Katarniaghat, 26 January 2023: The 74^th Republic Day around Katarniaghat Wildlife Sanctuary in the Terai landscape of Uttar Pradesh witnessed a unique celebration. The national holiday that brought together large crowds of residents was an apt opportunity to sensitise them on a contentious aspect of their daily lives – living with wildlife.

This densely populated, agriculturally rich region is witness to shrinking forest cover, patchy connectivity between protected areas, burgeoning economic development, all of which drives towards increasing human- wildlife interactions, most of which are negative.

The sensitization rally assemblage at Girijapuri, Photo by Anil Nair WTI

Wildlife Trust of India has been working in the Terai landscape for a decade to mitigate Human-Wildlife Conflict and curb wildlife crime. One of the major strategy to achieve conservation wins is to induce behavioral change in humans so that they understand wild animal behaviour, inter-connectedness of wildlife, forest and human survival. Targetting children in their learning years enables transfer of this knowledge to their families and develop conservation values in a new generation.

On the 74^th Republic Day, WTI joined hands with two schools in the Katarniaghat landscape to conduct a sensitization rally to make people aware of their duties and adopt behavioural changes in their daily life that would help avoid conflict situations with wild animals.

A seven km long cycle rally with 200 students was led by the Sub Divisional Officer (SDO), Katarniaghat Shri Ramesh Chauhan, and physical education teacher and students of Senior Secondary School- Girijapuri. The cycle rally passed through villages-  Girijapuri, Bichia Bazar, Bishunapur, Amba, Fakirpuri and Bardiya. Culminating at Bardiya School.

Cycle rally passing through the village; Photo by Anil Nair WTI

A fun element was added when 15 students of Girijapuri volunteered to paint the faces of the rally participants. Two of the Rapid Response Team (RRT) vehicles were converted to tableaux, exhibiting various posters in local language, messaging threats to turtles and tigers, from snaring and removing snares; illegal wild animal trade and its legal consequences. The highlight of the day was a street play on the causes of human wildlife conflict and measures to avoid them. Conveying the message of nature conservation, the event was actively supported by the Katarniaghat Wildlife Sanctuary, Sashastra Seema Bal, the police department, the education department, village heads along with school principals and teachers.

Students painting faces ahead of the cycle rally; Photo by Anil Nair WTI

The sensitization rally was particularly important to neutralize negative community sentiments towards wildlife in the light of a recent incident when two villagers were killed due to an elephant attack. The rally and its message on the causes of conflict and ways to avoid such negative interactions with wildlife was well received in the village Bardiya, from where the two people had died.

A long-term sustainable change is possible only through a buy-in of the community that makes sensitisation and education about wildlife in general and about human-wildlife conflict in particular critically important to conservation wins. Read more about the Terai project here.