Training Programmes and Workshops

XXIII Certificate Course in Wildlife Management at WII

The Certificate Course commenced on November 1, 2007 for a duration of three-month at this Institute. Sixteen officer trainees (Range Forest Officers and officers of equivalent rank) joined the course.

Apart from providing in-house teaching, the trainees were taken to the Rajaji National Park (Beribada) on an Orientation-cum-Techniques Tour during November 25 - December 4, 2007. At Rajaji National Park, ten days were spent on imparting training on jungle craft, population monitoring and estimation techniques, and impact of developmental activities on wildlife and human etc. Trainees were taken to various parts of the National Park and explained about the identification of plants, animals, tracks and signs. They visited Bhimgoda barrage for an exercise on counting water birds along the river Ganges. They were also briefed about the ongoing eco-development programme. They also visited a Gujjars dera and the Gaindikata village, where some of the Gujjars have been rehabilitated. Seven of the ten modules have been completed. Contact: udhayan@wii.gov.in

XXIX Post Graduate Diploma Course in Wildlife Management

The course commenced on September 1, 2007 with 15 officer trainees. As part of the course, the following field tours/visits were undertaken by the officer trainees: (i) Orientation Tour was conducted in Kalagarh, Corbett Tiger Reserve (Uttarakhand) from September 28 to October 2, 2007. The objective of this tour was to introduce trainee officers to vegetation types, terrain, birds, mammal signs and tracks, and familiarize them with different habitats, wildlife values of the area, use of water holes, animal sightings, data analysis and man-wildlife interface situations. Short-treks were conducted along with visits to various sites both within and outside the Park and learning process was reinforced through group discussion and interaction with field officials. (ii) High Altitude techniques Tour was conducted in Kedarnath Wildlife Sanctuary and Nanda Devi Biosphere Reserve (Uttarakhand) from October 28, 2007 to November 2, 2007. The objective of this tour was to study the habitat requirements of endangered Himalayan fauna and its conservation. The tour also addressed the issue of population monitoring and estimation in the mountain ecosystem. (iii) A half-day trip to the mining site at Maldevta on November 22, 2007 for assessing environmental impacts. (iv) Techniques Tour was undertaken at Sariska Tiger Reserve (Rajasthan) from November 25, 2007 to December 8, 2007. The tour primarily addressed the various techniques involved in the estimation and monitoring of plant and animal populations. (v) Visit to Asan Barrage on December 16, 2007 for wetland study and identification of water birds.

Twelve modules teaching and the assessment tests for 8 modules have been completed. Contact: anup@wii.gov.in  

One-week compulsory training programme for IFS officers, Dehradun, October 22-26, 2007. The training programme for IFS Officers on “Wildlife Management in India and Protected Area Effectiveness” was organized by Wildlife Institute of India (WII). This programme was sponsored by the Ministry of Environment and Forests, Government of India. The main objectives of the programme were to: (i) sensitize the officers about major issues of wildlife conservation in India, (ii) apprise the officers about current approaches of effective wildlife management in the country, and (iii) to share the latest experiences of WII in wildlife monitoring and PA management effectiveness. The training programme was attended by 22 participants representing 12 States of the country. The conceptual inputs on different sessions were provided by in-house faculty and invited resource persons. Field visit for a day to Rajaji National Park was organized for exposing the participants to the field implementation of latest wildlife monitoring initiative. Contact:  anilbhardwaj@wii.gov.in

Two-day training workshop on “Options for improving conservation of wild animals in their natural habitats”, Dehradun, November 6-7, 2007. This workshop was sponsored by the Ministry of Environment & Forests, Government of India for IFS officers. It was held at Wildlife Institute of India, Dehradun. A total of 14 IFS officers from the States of Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Gujarat, Haryana, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Assam and Bihar attended the training workshop.

