https://indianmasterminds.com

ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT

School Children Take A Walk Into The Forest To Get Closer To Nature

The Madhya Pradesh Ecotourism Development Board and Dept. of Forest MP organize forest camps annually for school children with the aim to make them more aware about the eco system and the need for its conservation. The camp is called Anubhuti and it was organized in the beginning of the new year by Maiha Range of Satna Forest Division, where around 240 students took part. One unique thing about this camp was that it was totally eco-friendly. Food items were made from forest produce, it was served in plates and bowls made of leaves of Mahul tree.
Indian Masterminds Stories

The tagline of Anubhuti reads – ‘feel and become one with nature’. Anubhuti is an annual camp organised by the Madhya Pradesh Ecotourism Development Board in coordination with Madhya Pradesh Forest Department for school children and as the tagline suggests, it is organised to make children go closer to nature, live in the midst of nature and become more aware about the natural surroundings.

Anubhuti camp was organized in Maihar Range of Satna Forest division on January 3 and 4. This time, the Maihar range made the regular camp somewhat different by introducing some new ideas and technique. Indian Masterminds spoke to IFS officer Anupam Sharma (SDO Maihar sub-division) to know what new things were added to the Anubhuti camp this time.

Forest Officers Along With SDO Anupam Sharma

ANUBHUTI CAMP

Anubhuti camps are being organized by the Madhya Pradesh Ecotourism Development board and The Department of Forest MP, since 2015-2016 in different forest ranges each year. Around 3.5lakhs students across MP have participated in these camps so far.

Mr. Anupam Sharma told Indian Masterminds, “Usually the focus areas of camps used to be plants, birds and animals. This time we also focused on micro-organism, rocks and lichens in our curriculum in this camp.”

Around 240 students from the Eklavya Model Residential School of Maihar joined the camp along with the school principal and teachers.”

From Alha Akhada To Pannikhoh

“Under the guidance & support of Mr. Vipin kumar Patel (DFO Satna),this time we decided to introduce some new things in the camp. The selection of a 3.8km track to reach Pannikhoh, inviting experts apart from master trainer, QR coding of tree species, making the camp plastic free are some of the innovative and eco-friendly steps that we took to make to introduce more variety and make the camp more interesting for the students.”

QR CODING OF TREES

Trees Along The Trail which Were Encoded

The 3.8 km track from Alha-Akhada to Pannikhoh is a beautiful forest trail. Mr. Sharma elaborated about the trail:  “Khoh has waterfalls, rocks and mountains on three sides. The trail to reach it is filled with beautiful spots that have ponds, bamboo areas, cliffs, lichens, river crossing etc.”

He also explained about the QR coding trees: “Inspired by the QR Coding of Trees from earlier experiments like in Lodhi Gardens Delhi, Colleges of Vijayawada Pune, Kochi, and most importantly Excellence school of Satna we thought of introducing QR code technique into this camp. We started with an initial survey to find out which tree species are present along the trail. Then we selected 20 common species. We generated links that have model pics and interesting facts about these species and encoded the link in the form of QR codes. Anyone can scan with their mobile phone and get the information of a tree. 70 such QR codes were generated for trees like Arjuna, Mahua, Tendu, Dhavda, Palash, Amrood, Banyan etc.”

PRESENCE OF BIRD EXPERTS

Children are guided by Master Trainers

The January Anubhuti camp also ignited the children’s curiosity by introducing them to birds, vultures, micro-organism, sedimentary structures, etc. Master trainer Mr. Ashish Singh Baghel and wildlife experts like Mr Dilsher Khan, Mr Saumitra Biswas also interacted with students and shared their knowledge of wildlife and habitat with them. Mr. Sharma said, “Their objective was not to load young students with too much information but to ignite the interest in their mind about forest, wildlife and birds.”

The Principal of Eklavya Model School said that this kind of camp should be organized more frequently as they are highly educative and allow children to learn about or eco system on the field, witnessing and experiencing everything firsthand.

