By Shruti Sunderraman
It must be a cold, cold world where people don’t cry at Mufasa’s death in the Disney movie, The Lion King.
That was my first encounter with a lion, nay animal death. In 2005, the
Asiatic lion was officially declared an endangered species in Gujarat’s
Gir National Park. But conservation efforts and the declaration of Gir
as protected land raised the lion population above 500. A humungous
amount of credit goes to the Gir forest guards, many of whom are women.
In a charming photo essay for The Week,
Aayush Goel details the lives of the female guards of Gir National
Park. According to the essay, the guards tend to pregnant lionesses,
nourish cubs, rescue leopards and above all placate angry humans (read :
nearby villagers). Fondly called the “lion queens”, these women chose
to head to the forests instead of taking up desk jobs when the Narendra
Modi government announced a 33 per cent reservation for women in
wildlife rescue jobs.
Apart from passion for their work and a
love for the jungle, these women have found better financial stability
for their families. One of the rescuers, Rozeena, brought herself out of
poverty after being recruited into the brigade. The essay also details
the support their families give them and it an endearing story to
behold.
While the idea of roaming in forests and
walking with the wild might sound daunting to most, these women believe
they lead ordinary lives, perhaps with better job satisfaction. They
insist that they face the same challenges as every woman; work-life
balance, managing children (one of the rescuers is 3 months pregnant),
except, their idea of children include all the animal cubs they take
care of.
The female guard brigade has the complete
support of the forest department. R R Nala, deputy conservator of Gir
National Park, says, “They shatter all stereotypical notions about
women. They work shoulder-to-shoulder with men to preserve this
jungle.The brigade is an asset to our department.”
http://theladiesfinger.com/lion-queen-gir/
http://theladiesfinger.com/lion-queen-gir/
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