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Travelogue – A trip to Nagarhole National Park, Karnataka

Published

9 years ago

on

KAmal

 

 

 

 

 

BY : KAMAL MISHRA

Nagarhole National Park, Kabini is counted among India’s best wildlife parks. It is spread over 247 square-mile and provides safe heaven to wildlife including large mammals such as tiger, leopard, wild elephant, dhole (Indian wild dog), and gaur (Indian bison) and over 250 varieties of birds.

Nagarhole National park derives its name from the combination of two Kannada words. ‘Nagar,’ meaning snake, and ‘hole,’ meaning streams. True to its name, quite a few serpentine streams fork through the rich tropical forests of the park. Nagarhole Park was set up in 1955. In 1975, its area was increased to include a greater expanse of forest reserve. The original forest was once an exclusive hunting ground for the erstwhile Maharajas of Mysore. The park has been recently renamed as Rajiv Gandhi National Park after the late Prime Minister of India.

Being a wild life and photography enthusiast, I always had this park in mind for my next photography tour. I along with one of my friends planned to go to Kabini in April 2015 with the sole objective of spotting Tiger or Leopards in the wild. It was a photography tour and we booked morning and evening safaris for both the days we stayed at the Kabini River Lodge.

Our trip started with Evening Safari on Day 1. We took an 8 seater jeep in the jungle and our driver – a very experienced person was coordinating with other safari vehicle drivers so that we can quickly move incase any vehicle spotted the big cats.

We spent about 3 hours in jungle for our first Safai with no luck. It also coincided with first seasonal rains and both animals and birds choose to stay deep inside jungle and we were not able to spot anything major. However, I was able to capture a Serpent Eagle and a pack of 2 Dhole.

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DAY 2

Morning Safari

It started early morning at around 620am. We could see sunrise through the dense forest.

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The morning safari was little more eventful that the previous Safari and we were able to spot Dhole (again), White Bellied Woodpecker and Malabar Giant Squirrel. The sound of White Bellied Woodpecker hitting the wood was nothing short of a hammer hitting the nail. We could hear it very clearly even from about 20 feet distance.

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Evening Safari

Two safaris over and with only two more to go, we were getting a little anxious to spot the big cats. We were deeply observingany clue/sound that could lead us to them. We went near the Kabini river to check if they will come out to drink water. We couldn’t find the big cats but I was able to spot Darter, also known as snake bird with a very long neck.

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After spotting snake bird, we decided to go deep into the jungle and look for the big cats. While we were driving, we saw Serpent Eagle with a catch. True to its name – it was a snake and on a closer look – it was a Cobra. The snake was still alive – you can see the coiled body in the picture below and also see how Serpent eagle caught snake by its fangs. It was fabulous to see fight for survival and as they say it – it’s survival of the fittest. Wildlife at its best. It was a very rare moment and I knew that this definitely rarer than spotting a Tiger or Leopard. We stayed there for about 30 mins watching in awe!!!

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After watching the rare event of Serpent Eagle with Cobra, we moved ahead in our quest for the big cats. We were not able to spot them but we saw two adult Elephants with a baby elephant. Both of them were protecting the baby Elephant from both the sides. I was not able to get the shot I wanted – I wanted to take the picture of baby elephant in the middle and adults on both the sides. After waiting for about 30 mins, Elephants moved a little and I quickly composed and released the shutter to get the pic I wanted. That was end of Day 2 and we were still looking for Big Cats but had a satisfaction of witnessing a rare event.

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Day 3 Morning Safari – The final one

This was it. Our last safari of the trip and the hope of spotting the big cats were fast diminishing. We started the trip and saw a few Gaurs standing and staring us.

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We quickly took a few pictures and resumed our search for the Big cats. There were quite a few signs that day, we even got a call from other Safari that spotted an old leopard who came out of the jungle, drank water and went inside. By the time we reached the spot, the Leopard was gone. With that our last hope of spotting a Tiger or Leopard was gone. We were sad but we saw a peacock dancing and seeing peacock dance in the wild was an amazing experience. Our trip ended on a dancing note 🙂

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I will go back to Kabini for sure till the time I spot the big cats and even after that. It was an amazing experience and it taught me a lot about wild life and photography. I now have great memories and it will remain with me for all my life.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:-

Kamal heads operations for a Bangalore based startup engaged in providing strategy and consulting to fortune 500 companies. Kamal is an avid photographer and grabs whatever chance he gets to take the camera out to take some shots. He focuses on wildlife and portrait photography. He has traveled to many national parks within India and plans to cover at least 2 national parks every year.