FOREST FOOD AND PLASTIC FREE CAMP

Some Glimpses Of Anubhuti

The IFS officer further informed that this time the camp was completely plastic free, and no one was allowed to carry even plastic water bottles. “Also, we promoted the use of plates and bowls made of Mahul leaves. This was done so that the overall ecological impact of Anubhuti could be minimized”, he added.

Mr. Sharma also revealed that small changes were introduced in the food that was given to students also. “Instead of serving just puri and sabji, we introduced food items made of forest produce, too, to give an idea to the students about some of the simple food that we source from the forest.”

Range Officer Satish Chandra added, “We served them delicious mahua laddu which is very rich in nutrition, chironji Kheer, amla candy and pickle, etc., that they ate with great interest.”

Such forest camps for school children not only provide an opportunity to get closer to nature, but also enhance the knowledge and interest of children towards conservation. They also get to know how the forest department functions, the kind of work that they do, besides getting to know about the importance of the adoption of some simple but effective methods for protection of the eco system.


Indian Masterminds Stories
Related Stories
NEWS
DFCCIL logo
Successful Trial Run on DFCCIL’s New Umbergaon-IR Saphale Section Marks Major Milestone
NTPC
NTPC Bongaigaon Supports Bodoland Artisans with New Dormitory Facility
BHEL_resized
BHEL’s Bangalore Electronics Division Receives GreenCo Gold Rating
SJVN
Rajendra Prasad Goyal’s Appointment to SJVN as Director (Finance) Extended - Know More About Him
Garden Reach Shipbuilders & Engineers Ltd
GRSE Unveils New Logo on Its 66th Raising Day
SBI_resized
SBI Appoints Shamsher Singh as Nominee Director of SBI Cards & Payment Services - Know About Him
PFC logo resized Power Finance Corporation Ltd
Usha Nair Re-Appointed, Tantri and Keila Join PFC Board as Non-Official Directors - Know About Them
civil aviation
IAS Samir Kumar Sinha Appointed Secy, Ministry of Civil Aviation - Know More About Him
Videos
IRS Padmapani Bora UPSC
IRS Padmapani Bora’s 16-Year-Long Journey in Governance
WhatsApp Image 2025-04-13 at 1.46
This Collector Finds Happiness In Squeaks Of Children With Hearing Impairment Who Start Hearing After Surgery
Meghashree D R IAS
How Wayanad’s Women Turned a Disaster into a Dream Project
UPSC Stories
IRS Padmapani Bora UPSC
IRS Padmapani Bora’s 16-Year-Long Journey in Governance
IRS officer Padmapani Bora's 16-year career transcends typical bureaucracy. Discover his surprising journey...
IAS T Rahul Kumar reddy
How This IAS Officer Overcame 4 Consecutive Mains Failures & 1 Interview Rejection
IAS Officer T. Rahul Kumar Reddy’s journey to success was marked by perseverance through six UPSC attempts....
Indrajeet Sirra IFS new
How This IFS Officer’s Journey Teaches Aspirants to Never Miss Any Opportunity in Their UPSC Dream
Indrajeet Sirra’s journey to becoming an IFS officer after five UPSC attempts teaches aspirants the importance...
Social Media
IAS Vaishali Chopra
Young IAS Vaishali Chopra Takes a Stand Against Caste Bias During Field Training in Uttar Pradesh
While the issue itself may seem small, the post is resonating widely online for its honest reflection...
Tiger
IAS Officer Sanjay Kumar Shares Mesmerising Tigress Patrol Video from Dudhwa Tiger Reserve
In the video, the tigress is seen cooling off in her preferred waterhole before embarking on her evening...
comp-61_1744872235
Tigress Hunts Sambhar in Front of Tourists at Bandhavgarh Tiger Reserve – Video Goes Viral
The incident took place in the Chakradhara area of Tala Zone, one of the most popular safari zones in...
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
Latest
DFCCIL logo
Successful Trial Run on DFCCIL’s New Umbergaon-IR Saphale Section Marks Major Milestone
NTPC
NTPC Bongaigaon Supports Bodoland Artisans with New Dormitory Facility
Videos
IRS Padmapani Bora UPSC
WhatsApp Image 2025-04-13 at 1.46
Meghashree D R IAS
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT