The Unsung Guardians of Bannerghatta National Park

On my visit to the area I observed that the forest watchman’s day beings at 7 a.m. Basappa and his colleagues have a breakfast of ragi mudde (balls of millet flour) and vegetables before they head into the forest. I saw another watchman, Meesey Shivanna, hurry off, cursing under his breath about preventing some goats from entering the forest. Basappa starts to talk over the incessant sound of bird calls. “We are about 10 men from these surrounding villages. Our job is to explore our designated beats to check for any trouble within those few kilometres. We put out forest fires any time of day or night that we are notified. We keep people from entering the forest and from cutting down trees. As a result, some harbour ill-feelings towards us. I hear whispers in the village, but once I leave for work and take a look at this splendid jungle, all negativity evaporates,” he explains.

The men are happy working among the greenery and the trees. “The villagers are a stubborn lot,” says Basappa. “They even blame us for elephants entering their farms at night. The elephants are no less, they are full of mischief. They’ve even learnt how to defeat the electric fences. When they cause damage, we check what can be done, and then alert the officials who can bring in solutions.”

Bannerghatta is a well-known elephant corridor between the BR Hills and the Sathyamangalam forest. Basappa is very fond of the huge animals and is always happy to see them, but he realizes that they do need to be kept away from human settlements. “When we have to chase an elephant away, they send us jeeps. We all go in the jeeps with walkie-talkies. It’s very exciting.”

Life in the forests is simple according to Basappa. “I have visited the city sometimes,” he says about Bengaluru. “But I’d sooner run away from elephants and leopards than face your traffic.” He laughs as I look embarrassed on behalf of all city folk.

I ask him about his encounters with wild animals and he tells me about the time he was mock-charged by an elephant. “It was frightening, but I learnt a lot that day. I’ve spotted leopards and sloth bears on my beat; they have humbled me greatly. Once I thought I saw the branch of a tree moving with life. It turned out to be a massive python looking straight at me. I avoided that spot for a while. Now all I want to see is a wild tiger, the raja, once.”

Basappa hopes that he will someday be able to travel to other great forests that he’s heard of, even if it is just to get a break from a “few imbeciles of his small village,” he says.