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Untitled Document

TAXATION & WILDLIFE by VINOD GOEL


MC Mary Kom - The women of Substance

At the young age of 18 years (in 2001) MC Mary Kom made her international debut and won the silver medal, none could speculate that in the years to come she would attain unique feat of winning 6 World Championship titles. It is simply her grit, hard work and determination that has earned her this enviable position.

She won Gold Medals in 2002, 2005, 2006, 2008, 2010 and 2018. After winning medals after medals and so many accolades, she still has the hunger for more. She says that she is not tired. Her target is to win an Olympic gold for the nation. She is dreaming about winning the gold at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. When she got into the boxing ring at the young age her physical strength was the forte. But now her real strength is her skill and the experience of so many years.

Being a sports person myself representing the State of Gujarat in the Inter-State Athletic meet at Gandhi Nagar (Gujarat ) way back in 1970, I could realize the efforts & sacrifices required to reach at the top, but how difficult is to continuously retain the place for such a long time. That is simply incredible for a girl who got married and has 2 children at home. She has shown the world that if you are good at something than gender is not a barrier and age is simply a number. The grit & dedication is what that works.

I remember it was in the year 2013 as Commissioner, Department of Publicity and Public Relations under the Central Board of Customs and Central Excise (CBEC), we projected MC Mary Kom in a TV Commercial. It was perhaps her first TV assignment. Her Bollywood biopic was launched much later.

Now the entire world knows and bows down while hailing the great Champion, the Best Woman Boxer Ever! Whenever I think of the Greatest Boxer of all times the name of Mohammed Ali props up, who breathed his last 2 years ago. I had been following him since 1970. Now another name has been added; MC Mary Kom.

Now, relating the story to my favourite nature. There are many examples in wild where the female partner decides everything and I could see similar women power in Mary Kom and her beloved husband Karung Onler. While, the mother of two is busy in her Sporting career, academy and as the member of Rajya Sabha, her all other interests including the lovely boys are taken care of by Onler. This shows the quality of the couple that is much different from what we normally see.

She is the real inspiration to all of us.


Nature happening.... Karwa Chauth - its origin and significance.

From our childhood, many of us have been seeing our mother keeping fast on Karwa Chauth (4th day of the Kartik month ) so that our father and in turn, we enjoy a long and prosperous life. This festival is mainly observed in North India and it is mainly the worship Lord Shiva, Parvati, Kartikey, Ganesha and the Moon on this day.

Generally, a married woman keeps fast. However, some unmarried girls do keep fast in the hope of getting a good husband. No water and no food in the daytime. Only after seeing the moon women breaks the fast in the late evening. All women in a house go to the terrace to have DARSHAN of the Moon. After offering water from the KARWA (an earthen pot ) and prayer, they break the fast. Even now they offer food first to the husband (although he would have been having stuffing food in his belly throughout the whole day ) and later on have food themselves.

To make sure to look perfect on the D Day everybody start making preparation for the coming festival a few weeks or days in advance depending upon how they would like to celebrate the festival. By the previous night they would like to get their hands and feet painted with the beautiful design of Henna (Mehandi ) and buy bangles and of course the matching jewellery with the dress on the body. At this time of the year, the markets are full to the brim and one has to virtually fight to reach to the desired destination.

Why such a hard Fast?

The aim of the fast is to save the husband from an untimely death and have a long and prosperous married life. As per a legend, women named KARVA was deeply devoted to her husband. One day while he was bathing in the river a crocodile caught her husband. As soon as she came to know she went and tied the crocodile with a cotton rope. She then asked the YAMA ( lord of death) to send the crocodile to hell or put him to death. On realizing the power of the devoted wife, Yama did not have any alternative except to accept the request of Karva Accordingly the crocodile was sent to hell and blessed Karva with a long and prosperous life.

There are a number of stories connected with this important festival. In the late afternoon or in the evening a number of woman of the house or from the neighbourhood gather at one place and recite stories to know the importance of this festival. Mainly states such as Punjab, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Gujarat and Delhi observe this festival with pomp and show. In all these States the first Karwa Chauth of any new bride is a very important festival.

This year the sighting of the moon in different cities of India would be by 2015 hrs. Only after worshipping the moon and seeing the face of the Husband / Beloved women would break the fast.

