bilt Tree Tech Ltd.etc. He was well Informed in natural and appliedsciences. He was keenly interested in Matterand Energy reactions, Atomic Physics,Cosmology and Time. Plant life howeverremained his favourite subject.

Married to Smt. Saroja in 1959, Madhva Raja hada peaceful and harmonious life with onedaughter, Kamala, married to Ranjan; and threegrandsons. His wife predeceased him in 1998.He married again a woman by name Manga.Hewas a keen lover of Carnatic music and tried hishand at oil painting. He was an atheist.MadhvaRaja will be fondly remembered by his daughter,son-in-law, and grandsons. He has a goodnumber of friends and relatives to mourn hisloss. 31st March 2013 has been the end of theMarch of his life. A great soul, in deed.May hissoul rest in peace! K.B.R

May 2013 VANA PREMI

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Registered with RNI R.No. Apeng/2002.2185Postal Regn. No.LII/RNP/HDC/1154/2012-14

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