HAMPI: hey look dusty, shaggy and, as if they have just got out of bed. You can see them ambling down the hills in search of termites, honey, berries and other wild fruit. Every rock and crevice in the hills is checked by these animals, the sloth bears, for food as they come out of their caves after 4pm. But beware of that bear hug!
Their sanctuary is in an unlikely place –the fabled land of Hampi with its verdant rain-drenched fields, stark stones piled up precariously over one another, overflowing river channels, old temple ruins and ancient caves.
The Daroji Sloth Bear Sanctuary in Ballari district celebrating its silver jubilee, has continued to give protection for these big mammals amid the World Heritage Site of Hampi. The bears have been lording over the central part of the 3,000-million-year-old Deccan Plateau for ages.
These scenic craggy hills and small/big caves that dot all along the Tungabhadra river have provided a safe haven for them. At the edge of the sanctuary, is a canal that slices through these dry shrub forests and forms a unique ecosystem, protecting wildlife throughout the year.
Camouflaged and hiding ourselves in an idyllic spot in the Daroji Sanctuary, we sight three groups of animals after a certain period of time. One needs patience to catch sight of them. If some are with cubs, others are loners and happily lapping away at a mixture of jiggery and honey applied on the stones by forest staff.
Kardibetta in Daroji is one of the most popular viewing spots for bears in the evenings, informs a forest staffer. There is a view tower on the opposite end -- but from here, one can only spot bears as dots. At the ground level, one is just 40-50 feet away from the animals and one can observe their interactions and behaviour at very close quarters.
With females ruling the clan, mothers with cubs can often be sighted on these hills and many a time, they come very close. Male cubs are reared by mothers for two-three years till they are able to fend for themselves. And therefore, sub-adults too can be sighted loitering up and down the ranges. It is not just the bears, but peacocks and mongoose too that can be seen on Kardibetta. Amid the peacock’s shrill calls, little bears can be seen jumping and rolling all around but in the shadow of its protective mother.
The saga of Daroji protection is very long and everybody gives credit to the late M Y Ghorpade, (the scion of the Sandur royal family and former minister) for the formation of this sanctuary. In fact, many forest officials, environmentalists, NGOs and local people have been involved in the protection of bears as also hundreds of bird species.
Once a barren jungle, Daroji has been rejuvenated with a variety of plant species, says Santosh Martin, wildlife conservationist. “The entire luxuriant flora has regenerated from stumps due to seed dispersal done by bears and birds. Some 150-200 bird species, including the endemic Yellow Throated Bulbul, leopards, porcupine, pangolin, jackal and other wildlife, has increased over the years.”
According to Samad Kottur, wildlife researcher and activist, the combined efforts of forest officials, environmentalists and NGOs and campaigning have regenerated Daroji. He adds, “Once villagers used to hunt for meat here. But patrolling and awareness campaigns for decades put a stop to ritualistic hunting of animals and in fact, local communities got involved in protection work. They saw how forest protection resulted in recharging of their dried lands with the ground water levels going up. It was in 2002, I got involved with Daroji as forest officials sought our help. The last few decades, many range forest officers have toiled hard to make Daroji a good habitat for bears and we are planning to felicitate them.”
Daroji has remained the same for the last 25 years, with just one watch tower, says Pompayya Malemath, naturalist. “It has not seen much of conservation work although bears have received all protection. There is need for proper operating procedures as presently, it is not as per the Wildlife Protection Act. There are no proper vehicles for the forest staff; they still use bikes which is very risky in the event of any attacks.”
Further, it is not just bears that need protection but other animals in this landscape like pangolins, boars and porcupines which are still hunted by some local communities. There are some areas where illegal hunting goes on unabated and to check this, more protective measures and opening up of these areas for viewing may help in curbing killing of precious wildlife.
The development of Daroji as a regular safari has just remained on paper. Malemath adds, “If they could do online safari bookings and streamline the process of safari viewing, the sanctuary can earn money as also help in conservation. We hope Daroji also gets the same attention as an eco-tourist destination like the temples of Hampi.”
Daroji has received another layer of protection in the form of its eco sensitive zone that was recently declared. Most of the stone quarries in the ESZ , operating till now and creating enormous disturbance to the habitat of Daroji through rock blasting, have been shut down.
In the earlier days, many people were injured and killed in bear attacks but now the scenario has completely changed, says Kottur. There has not been a single death in bear attacks in the last 20 years. However, crop raids are the highest but with the forest department paying a very good compensation amount to the farmers, the resentment is less and people living around the sanctuary are tolerant to the bears’ needs. However, Martin cautions that more space is needed for the bears and there is need to add adjoining reserve forests to the sanctuary for its long-term protection.