Enjoy the Festival of Love for the well being of Your Beloved. Advice….Please spend Quality time with family to have Everlasting Happiness in life not only during the festival but forever. Happy Karwa Chauth to all !"

Image of Brown-headed Barbet from the wilderness of NCR Delhi taken in May 2012.


Wildlife Week 2018 and Gods blessings on our family for rare and most unique images

Most of the viewers are aware that Wildlife week is celebrated throughout the country with a view to protect and preserve the fauna of India. It was started in the year 1952 with a vision to save the animals by taking some vital steps. It is celebrated from 1st Oct to 7th Oct to make people aware of the Indian Wildlife and why should we conserve it. The purpose of establishing wildlife parks and the sanctuaries is to protect and conserve the fauna and flora of the country.

Every year wildlife Organisations, Forest departments, Government agencies, Educational institutions celebrate the week through activities such as talks, seminars, exhibitions, walks connected to wildlife. The objective is to sensitise people to appreciate it and work towards the conservation of wildlife.

It was in the year 2004 I was attracted by the wilderness of our country and was amazed to see its uniqueness. It started from the well-known park Kanha Tiger Reserve in Madhya Pradesh in 2004 and from June of the same year, my family members are with me in my mission.

Our first encounter was a very rare phenomenon in the wild at Tadoba Andhari Tiger Reserve where we found a langur monkey having water in the normal way and the adjoining langur drinking water like a human being. It was like a great evolution taking place in front of my eyes. This was in the year 2011.

In 2011 December we again witnessed another wonder in Dudhwa National Park wherein a Crested Serpent Eagle was feeding on a Burmese Python on the branch of a tree. Wildlife community says that this is the first record in the world. In December 2017 the behaviour got recorded in American Scientific Journal.

In November 2014 we were fortunate to record yet another unique behaviour in Sariska Tiger Reserve in the State of Rajasthan where in addition to the fawn having milk from the mother Sambar, the male too is trying to suck milk from the backside. Dr K Shankar, Senior Professor, who was earlier with the Wildlife Institute Of India at Dehradun and worked at Sariska Tiger Reserve for more than 25 years, opined that this behaviour is unbelievable. The credit for this image goes to my life partner who has merged with nature recently as she drew my attention to the female sambar.

Tadoba Andhari Tiger Reserve has always surprised us and blessed family of ours from time to time. On 28th February 2015, it blessed us with a great photograph and a large number of nature lovers opined that we were fortunate to record in camera.

While observing courtship of Indian Grey Hornbill on 20th of March 2016 I was surprised to observe a female mounting over the male and mating lasted for about 45 seconds. This unique and unusual mating behaviour recorded by anybody in the world was published by Bombay Natural History Society (BNHS) in their magazine Newsletter for Birdwatchers. Again credit goes to Mrs Goel as she allowed me to go in spite of her ill health.

These are the most unique images which have been recorded for the first time by a family like you who started as a tourist but became a hardcore nature and wildlife lover as per God’s Design.

In am reminded of a beautiful song by Mohammed Rafi from film MELA - YE ZINDGI KE MELE DUNIYA ME KAM NA HONGE -- AFSOS HUM NA HONGE (My life partner Sangeeta Goel left me on 3rd August 2018 and merged with Nature)

Images from the wilderness of India recorded from the year 2011 to 2016 (Dudhwa, Tadoba, Sariska and Delhi).


Let Us Celebrate upcoming Ganesha Chaturthi in an Eco Friendly/Responsible Way

Most of us wait eagerly for the Ganesh Chaturthi festival as Lord Ganesh is believed to keep away all of us from the hardships of life and brings prosperity to the whole family.

Many of us who have gone through Hindu mythology and birth of Lord Ganesha would have heard that Ganesha was created out of mud and sweat of Maa Parvati and kept on the gate to guard the house where she lived. But in the present era, when we celebrate his coming on the earth and his departure from here, he would be thinking why the people create so much pollution be it environmental or sound pollution.

As per tradition only clay idols were to be worshipped and immersed in water. But with changing times, Plaster of Paris idols painted with chemical and synthetic paints have become a common trend which does not dissolve in water. Further the materials used reduces the oxygen level in the pond, lake, river or the sea where they are immersed and kills the fishes and other aquatic species effecting the marine ecosystem.

