Dudhwa Tiger Reserve enters a new phase by employing women in the ranks of forest department which is largely considered to be a male bastion

Blog by Akash Bisht & Saurabh Singhai

On a gloomy November evening while returning to the field camp from a site visit in Dudhwa Tiger Reserve, we stumbled upon a Forest Department Jeep parked right in the middle of a forest road. Forest officials surrounded the Jeep and were busy throwing bundles of dry wood into the back of the vehicle. We were astonished to notice four uniform clad women giving instructions to some of the men in uniform. Part of the Forest Department’s entourage, it was a rare sight to see women call the shots in a department that is essentially ‘male territory’.

Sensing something extraordinary, we got off out Jeep. One of our team members then introduced us to G Shukla, Deputy Ranger, Sathiyana Range, Dudhwa TR, who gleefully narrated how he and his team had seized illegally lopped firewood from the villagers. We enquired further, rather subtly, about the uniform clad women. “These women were part of the Prantiya Raksha Dal (PRD) and work as forest watchers on contractual basis. It is difficult for men to deal with local women when it comes to seizing firewood. These brave women make our work easy and they are as fierce with women as they are with men. Even men are terrified of them,” he said.

WTI team interacting with the Women Forest Guards in Dudhwa TR

We introduced ourselves to these women and asked a host of questions about their daily lives and how they deal with the struggles of a forest watcher. “Don’t you get scared? What about your family? Is your husband supportive of what you do? How do you balance home and work? Is it tough?” were some of the questions that we volleyed at them. First, they introduced themselves as Chitravati, Anju Kumari, Ram Kumari and Ram Kumari.

Thereafter, with bright smiles on their faces they narrated their side of the story. They giggled and kept giggling throughout our conversation.. “My husband often says that he is very proud of me and even brags to his friends about the kind of work I do. It is a very tough job but also has its thrills,” said Chitravati.

WTI team briefing members of Prantiya Raksha Dal

The role of a forest watcher is not an easy one. Their job entails patrolling the forest on foot that often sees them coming face to face with not only wild animals but also armed poachers and other miscreants who enter the reserve for grazing cattle and collection of firewood. They brave the scorching summers, endless monsoon rains and cold winds with little or no protection. Most of them, men or women, are employed on temporary basis and rarelyget their wages on time. They may sometimes have to wait for months before being paid for their services. In a patriarchal culture like that of UP, it was heartening to see women endure such hardships to protect the forests and eke out a living with a sense of pride.

Remarkably, just a decade ago only about 19.5% of the total rural female population was employed and the proportion of ‘main female workers’, as assessed in 2001,was merely 6.8%. So, to see a group of women being employed as forest guards in the only remaining bastion of wildlife in UP was like a breath of fresh air.

WTI team with members of Prantiya Raksha Dal

Under the Prantiya Raksha Dal, 28 women are employed as forest watchers in Dudhwa TR. Constituted by the state government on October 20, 1947, the main objective of the PRD was to create a voluntary, organized and powerful body of rural youth that aimed to increase self-confidence, encourage communal harmony, self-reliance and discipline among villagers.

We spoke to Shri. BK Singh, Deputy Director, Dudhwa National Park, who called it a pioneering effort in making women as stakeholders in forest protection. He said, “Overall, 52 young men and women who have been recruited to serve as watchers in Dudhwa Tiger Reserve. We should try and accommodate more women into the department. These women are fearless, sincere, honest and do not even consume alcohol (Laughs).”

We, therefore, thought of giving a small push to foster this effort and spoke to representative of Aircel Pvt. Ltd. about these women. Aircel provides financial aid to WTI’s UP Big Cat Conflict Mitigation Project based out of Dudhwa National Park. They had also generously sanctioned an additional small grant to provide some basic amenities such as bicycles and winter jackets to forest guards. Brinda Malhotra, who heads Aircel’s CSR division, instantly agreed and said, “We should do something to support these women.” While cycles had already been donated, jackets were still being manufactured. We decided to distribute jackets to all the women guards as a token of appreciation for their dedication. Hopefully, it will help them tide over their cold morning patrols during winters. We wished that more such generous support should be given to these women so that they create a space for themselves in this male bastion. It will only strengthen the department further.

We protect forests to protect ourselves; to sustain our need for natural resources that are largely utilised by modern urban setups. Much as the farmers who feed us, these forest guards, the unsung heroes, ensure that our rich natural heritage is not lost. We salute all the forest watchers and especially these brave women of Dudhwa Tiger Reserve.