MADURAI: When the first light crept into the room, Thamildhaasan alias Johnson M slowly opened his eyes. As he heard birds chirping outside the window, a grin started appearing on his face — a small smile of contentment. This 38-year-old from Melamadai along with his Madurai Nature Cultural Foundation has been making ardent efforts to protect the biodiversity and heritage of the district since 2012.
The foundation’s one such successful endeavour was documenting the bird species of Samanatham tank. Following this they sent a proposal to the forest department through Madurai Collector MS Sangeetha to transform the tank into a bird sanctuary.
Briefing how he got interested in environmental activism, Thamildhaasan said, “It was 2012 and Indira Nagar, located near Melamadai, was witnessing a chain of protests demanding potable water. As many villagers were illiterate, my friends and I started writing petitions to the officials to aid them. As a result, the people got water facilities. This made me think.” “Melamadai is one of the fertile areas with more kanmoi around it. However, there was neither no data on the natural resources nor any efforts to protect it. So I decided to do something for it,” he added.
Joining hands with ophthalmologist and bird researcher Dr T Badri Narayanan, environmentalist N Raveendran and other volunteers, he gathered resources against granite quarrying in the area, which fetched good results.
In 2014, the trio formed Madurai Nature Cultural Foundation and started documenting the biodiversity of Madurai. “It was part of this venture that we recorded the bird species of Samanatham. We also documented the rich flora and fauna of Idyapatti and sent a proposal to the forest department to announce it as a biodiversity area. This prevented the construction of a prison in the area, which was proposed by the TN police department. I expect the government to soon announce Idayapatti as a biodiversity area,” he said.
The Arittapatti biodiversity area was also the result of the Madurai Nature Cultural Foundation’s efforts. Nearly 326 bird species like Bonelli’s eagle, Indian eagle-owl and Laggar falcon are spotted in Arittapatti. Likewise, almost 155 butterflies, including golden angle and common jay and 40 varieties of odonata are found in the region.
Furthermore, the foundation’s member, Karthikeyan, documented 255 native and 57 non-native trees. Another member, Viswa, recorded nearly 60 reptiles. “Madurai has the potential for 21 biodiversity areas. We documented 112 hillocks, 17 Jain beds and 22 rivers in the region, said Thamildhaasan. The foundation has also started eco-clubs and history club in various schools and colleges.
Apart from this, it often organises cultural walks, tree walks, heritage walks, and birdwatching free of cost. “So far, we have organised 50 walks, including transgender walk and public walk. We gather volunteers through WhatsApp and Facebook and on the day of the visit, we distribute pamphlets to the locals to educate them on the significance of their area,” Thamildhaasan said.
Professor and expert in epigraphy P Devi Arivuchelvam(50), who is also a part of the Madurai Nature Cultural Foundation, said, “During our heritage walks, we have found several inscriptions, hero stones, rock paintings, etc. If it is an inscription on a god or goddess 90% of the villagers come forward to protect it. But, if it is a hero stone, they might not show interest. We have found a 1000-year-old Shiva linga and Nandhi pedam in Amur Kanmoi. With the support of ‘Aram’ in Coimbatore, we set up a shed for their safe storage. However, neither the panchayat nor the department concerned is showing any interest in protecting them.” She further said that their team identified rock paintings in 15 places, including Kidaripatti and Vedarpuliyankulam. “However, anti-social elements are destroying them by scribbling. The archaeology department needs to come forward to protect them with fencing, she added.
Edited by Sneha Joseph