Some of you may be aware that in 2004 Madras High Court ruled that immersion of Ganesha Idols is unlawful as chemicals used in its making pollutes the sea water. Later on State of Goa banned the sale of Ganesha made out of Plaster of Paris and promoted the idols made of traditional clay. Since the festival is not only celebrated in Maharashtra alone but in many other states such as Delhi, U.P, Bihar, Chhatissgarh and Madhya Pradesh too, it is high time we all take necessary steps to work together to have eco friendly celebrations.

It is also pertinent to mention that when the festival got started by Lok Manya Bal Gangadhar Tilak in fag end of 19th century (in 1894) the idols were much smaller. However over the years due to commercial and political competition among the local people and exhibitionist tendencies, not only the size of the idols kept on increasing but also every household started getting their individual idol rather than a common one in their community which ultimately leads to more pressure on the environment.

Let us take a clue from the phrase "Small is Beautiful". Secondly, let us celebrate the festival in as much traditional and natural way as possible in complete harmony with nature. For the last few years, many innovative ideas are coming up to have completely green festival. For eg. Ganesha idols made with natural colours and filled with veg fish food,Tree Ganesha with seeds which after immersion in a pot blooms into lovely plants etc. One can try any of the creative ideas or you can simply opt for the traditional clay ganpati idols with natural colours and immerse them in a bucket at your own place and use the same water in your garden.

Let us all pledge to celebrate Eco friendly Ganesh Chaturthi which will not help us to save the environment but also our future.

Images from Delhi and Mumbai taken in the month of August and September 2017.

This year Ganesh Pooja is beginning on 13th September and Visarjan is on 23rd September.

Happy Ganeshaotsav to all.

On 26th of August 2017 while I was shooting courtship of peacock in the heart of Delhi, I found a situation where peacock was flanked by two peahen and both of them showed interest in him. After I realized that this is the perfect representation of Lord Ganesha with his two consorts namely Riddhi and Siddhi.


Latest Shooting star on the World Horizon - Saurabh Chaudhary

"Gold medal by Saurabh Chaudhary at the young age of 15 years and 9 months is an outcome of 3 years of Saurabh’s hard work and elders blessings", remarked by his mother Smt Brijesh, minutes after he won Gold.

"16 year old Saurabh Chaudhary illustrates the potential and prowess our youth is blessed with", Prime Minister Narendra Modi tweeted.

On his journey to Gold Medal, who could have thought in dreams that at the tender age of not even 16 years, he would outclass the challenge from South Koreans Jin Jong Oh, who has 4 Olympic Gold medals, 3 time World Champion and 3 Asian Games medals under his hat.

He is the youngest Indian Gold medalist in Asian Games history. The son of a farmer having small patch of land in the Kalina village, started his journey in the field of shooting from Baghpat, Uttar Pradesh.

Hats off to his father Sh Jagmohan Singh too who introduced Saurabh to shooting. The determination of Saurabh to reach the top within a period of 3 years is worth mentioning and emulating, without any support from the Govt. I am sure it would encourage others at the young age to take a sport of their aptitude and interest and put their whole hearted efforts and leave the results to God.

Image of Tiger coming out of the woods from Tadoba Andhari Tiger Reserve in the State of Maharashtra taken in June 2012."


Golden Day for the Indian Women Wrestlers

What a way to celebrate her upcoming birthday on 25th August in advance at the Asian Games at Indonesia by not only winning a Gold Medal for the country on 20th of August but also creating history by becoming the 1st women ever from India to do so.

It is a great achievement for the 23 year old Haryana wrestler Vinesh Phogat. Incidentally she is closely connected to the Dangal (film by Aamir Khan) famed Phogat family. She has also become the only women to win two medals in back to back Asian Games (bronze medal in 48 kg category in 2014 Asian Games).

I salute the perseverance, courage, determination and efforts of Vinesh Phogat and the family for showing her the path and for being with her in the time of the crisis. I am sure many would follow sports, not only in Haryana but other parts of Bharat (India), to achieve higher goals in life.

Image of Peafowl from the wilderness of Delhi taken in July 2017.


Peacock - Calling the Life Partner lost in Eternity

After the life partner (female) has merged with the Nature, the male is trying to call her back. The female is responding by saying that: Please do not call me as it will be difficult to take leave from you.