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Dr. Abhishek Verma Dedicates a Shelter in Memory of His Mother, Veena Verma, at KGMU; Inaugurated by Daughter Nicolle Verma

Published

3 months ago

on

September 3, 2024

By

World-renowned business tycoon Dr. Abhishek Verma has supported Foodman Vishal Singh’s Hunger-Free World mission. In memory of his mother, Late Veena Verma, who was a 3 term Rajya Sabha MP.

Dr. Verma dedicated a state-of-the-art free permanent shelter for the attendants of patients at KGMU Medical University, Lucknow, under the aegis of Vijay Shree Foundation. His daughter, Nicolle Verma, inaugurated the shelter.

During the event, Foodman Vishal Singh honored Nicolle Verma by presenting her with a memento. Mrs. Nidhi Sharma and Avantika Yadav, associated with the organization, welcomed her with garlands. Following this, Nicolle Verma distributed essential items to the attendants and also handed out fruits. She became emotional remembering her grandmother on her birth anniversary.

On this occasion, she also inaugurated the “Veena Verma Sevalaya” in memory of her grandmother, Veena Verma, to serve the attendants. She expressed, “I feel proud that my family is engaged in nation-building as well as social service. Today, in collaboration with Vijay Shree Foundation founder Foodman Vishal Singh Ji, I feel immensely proud to dedicate this shelter for the poor, helpless, and needy attendants of patients battling serious illnesses like cancer. I am honored to be associated with the Hunger-Free World Mission for humanity.”

Inspired by the continuous humanitarian service provided by Vijay Shree Foundation over the past 17 years, Nicolle Verma donated 10 lakh rupees to support the cause. The purpose of this donation is to ensure that services continue for the needy attendants of patients suffering from severe illnesses in hospitals, as facilitated by Foodman Vishal Singh.

It is noteworthy that Dr. Abhishek Verma’s family has a legacy of public and philanthropic service. They are helping millions to carry forward the values and service work of their parents. On the occasion of his mother’s birth anniversary, Dr. Abhishek Verma dedicated this state-of-the-art permanent shelter at Lucknow Medical College to serve the attendants of patients through the Vijay Shree Foundation.

Supporting Foodman Vishal Singh’s Hunger-Free World mission, Dr. Abhishek Verma assured that he would continually support keeping this flame of humanity alive. He also promised to assist in providing medicines to the helpless patients.

Continuing her grandmother’s legacy of service, Nicolle Verma personally served food to the needy patients and attendants. She said, “It is our good fortune to have received the joy of doing this noble work today through Foodman Vishal Singh. I have taken another step forward in carrying my family’s values and cooperation by joining hands with the Vijay Shree Foundation. My father taught me to serve and help the needy, and I feel happy when I bring a smile to someone’s face.”

On the birth anniversary of the late Veena Verma, the event organizer, Vijay Shree Foundation founder Foodman Vishal Singh, said, “We feel proud and happy that Dr. Abhishek Verma, a globally renowned business tycoon, has extended his support to uplift our country from the hunger index. Today, on his mother’s birth anniversary, he inaugurated a state-of-the-art permanent shelter at Lucknow Medical College, which will always be helpful for the needy attendants of patients. It is a pleasure for me and the organization to receive the affection of Mr. Verma.”

The event was attended by General Manager Verma Family Office Hemant Garg, Sonu Rajput, and the organization’s volunteers, including Sandeep Singh, Parmeshwar Ji, Prashant Rao Gautam, Balram Singh, Ramesh Chaudhary, Suman, Jeetu, Anil, Suraj, Vinay, Manish Bhadauria, Manas Mehrotra, Vivek, Apurv, Happy, and others.

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