Call of Aravalli Biodiversity Park
I have been working in the development sector for six years, longer if you include student life in my alma mater’s rural management program. So, would you believe that I have never, not once, had a meeting with an ecologist? I had only attended a small talk by Mr. Pankaj Sekhsaria in the early monsoon of 2011 . I accompanied office colleagues to a meeting at the Aravalli Biodiversity Park . We met Mr. M. Shah Hussain, Scientist In-charge, and Ms. Aisha Sultana, Field Biologist. It was a worthwhile experience to understand the technical process that went into setting up the whole park. The ecological conservation and restoration started in 2004 and 450 acres (a total area of 700 acres) have been completed by now. The whole area was Acacia acacia-dominated forest with mesquite (Vilayti Babool trees) as a dominant species. The team of ecologists replaced mesquite with forest communities present in the Aravali range in Haryana, Rajasthan, and Gujarat. Their efforts have converted...