आवाज़ देके हमें तुम बुलाओ
मोहब्बत में इतना ना हमको सताओ!

It is believed in Hinduism that the soul after leaving the body (on death) keeps on hovering around the place where the body spent the time and remains in vicinity by the time all the rituals are over. Only then the soul moves further.

Image from the wilderness of Delhi taken on 13th July 2018.


Friends …God's Design which I understood after the Nature Event

This year WWF India came out with a calendar (STRIPES) for the year 2018 on Tigers of India which was designed last year and got published at the fag end of the year. incidentally it has 7 out of the total 13 images from us, 5 from my son Bharat Goel and 2 from me.

The 3 images from June to the August are in great sequence.

Well known tigress Machhiani from Bandhavgarh in the State of Madhya Pradesh, followed by tiger cubs at Tadoba Andhari Tiger Reserve from Maharashtra (both images from me) and the last image of tigress with her cub in the affectionate mood (image from son Bharat Goel).

Mrs Sangeeta Goel (wife) after showing signs of ill health from June onwards breathed her last on 3rd of August 2018. After spending about 34 years of life, to me it appeared as if she came as a gift from nature and became part of all of us, touching everyones life with joy and happiness. On 3rd August 2018 she merged with nature to shower her blessings .

The positioning of images in the calendar are now crystal clear as they have indicated the sequence of events to happen in future.

Images from Tadoba and Bandhavgarh from 2010 to 2015."


Lord Shiva... All in All

From today the month of Shrawan has begun, popularly known as Sawan in the North belt of India. It is considered the holiest month of the year as all the days of this month are auspicious. It is believed that worshipping Lord Shiva during the month of Shrawan is considered more powerful than worshipping during normal days.

It is believed that on Poornima, the full moon day, the Shravan Nakshatra or the Star rules the sky and hence this month derives its name from this nakshatra.

Most of us would have observed that a large number of devotees collecting holy water of river Ganga and taking it to temples and offering it to Lord Shiva after travelling more than 100 km for days together.

During my posting in North Bihar at Muzaffarpur from 1995 to 1998 I observed Shiva Devotees collecting water from river Ganga at Sultanpur (Bihar) and carrying it to Devghar in Jharkhand. Others collecting holy water from Patna and offering at Garib Sathan at Muzzarpur (North Bihar). Delhites see a large number of devotees (known as Kanwariyas) coming from Haridwar with Kanwars through out the Shrawan month, some of them stopping at stops especially meant for their rest in between on their route to their destinations.

Why do devotees offer Ganga water to lord Shiva?

It is believed that as per Puranas during Samudra Manthan (Churning of Ocean) in search of Amrit (Elixier) 14 different rubies emerged from the ocean. 13 of them were divided between the Devtas (Gods) and the Asuras (Demons). However the most deadly poison known as Halahal which could have destroyed the entire universe, was consumed by the Lord Shiva and his throat became blue as he kept the poison in it. Hence Lord Shiva came to be known as Neelkantha.

In order to cool of the impact of poison Lord Shiva wore a Crescent Moon on his head and all the Gods started offering water of the holy Ganges to Lord Shiva to reduce the effect of poison. Hence it is considered auspicious to offer holy Ganges water to Lord Shiva in this month.

I too am devotee of Lord Shiva for a long time. During the month of Shrawan of 2010, I visited Mallikaarjun Jyotilingam with my wife Sangeeta Goel. After the visit when I came back to Hyderabad in the Guest House of Income Tax at Banjara Hills, Lord Shiva blessed me with his blessings. It was 15th of August 2010.

I am sharing the image where I an visualizing the Lord Shiva in the form of "Snake" and Goddess Parvati, consort of Lord Shiva in the form of "Cat". (Goddess Durga rides the Tigress or the Lioness).


Big 5 of Dudhwa National Park

The only National Park in the State of Uttar Pradesh is one of the best in the country. It has classical Sal Forest and the best of the grassland in the country. Although tiger sightings are a matter of pure chance but the beauty of the wilderness is unmatchable. Can you think of a train passing through the grassland and tiger sitting at the Bankey Tal.

