Wokha, Nagaland, July 14, 2016: Wildlife Trust of India (WTI) has instituted a scholarship programme in memory of the late Oponthung W Jami, a dedicated conservationist who worked as a forester with the Nagaland Forest Department.

Opon, as he was fondly known to his friends, passed away last year and had been closely associated with several important WTI projects in the Wokha district of Nagaland. These included the Amur Falcon Conservation Project, which stopped the widespread hunting of  the falcons as they passed through Wokha on their annual migration to southern Africa, and a Rapid Action Project (RAP) to identify, document and aid the conservation of butterfly species around the Doyang Reservoir.

The Oponthung Memorial Scholarship, which honours Opon’s  steadfast commitment to conservation, provides study grants to three meritorious schoolchildren from Pangti, Asha and Sungro – villages that had pioneered the local conservation of Amur falcons. It is hoped that this scholarship will encourage the young people of the region to take forward Opon’s conservation legacy, especially with regard to Amur falcons.

Rachel O Jami, the late Opon’s wife, delivered a message to the students and thanked WTI “for taking the initiative to encourage students from such remote areas.” Village council member Chumdemo Jami spoke of Amur falcons as being the pride of Wokha and encouraged the students to work for their conservation, as well as that of other wild species in the region.

“The late Oponthung Jami was a staunch conservationist and wildlife lover”, WTI’s Dilip Deori said on the occasion; “we want more people like him to arise in Nagaland to better the cause of wildlife conservation.”