Marthilina M Sangma, the first woman Forest Rager from Meghalaya’s Garo tribe, who has been conferred Van Durga award in the on-going Ist Asian Ranger Forum (ARF), brings about wind of changes in conservation sector in her state.
Aaranyak’s environment scientist Ms Tanvi Hussain (tanvi.aaranyak@org)talks with ‘Van Durga’ Marthilina on the sidelines of the ARF in Guwahati
Q: I would like to know about your experience working as a forest ranger in the Indian state of Meghalaya?
I’m the first woman from my tribe, Garo, to join the Meghalaya Forest Department. My people have never seen a lady ranger in the Forest Department. So, when I told them that I had passed the Meghalaya Public Service Commission and would be going for the Forest Ranger training. They were surprised and asked me being a lady how am I going to tackle the job. They think that being Ranger in the Forest Department means only catching the offenders and seizing the smugglers. They did not have much idea about the role of a Forest Ranger especially a woman in that role. When I completed my training, I told them there are so many things other than checking on illegal activities like capacity building of communities for conservation. However, one of the advantages of being a lady Forest Ranger is we can communicate better with the people who are important for conservation of forest and its resources.
In Meghalaya, the land tenure system is completely different from the rest of the country. Ours is a 6th schedule area, we have customary laws. The land mostly belongs to the people – some private land, some community land, some clan land. The Reserve Forest and Government-owned land is very handful. The total area of Meghalaya is around 22,429 sq. km. Out of that, only 1,145.19 sq. km is the Protected Area. Only 5.1% is under government land. In our state agriculture is practice in the form of jhum cultivation or shifting cultivation, mostly practiced by the Garo tribe. It is our tradition form of cultivation, but its intense practice is inviting adverse impacts on the environment. It was very challenging to deal with people and convey them about the adverse impacts of intense jhum cultivation. It was difficult to change the traditional practice and mindset of older generation to practice the different types of agricultural practice.
Q: How did people react to the idea of shifting from their traditional cultivation practice?
People were first apprehensive and asked me how they would ensure food security without Government support if they had to do away with ‘jhum’ cultivation. In order to make them understand the adverse effects of jhum cultivation, we tried to compensate with the permanent type of cultivation. We attempted endorsing permanent cultivation by supplying honeybee boxes and cardamom suckers. We tried to win the confidence of the local people to take up the plantations and conservation activities because there are lots of barren land resulting from jhum cultivation. I persistently encourage people to practise sustainable agriculture like planting orange saplings in some areas and other suitable crops or vegetables in some areas according to the climate conditions and shift from jhum cultivation. Our people are gradually understanding the consequences. Now many people have shifted from the traditional practice. We cannot do away with it right now completely but slowly it is changing.
Q: How did you deal with the village elderly in changing the cultivation pattern?
Initially, they tried to oppose but then I tried to make them understand by being one of them. I used to stay sometimes in the villages while going for patrolling and spend time with the people, talk and mingle with them to gain their confidence and then try to convince them. We also engage them in our work. When I was working in the Nokrek National Park, I used to take some people on trekking in the protected area, engage them on daily wage basis for boundary clearance for forest fires. Our land is very fertile, in a short span of time the vegetation grows anew to a forest. We just need to check tree felling and land clearance for conservation of our forests.
Q: What does keep you motivated to work tirelessly?
I have deep love for this nature since my childhood. When I was in the school, I was a member of the Bharat Scouts and Guides and I used to go for hiking, learned sign language and got the opportunity to get involved in environment awareness programmes. I received the Rajya Puraskar from Bharat Scouts and Guides and then the Rastrapati Scout and Guide Award from there on I have remained inclined to work for conservation.
Q: Which part of Meghalaya do you come from?
In the state of Meghalaya, there are 3 major hill regions – Khasi Hills, Jaintia Hills and Garo Hills. I come from Selsella in West Garo Hills region, and I belong to the Garo tribe.
Q: I (interviewer) also come from a part of Assam that shares boundary with West Garo Hills. So, you would be well aware of the human-elephant interaction in the region. What is your experience?
First of all, it is very difficult to secure the elephant movement pathways as most of the land is owned by the community or private land. Our Forest Department is trying to secure these corridors and pathways. We have identified five corridors and trying our best to secure the areas. But if you look at the antagonistic part, “the Garo people are hill dwellers and live in the nearby forest. They have very high tolerance for animals.” Even if they encounter animals there is no such human-animal conflict. Garo people, we never say as elephants, we respect them and address the jumbos as Achu or Ambi meaning Uncle. Our hill dwellers might not have the scientific knowledge, but they have through the ages lived near the vicinity of forest, they know the behaviour of elephants by observing them. Our forefathers used to say elephants are very intelligent animals, they can sense. So, do not disrespect them. If we disrespect them, they will cause harm to us. We believe it and that’s why we respect them. Even if they come and forage on our cropland the Garo people never say ill about the elephants. Instead, with respect the people ask the elephant or elephant herd to go away saying, “we don’t have food or anything to offer you”.
Let me tell you about an instance that happened with my aunt. She lives near the forest. One night an elephant herd came to her cropland and started foraging on her tapioca crops. She was old, alone and scared. She cannot chase away the herd. All she could do was respectfully request the herd to not eat all the tapiocas and just leave 6 plants for her. Next morning, to her surprise she found the six plants were kept untouched. But in the plain areas of the State, it is very difficult to manage this issue also. Meghalaya shares border with Assam and Bangladesh. Sometimes the elephant herds move from Meghalaya to Bangladesh. We need more mechanism and strategies to address the issue and secure the corridors.
Edited by Bijay Sankar Bora