Anybody interested in seeing one horned rhinoceros living in the northern part of the country may not visit Kaziranga/Pobitora National Park or wildlife sanctuary in Assam as they are easily seen at Dudhwa National Park. They were wiped out in the Terai region by 1878 but they were translocated from Chitwan National Park in Nepal and Pobitora Wildlife Sanctuary in Assam in the year 1984 and at present there are more than 30 rhinos in the park.

This park boasts of 5 deer species, a fact said to be unique among Indian forests. Swamp Deer also known as Barasingha is a conservation success story. They may be observed at Jhadi Tal in Kishanpur Wildlife Sanctuary (part of Dudhwa National Park).

The credit for bringing up this park at this stage goes to Billy Arjan Singh.

Even I can not forget this park as this gave me a life time shot of Crested Serpent Eagle feeding on a Burmese Python (recorded in December 2011) which got published in American Scientific Journal in December 2017.

Enjoy the big 5 (Elephant, One Horned Rhinoceros, Barasingha, Blue Bull and Tiger) of Dudhwa National Park and Tiger Reserve from 2011 to 2016 from us."


Do Peacock and Peahen Mate….?

(Peafowls' scientific name : Pavo Cristatus)

Let us see the mating in actual at the link mentioned below for the benefit of all who still believe in the age old myth that a Peahen (female) becomes pregnant by drinking the tears of a dancing Peacock (male). If you like the Video please feel free to subscribe it to enjoy many more facets of nature.

Is there any truth in the statement of Honourable and learned Judge Sh Mahesh Sharma from the Rajasthan High Court made last year in May 2017, that Peacock is a lifelong Brahmachari (Celibate). It never has sex with the peahen. The peahen gets pregnant after swallowing the tears of the Peacock.

Now you have the answer with you.

Image from Delhi taken in this breeding season in May 2018.



Last minute encounter with the Peacock

The entire world is gripped into the fever of the World Cup Football 2018.

As the game has moved from the Group stage to the Knock Out stage it is a question of "Do and Die" for the football playing country and for their supporters through out the world.

Yesterday night when Japan was on the verge of eliminating a giant like Belgium who could have thought that Belgium would topple at the last moment and moved to the Quarter Finals and shatter the dreams of Japan. Now they will fight out with the mighty Brazil for the place in the Semi Finals on 6th/7th July.

Sometime back when I was just about to pack off my equipment a peacock came near to me and opened up his tail feathers for dancing and I could not stop myself from capturing the close up shots.

It is said the most unexpected things come to you when you least expect them.

I am sharing one of the image from Delhi taken on 20th June 2018.



Courtship of House Sparrow

In big metros people are missing house sparrows which used to be a common sight early in the morning in each house hold, in courtyard and house garden. However, for the last so many years, as they have moved out because of destruction of their habitat in and around our houses, construction of towers for the mobile phones without which we appear to have become dead. On reaching some body’s house for social gathering or purpose we first see whether our mobile is charged. If not we first plug in for charging the same. In order to save them, Delhi Govt. has declared sparrow as State Bird of Delhi.

For quite sometime I was interested in recording their courtship/mating. I remember I saw it many years back when they were seen but as a birder it was missing from my treasure. Last month I was in Dehradun and staying at Shaheen Bagh. Since the place is so heavenly I thought of spending time at the property.

A birder can not close his eyes and always thinks of seeing something new. The eyes searched what they wanted. Yes, I saw and observed the mating of the House Sparrow. I could record it on the light lamp on the wall covered with lovely creepers. It appeared as if they are expecting a NEW LIGHT in their family.

As a nature conservationist, I feel that we have to take all the measures for the sparrows to again come back to urban environment. Further, we have to ensure that the birds such as Red-vented Bulbul, Myna, Crow, Woodpecker, Owl, Parakeets, Asian Koel, Common Hoopoe, Kingfisher, Peafowl do get protection, in some way or other. They have been associated to humankind from time immemorial. Saving the birds around us means "we are saving the nature".

Enjoy the images taken on 23rd April 2018 at Dehradun, in the State of Uttrakhand.



Pied Crested Cuckoo or Jacobin Cuckoo ( Scientific Name: Clamator Jacobinus) Advance Indicator of Monsoons.

How the bird looks and sound produced by them can be heard and their mating can be seen in the Video. A brief write up for understanding the bird may also be seen underneath the video. In case you like the link feel free to subscribe the channel by pressing the subsciption button on my youtube channel.