Seven presentations were made on various topics related to the theme of the workshop. The presentations were followed by discussion sessions and in addition two panel discussions were also held for eliciting the views and experiences of the participants. Some of the important topics dealt during the workshop were: Conservation approaches and their successes; Sustainable utilisation of wildlife; Increasing the stakes in wildlife tourism; Integrating ex-situ and in-situ conservation efforts; and dealing with human-animal conflicts. Contact: udhayan@wii.gov.in 

Symposium on Biodiversity Conservation in the Tropics, Dehradun, December 4, 2007. The Institute, in collaboration with HNB Garhwal University, Srinagar and International Society for Tropical Ecology (ISTE), organized this symposium. The symposium formed a part of the International Tropical Ecology Congress – 07 held at Dehra Dun during December 2-5, 2007.  Objectives of the symposium were: (i) to facilitate interaction among the leading ecologists, managers and scientists for sharing experiences on various aspects of tropical biodiversity, (ii) to share results of recent case studies on biodiversity surveys and monitoring in the tropics, and (iii) to revisit the conservation issues in the tropics and assess efficacy of various strategies including effects of legislations following CBD Agreement.

The symposium was attended by 80 scientists from India and abroad. Five sessions were scheduled for the symposium. Dr. Alan Rodgers, former Regional Coordinator, Global Environmental Facility, UNDP, and noted Wildlife ecologist delivered key-note address on ecology and the conservation of biodiversity - Global patterns of change: 1992–2007. Other important delegates included Dr. Margaret D. Lowman, Professor of Biology and Environmental Studies, New College of Florida, Sarasota (USA) and Vice President, Ecological Society of America; Prof. J.S. Singh, noted Ecologist and Secretary - ISTE; Prof. P.S. Ramakrishnan, JNU; Prof. S.P. Singh, Vice-Chancellor, HNB Garhwal University; Dr. K. Venkatraman, Secretary, National Biodiversity Authority, Government of India; Dr. R. Kannan, Professor of Biology at the University of Arkansas (USA), Dr. Michael J.B. Green, a noted Wildlife Biologist from U.K and Dr. Lindsey Norgrove from U.K. among others.

Some of the important topics discussed during the symposium included: Biodiversity Act 2002 and its role in conservation in India; Plant species diversity, Vindhyan Highlands, India; Assessment of honey bee habitat, Nilgiri; Assessment of plant species diversity in Eastern Ghats of India; Biodiversity of wild sericigenous insects, Nagaland; Rarity of flora across Terai landscape; Significance of seed storage behaviour in ex-situ conservation; and Effect of coffee and other plantations in rain forests of Western Ghats, India. There were 24 poster presentations on various themes. Two presentations, viz., Mr. Atul Arvind Joshi of Nature Conservation Foundation, Mysore and Mr. Anirban D. Roy from Samrakshan Trust, New Delhi were selected for Alice Murphy ‘Best Presentation Awards’. Awards included a cheque of US$ 100 and a Citation.

The ISTE has decided to bring out proceedings of this symposium in the form of a special volume of Tropical Ecology. Dr. Alan Rodgers and Dr. G.S. Rawat would be the Guest Editors for this volume. Contact: rawatg@wii.gov.in

Amphibian Biodiversity Conservation (ABC) course – South Asia, Periyar Tiger Reserve, December 10-16. 2007. The course was designed for amphibian conservationists, researchers and managers working in south Asia. The seven-day course was adapted from the first ever course on ABC launched by the Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust, in Jersey in 2006. It was developed in response to the Washington Amphibian Summit in 2005, where tasks were identified to deal with the current ‘amphibian extinction crisis’. The ABC - Asia course was designed with the aim of creating networks of amphibian conservation biologists working in-situ and ex-situ and in research-based organizations. Equipped with the latest understanding of what we know about amphibian life and the critical thinking skills necessary to fill in the gaps, these personnel will be better placed to find local solutions to problems as they arise. The course was developed and administered in partnership with Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust, Central Zoo Authority, Durrell Institute of Conservation and Ecology, Amphibian Network of South Asia, Zoo Outreach Organization, Conservation Breeding Specialist Group – South Asia and the Wildlife Institute of India (WII). The course provided travel support and training to 30 motivated persons comprising of managers, researchers and professionals from four countries in south Asia. The course was held in Bamboo Grove of the Periyar Foundation in Periyar Tiger Reserve. The Minister of Forests and Wildlife, Kerala State, Shri Binoy Viswam presided over the valedictory function and distributed the certificates to the participants. Contact: karthik@wii.gov.in