Goa, India –It was hot and humid when we reached Goa, after spending long hours at the Bangalore airport where our flight was rerouted. But the extraordinary Goan experience that my traveling companion and one of the country’s exemplary lawyers, Ipat Luna, and I experienced last week, was definitely worth the wait.
On the way to our first destination, the International Centre of Goa, I noticed assorted birds, big and small, with their distinct birdcalls, soaring so carefree in the air. It was not surprising actually as our flying friends not been fully stripped of their habitat, as the metropolis have in the Philippines and elsewhere in the world, except perhaps Singapore and a few others.
Trees still line the streets, the wide expanse of the river is generally litter-free and mangroves and wetlands abound with so many species of birds. However, several infrastructure works and the carbon-burning system for mobility that a growing populace, including tourists, demand are slowly changing the landscape.
While in Goa, articles related to the Supreme Court of India’s stoppage of mining were page one headlines in the dailies each day. The Supreme Court put all mining permits granted by the government in Goa on hold since September. The Supreme Court appointed the Central Empowered Committee to obtain the mining records from state authorities including the mines and geology department.
According to The Navhind Times in its Nov. 29 issue, the Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar said the government would “compile the data and reconstruct the records of mining activities in the state, which had been in shambles especially during the last five years. He said the details as regards to 130 mines and 400 traders would be reconstructed and the records would be streamlined.”
How long the suspension will last is now in the hands of the Supreme Court of India.
On our way to the serenely alluring Wildernest in Goa (www.wildernest-goa.com), we saw the desolate effects of, and the halt order on, mining in the affected communities. Aside from the barren and flattened mountains, there were piles of mined materials and thousands of idle cargo trucks, some of which were partially hidden by dust-covered foliage. Mining had been stopped for weeks by virtue of the Supreme Court’s order, yet the brown landscape could not be dissipated that easily.
It was my first trip to a mining town and all I felt was pain. I thought of the people there, in our country and all over the world who have to contend with the massive change in the quality of their lives and the destruction of the very elements of life which we and other species depend on for sustenance, but which others, including government, refuse to acknowledge.
Just like the Philippines, the Western Ghats is a biodiversity hotspot. It hosts abundant species of wildlife such as the tigers, elephants, birds, butterflies, amphibians and reptiles, among others. Wildernest is nestled in Chorla Ghats, and under the jurisdiction of not one, but three states–Goa, Karnataka and Maharashtra. According to the young visionary and passionate naturalist, Nirmal Kulkarni, one of the co-directors of Wildernest, it also faces a lot of pressures, not unlike what rich ecosystems elsewhere are subjected to. But it is with the fierce determination of conservationists like Nirmal that a nature resort like Wildernest has helped open the minds and hearts of people to reconnect with our natural surroundings and our non-human co-inhabitants and our role as stewards.
The days at Wildernest were truly moments of living in harmony with nature. A plastic-television-wifi free zone, its eco-lodges blend perfectly with its verdant surroundings and offer spectacular views of the valleys or the forests. Activities included trekking to the Highest Point, with an exhilarating experience of seeing the forests and the waterfalls and a forest walk with Nirmal leading the pack of nature enthusiasts scouting for a glimpse of “lesser-known life forms.” The child in each of us gushed at the sight of a colorful bird with eyes closed and hopefully not at all disturbed by our presence, a black and white small snake looking for food, mealy bugs, spiders, a bull frog, and a host of other species which don’t merit our attention in our obsession to get things done in a day’s work.
Thanks to the influence of Ipat, who unassumingly calls herself the “incidental birder” but is actually a great birder and mentor, I had my first bird watching experience at Wildernest. The Malabar Grey Hornbill with its laughing sound and the so-lovely Paradise Flycatcher, among other wonderful winged creatures, captivated me.
Goa’s biodiversity is still abundant. I hope it remains that way. There were so many species that we saw in our subsequent birding in Goa, with Rajul, Claude’s son, as our enthusiastic guide. The Spotted Dove, Black Drongo, Parakeet, three species of the vibrant-colored kingfisher, Brahminy Kite, Indian Pond Heron, and the beautiful butterflies, dragonflies and wildflowers left us more entranced than ever at nature’s miracles that we have largely taken for granted.
I am hopeful that the people will choose not to silence the birds and the rich biodiversity. I hope they learn from the massive failed experiments called megacities which have destroyed abundant life-support ecosystems and turned them into huge air-conditioned and energy-sapping concrete jungles.
Goans are fiercely proud of their heritage, both natural and built. They have every reason to be and to keep what they have that way.