I get to see Chestnut Bee eaters on a daily basis, and what
a sight these birds are. It’s quite a spectacle to see a slosh of colors
acrobat the sky, catch flies.
Hymenoptera (ants, bees and wasps) comprise their diet, with a marked
bias towards honey bees. Little green Bee eaters (covered in earlier blog) are
common across the country while Chestnut’s are confined to southern hills of
Western Ghats to north eastern hills, and towards to south east Asia.
Soligas: The Children of the Bamboo
The Soliga tribe are known to have immense knowledge about forest and
traditional insight on conservation. I was reading that “……a study performed in
2008 looked at the Soliga claim that forest fires are in-fact beneficial for
biodiversity. Generally, forest fires would be extinguished by the forest
department using modern fire-suppression regimes. However, the Soligas claimed
that natural fires are inherent part of the forest biome and extinguishing such
fires leads to increased parasitic load. The above study looked at infections
of Loranthus - a plant parasite - on Phyllanthus emblica (Amla)
trees and found that fire indeed reduced the parasitic load on these trees and
increased their survival. This example points to the importance of considering
local, folk knowledge in any biodiversity conservation regime”. Must say it is
quite interesting, I am reminded of Yellowstone Park fire (in USA) about two
decades back, and how forest fire came to be looked from entirely new point of
view.
Soliga means ‘children of bamboo’ as they believe that their
ancestors originated from bamboo. They
are nomadic people who live off forest produce like honey, berries and
timber. They live in small shelters called pudus deep inside the dense
forests of Western Ghats. Soligas worship Champaka tree (Michelia champaca),
the magnificent tree called Dodda Sampige in local language. There are
settlements in BR Hills and MM Hills wherein they are exposed to modern
influences. In 1979,
Dr. H Sudarshan, a young idealist doctor, came to BR Hills to work with the
Soliga tribes, and since then is helping the Soligas negotiate the influences
and as also fighting for their rights and cause. I did meet him during the
public discussion on Forest bill in 2006 in Bangalore. The Soliga lifestyle of shifting
cultivation, foraging and hunting harmoniously in tune with cycles of the
forest till the forest rules came into effect and all economic activity
including collecting firewood became illegal. Soligas faced immense hardship.
Organizations like ATREE, the Vivekananda Girijana Kalyana
Kendra (VGKK) by Dr Sudarshan, the Soliga Abhivrudhi Sangha and the Karnataka
Forest Department have played a significant role in livelihood enhancement of
the Soligas and in rendering their help in biodiversity conservation in the
Western Ghats. Soliga knowledge of the forests and their affinity with nature
is sought to be conserved. I recently had the good fortune to visit a Soliga
settlement in MM Hills. MM Hills is sad story of Lantana invasion, it has
completely overwhelmed the forest. It’s quite a terrifying sight. Soligas who
have a traditional expertise in bamboo related work are being trained to use lantana
wood as substitute. I was gifted a keychain (I insisted on paying, and did make
them take the money) made from lantana. Though it was exquisite piece of work
but I was informed that wood quality is inferior to Wrightia tinctoria (Aale
mara or ivory wood) -one used for famous Channapatna toys. Despite these it
need be mentioned that the effort to find economical value to lantana has been
a significant success and lantana wood do find its use in construction of chairs
and beds.
I went to Gorsana, a rather emaciated looking hamlet. Dhoduthusidha
is the headman, he promptly said he has no much knowledge about songs but yes
his wife sings Soligas songs during marriage ceremonies. His wife and few ladies with
children were seen crowded around bangle seller, trying out colorful wares. Dhoduthusidha
called out for her, she showed extreme irritation as she answered still working
her way through the bangles. Dhoduthusidha seemed to have got the cue “I don’t
think she remembers those songs now” he said. He gave reference of an elderly
woman in the neighborhood, who sings on all special occasions and is indeed
repository of oral tradition. He said he had seen her singing ever since he
could recall.
Puttamma was bathing when we reached her hut she told us to
wait. Outside a middle aged man was chiseling the wood. Giriappa was creating sculpt of Nandi bull
which he said he will donate to the temple. He was quite focused in his work
and seemed to enjoy it. I could very well see the passion and the reason why
they called themselves “children of bamboo”. The connection to nature was
rather strong. A piece of wood in Giriappa’s hand was metamorphosing into a
craft, unique in its sensibility. Puttamma was ready, and looked quite excited.
Her excitement was compounded when she was asked to sing traditional song. She
seemed keen, and promptly sang a marriage song. Sonnaamma who was sitting
nearby couldn’t resist the temptation of joining. Next song (the video herein) was
sung during powdering of ragi seeds “we don’t do it any more” she said “there isn’t
any ragi to pound”. The song was based on interesting theme. It was imploring
god who had gone away into the hills to come back. Now why did the god go away,
I asked, very much curious. Well…he found the crowd in the temple too
overbearing!! O how much I love these. There is so much fun here. Enjoy the
video (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KoVusc9fqNI&context=C4b2aa09ADvjVQa1PpcFPJgAcgwUqv2VnI5C5-Qp-DapLneOOmgK8=) and the unique people called the Soligas…
The threat of lantana: Lantana, Lantana camara to be specific, is one of the vicious plants around.
It’s considered ten most invasive species in the world. The threat is real.
What makes it worse is that these plant’s leaves are mildly toxic for animals
while the flowers are preferred by butterflies and bees, and the berries are
relished by birds. They bloom in abundance thus decimating the local species. I
happen to attend a seminar sometime back wherein they showed the satellite
pictures of lantana spread over the decades. It really is scary.
Channapatna the toy town: I happen to be at Channapatna, the
town known for toys made of wood. Toys from here have international market. They
are even protected with Geographical
Indicator tag. It was Tipu Sultan who got the artisans from Persia that set
up this art form. The wood commonly used is Wrightia
tinctoria tree, colloquially called Aale
mara (ivory-wood) and lacquering it (lacquer comes from Sanskrit word laksha meaning "one hundred thousand). These toys are environment and child
friendly.
from my scribble pad...
To
negotiate
The myth sown in yesteryear’s slack
noon
in the temple ground
has fermented
into conscience, bitter sweet froth
to negotiate sharp turns and dents
Lightening
in the rain
Do we recall the names
so easily settled on our lips
summoned and discarded.
Filial concerns on a stormy night
cracks into flashes.
Comprehend the stillness
that envelops and keeps on.
that envelops and keeps on.