Pied crested cuckoo is a member of the Cuckoo family. It can be easily identified by two colors white and black. These are very vocal during the breeding season. In fact, they migrate from South Africa, come to India along with the South West Monsoons for breeding.

Similar to Asian Koel and common cuckoo they are brood parasite (they do not make their nest and lay their eggs in other bird nest ) and the host specie in India is Common or Jungle babbler . Ion a number of occasions I have been fortunate to record the feeding of the chick by a group of common babblers in the NCR Delhi.

According to Hindu mythology, this bird is known as Chatak and as harbinger of the rains. Its arrival is an indication of the timely arrival of Monsoon. People in different parts of our country wait eagerly for its arrival as this is a symbol of hope, because entire Indian population and especially the farmers & the economy is Monsoon dependent.

In the morning of 20th June 2018, I heard the sound of the pied crested cuckoo and I sighted the same in flight . It just landed up the canopy of a tall tree. After a few seconds it flew again and went away .I followed it as it kept on changing position one tree to another. For the last two weeks I am hearing their sound and even able to see either perching them on the top of the tree or in flight. I also saw it foraging on the ground along with common mynas.

I observed their mating on 16th September 2014 and later on 1st July 2016 in the heart of Delhi. A rare shot in the wild.



Indian Grey Hornbill (Female) enters the Cavity for the new generation. Most unique Nesting behavior in the Avian World.

I have been observing Indian Grey hornbills, Oriental pied hornbills as well as great hornbills in various National Parks of India right from 2004 but the activities of most common hornbill namely, the Indian Grey hornbill (Ocyeros birostris) that is also found in urban environment hooked me when I went through the literature. From then, I have been closely observing its behavior in heart of Delhi for more than 5 years.

Hornbills nest in tree hollows. By and large they are monogamous. After courtship and mating, the female enters the hollow cavity of the nesting tree and stays there for around 75 to 90 days depending upon the species. This makes their nesting one of the most unique in the natural world.

Even during entry I have observed the male helping and pushing the female into the cavity. There after he brings soil, pebbles and hand them over to the female who in turn seals the entrance with the help of soil and faecal material. She moults her feathers and lays eggs and incubates them. The eggs are hatched. The chicks are raised and when the space becomes insufficient for mother and chicks, she comes out of cavity and both the parents feed chicks.

After sometime, even chicks also come out of the cavity. During initial few days their parents feed them. During the last 5 years I have been able to photograph the courtship including mating, entry of female into the nesting cavity and coming of a chick out of the cavity.

Last year on 28th March 2017, I observed the precise moment when the female entered into the cavity and the male brought food for her sweet heart.

Enjoy the live action on the video.



Elephants - Flagship specie at Rajaji National Park

Rajaji National Park and the tiger Reserve is the only park in the country through which holy Ganga flows. This year there is a whisper among nature lovers having interest in observing herd of elephants in the Dhikala Chaur or crossing the Ram Ganga river or deep in the forest that the number of elephants are less than the previous years. Perhaps they are of the view that they have migrated to Rajaji National Park. Last month I was in Rajaji for 4 safaris. Although I did not see the elusive tiger but I was fortunate to observe elephants in each of jungle safari. On the very first safari saw a new tusker. Then on 20th April saw the first tusker in the Himalayan region with a radio collar. Also a good elephant herd just on the Mandawali Chowki after waiting for more than 30to 40 minutes. But wait was rewarding. Yes this time Rajaji had more elephants. I am sharing some of the images taken during 19th to 21st April 2018.


Beauty in Fight... Peafowls (Scientific name: Pavo Cristatus)

My most memorable and beautiful image of peacocks fight was on 22nd April 2014, celebrated as the Earth Day through out the world. This day opened the floodgates of the fighting world for me as fight is a must irrespective of the specie for the survival of itself in the long run as propounded by Charles Darwin in its Theory of Evolution. Generally people have witnessed fight between two peacocks for the territory or mating rights. But over a period of time I have not only seen fight between peacocks but also between two peahens as well as between a peacock and a peahen and peacock witnessing it. This is similar to fight in the villages where a strong woman fights with a man to save his husband being weak. I observed similar thing in the avian world in February of last year. Just as two peacocks fight, I witnessed a fight between two peahens one fine morning. Again this may be for the nesting place or for the selected male for mating . I am sharing some of the images related to various fights observed over a period of time in the wilderness of Delhi from the year 2014 to 2018. Hope you enjoy the same as I enjoyed them clicking through the lense."



Birds of Aravalli

Get a glimpse of the Aravallis at DLF Cyber Hub with some beautiful photographs at 'Aravalli Utsav', an exhibition curated by well known photographer Sh Aditya Arya and an initiative by 'I Am Gurgaon' in partnership with India Photo Archive foundation.

All the 4 images are from Delhi N C R taken from year 2013 to 2016.



Nature at its Best... Rose Day (Beginning of Valentine Week)

A Rose is a Rose whether you call it on a Rose day or any other day. Rose is the King of flowers. It is available in most of the colors such as Red, Yellow, White, Green, Blue, Pink or Black. The rare black is found in Turkey.

Rose originated from China and now available throughout the world. It is recognized as a symbol of love, sympathy or sorrow.

As a nature lover I try to see apart from beauty in all the creations of nature, the Gods, which we have been introduced by our parents and well wishers. I not only am seeing Lord Ganesha in it, who takes care of all your problems but also Lord Hanuman.

Enjoy the nature at it's best as all around this time of the year you will find gardens full of lovely flowers as if you are in the heaven. The images are from Gardens of Delhi taken in December 2014.



Foreigners without Visa and Passport... Gulls

One of my friend Arun Gupta, an avid birder and who owns a well known hospitality property Shaheen Bagh at Dehradun told that a large number of gulls come to the Yamuna Ghat near I S B T in the heart of Delhi. Initially I did not believe it but I thought of verifying it. Accordingly I went to the designated place on 1st December 2012 in the early morning. At the first sight I could observe a few birds. Slowly and slowly saw a number of them coming from metro bridge side and made themselves comfortable on the water. I also observed a flock of birds coming from Okhla side. The ghat is between two well known marks. On the left is metro rail bridge and on right flank is old iron rail bridge which is more than 100 years old. One of the boat man at the Yamuna Ghat informed that these birds start visiting this ghat from Oct and remains up to end of Feb.

We could see a large flock of birds coming from the east as well from the west. These are black or brown headed gulls. When they arrive in Delhi the head is not black but by the time they are ready for their backward journey to the breeding habitat the head bears the black or brown color.

The question is why these birds come to such a place which has the dirtiest water in DELHI as all the drains outlet is in the Yamuna river. In fact we should not call this Yamuna river as it has lost its identity and this has become a big NALA. We observed that some persons come daily with namkeen seb or bhujia. They hire a boat and sail to the middle of the river and off load the entire content in the water. Immediately the gulls in hundreds pick up the morsels from the water. One can appreciate it when one observes it.

It was amazing to see such a large number of black or brown headed gulls in the midst of the city. Later on I invited one of the tour operators of DELHI who is running a tours and travel company for the last 20 years. He was surprised to see the gulls that too in such large number. It is in thousands. Believe me.

The Black headed gulls migrate from Europe and Central Asia and the brown headed gulls migrate from high plateaus of Central Asia and Tajikstan. It is difficult to differentiate between the black and brown headed gulls when they arrive in October as both of them support the white head. However by the end of Feb they start acquiring their colours and one can recognise them easily. From Oct to Feb is the best time to observe their activities. Generally birds are very shy and avoid human presence. But these are quite bold and ready to share the table if food is laid on it. Come and try at the Yamuna Ghat besides the Nigambodh Ghat in the midst of chaotic city for all reasons.

There are three places in N C R of Delhi where the gulls can be observed. These are (1) Yamuna Ghat (2) Yamuna Biodiversity Park, Phase 2 in North Delhi (3) Okhla Bird sanctuary at Kalindi Kunj.

Gulls are prime scavengers and ready to eat anything although some people on daily basis visit the Yamuna Ghat and ride a boat and offer namkeen to the foreigner who visit the capital of India without any visa and passport and enjoy the best Delhi's hospitality.

 



"Peacock ….and the Menace of Stray Dogs

Almost all the News Dailies of today morning have carried out the story of a 18 month old child being killed outside his house by stray dogs in Bhopal, capital of Madhya Pradesh. There were other incidents in the social media such as Wild ASS and Blue Bull being chased by the stray dogs in their habitats. Being a nature photographer I too have witnessed a number of times dogs chasing away the Peacock, National Bird of India, in the parks of Delhi. Sometimes even with the kill of the peachick or wings spread out just after the kill. Is it not the RIGHT time to take a call and start a campaign to deal with the STRAY DOG MENACE. Let the authorities (Municipal) of every town and taluka launch a drive to catch stray dogs and prevent them from unnecessary hunting or killing. I remember during my school days in late sixties at Sainik School Balachari in Gujarat, during the tea time before the games time, they used to be shot down by the military staff. Both the images from Delhi shot in 2014 and 2015."


Peacock and Peahen mating... An Open Secret

Right from 2013 I was trying my best to observe the mating of peacock as myth was in the air that peahen drinks the tears of the Peacock when he dances and becomes pregnant. It was in 2016 that I could observe the mating but I was not satisfied with the images .Then last year it was like a dream come true when I could get lovely images. I was able to get images from different angles and brought them in public domain from time to time.


"Peacocks ....Ready to fight to show their dominance in terms of Charles Darwin"s Principle of Survival Of the Fittest.


A Day to remember for PURNA SWARAJ

We got freedom from British Rule on 15th August, 1947. However the people of India got PURNA SWARAJ on 26th January, 1950 as the real power was vested in the Constitution of India. This day is celebrated as Republic Day. 26th January was chosen as the Republic Day because on this day in 1930 Declaration of Indian Independence (Purna Swaraj) was proclaimed by the Indian National Congress as opposed to the Dominion Status offered by the British regime. Hope this 26th January, 2018 add more colors to the NATION. This Republic day is different from the past as 10 heads of states of ASEAN(Association of South East Asian Nations) countries have been invited to grace the occasion. Earlier there used be only one head of State. On this occassion I wish everybody a HAPPY REPUBLIC DAY.


"Freedom is My Birthright and I shall have it", Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose

Who does not need freedom? I think every body whether as a child, a youth, a student, employee and an employer in what ever field he/she may be needs freedom and would love to have it. But when the whole country is ruled by others entire population needs the freedom to express one self. He is one of the Indian Freedom Fighters and the cause of Indian Freedom. He was the man who really fought for the Puran Swaraj. He was influenced by the teachings of Swami Vivekananda and Ramakrishna after reading their works at the young age of 16, when a child is influenced by the parents only. Later he resigned from the Civil Services in 1921 and came to India from abroad. He represented the radical wing of the Indian National Congress. His most famous quote/slogan was, Give ME Blood and I Shall give you FREEDOM. Being a nature lover I have affinity with another quote on nationalism. "Nationalism is inspired by the highest ideals of human race, Satyam (the true), Shivam (the God), Sundaram (the beautiful). Nationalism in India has roused the creative faculties which for centuries had been lying dormant in our people". I am of the view that Nationalism as viewed by our great leader is well represented by Peacock, the National bird of India. When the bird produces his natural sound is not liked by people being the reality as being harsh (Satyam). This is the bird which is Carrier (Vahan) of Lord Kartikeya (elder son of Lord Shiva) and whose feathers are adorned on the head of Lord Krishna. This is Shivam. Lastly Peacock is the largest and the most beautiful bird on the earth. This is Sundaram. The whole philosophy of nationalism appears to be contained in Peacock.


Am I the Darling of the Universe?


ARISE , AWAKE And STOP Not Until GOAL is ACHIEVED.

12th January 2018: National Youth Day (In memory of Swami Vivekananda)

Image from New Delhi in June 2015.

33 years back Government of India took a decision to celebrate the philosophy of Swami Vivekananda and his ideals for which he lived and worked . He was the man who brought a change in the thought process of the youth. He is the inspiration for the youth of the present and the Modern India. The present generation remembers 11th September as the day when the twin towers at New York was destroyed on 11th September 2001. But hardly anyone remembers that Swami Vivekananda had created history 109 years back by his soul stirring address at Chicago (U.S.A.) on 11th September 1893 . He is known for his thoughts which are and would be relevant as they are AGELESS. One of them which should inspire any body irrespective of the age is.


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Address by Shri Buggana Rajendranath, Hon'ble Finance Minister of Andhra Pradesh at TIOL Awards 2023