India Bandhavgarh Project

Where in the world?

Bandhavgarh Tiger Reserve is situated between the hill ranges of Vindhyan and Satpura in the Indian state of Madhya Pradesh. A one time hunting reserve of the royal family of Rewa, it was declared a Tiger Reserve in 1968. Although Bandhavgarh is somewhat isolated in the rural heart of India, it is well worth the effort of getting there.

What are we trying to do?

Bandhavgarh, partly due to its inaccessibility and its reliable watercourses, is home to one of the last few viable concentrations of tigers on Earth. However it is not immune to the twin threats of poaching and encroachment by the many villages that surround the park. Exodus believes by providing assistance to both the park directly and the surrounding villages, the local population see real practical benefits that simply would not be there without the close presence of the tigers and the visitors who come to see these most magnificent of all big cats.

How did we set it up?

Having previously supported other tiger conservation projects and after a visit by one of our staff in 2005, we quickly mobilised to help the remaining, but threatened, tiger population at Bandhavgarh. In conjunction with our local partners in Delhi and Friends of Conservation in the UK, Exodus set about raising funds to help the school in the village of Tala, close to the main gate. To date we have raised around £25,000, which has been used to build two classrooms, a toilet block and a boundary wall to keep the children safe. Other works include a deep well and water tank as well as an administration block.

What do we want to achieve this year?

• Supply solar lights to the village
• Supply a set of pressure cookers that use less fuel so less wood is gathered from the park boundaries
• Supply bicycles for the some of the wardens and another patrol vehicle
• Ensure the school has enough desks and seats
• Improve the selection of books in the library
• Help to pay the wages for two English speaking teachers, which should better enable the children to obtain direct work in the local tourist industry

What can you do to help?

Paul Goldstein, who instigated the project, is our resident and award-winning photographer. He holds regular talks in the UK on the tigers of Bandhavgarh, and also leads our special "photography" trips to the region. A contribution of £150.00 per passenger goes directly to the project and there will be two special safaris running in January 2010. (Please contact our Group Sales department at groups@exodus.co.uk for more information).

Worth more alive
Paul will be presenting a evening presentation in London on 22 April 2010 and participating in the London Marathon to rasie funds for the conservation of Bengal tigers. Please see our Slideshow section for more details.

Would you like to know more?

July 2008

One of the main aims of the project is to use education to explain how the communities’ welfare can actually improve, through tourism dollars, with the end of poaching and an increased tiger population. Tala is a small village next to the one of the very few remaining thriving tiger reserves. Almost everybody in the village is connected to both the park and school, so the school was the obvious choice for a major renovation project. Bore holes have been dug, new classrooms and ablutions built and construction on the school hall, which houses all 500 pupils.

Through emphatic fundraising and some inspirational client donations Exodus has managed to raise a further £7,600 for the third phase of necessary renovation and construction work. Whilst this is a fantastic amount of money, our local partners in India still need £900 in order to reach the target of £8,500 in order to complete the work.

We have just been informed that the Indian Government has confirmed that construction can commence on the secondary school renovations, so the last push for that £900 is vital. We have a wonderful opportunity here to save an endangered species, not by exclusion, but by including the affected communities, creating a sustainable future for the community of Tala and the Bandhavgarh Bengal Tigers.

To make a donation to this project, please click on the donation link above.

March 2008

Many of you may have recently seen 'Tiger Kill' on BBC2 - an astonishing wildlife programme from the park presented by Simon King. Far more pertinently, at least fifty Exodus wildlife enthusiasts have visited the park this year and enjoyed tiger viewings, preferring their sightings from elephant back rather than armchair. They have also seen the progress at the school project that Exodus support. New classrooms, a borehole and perimeter are all completed, but although it sounds desperate, this is only the tip of a huge project.

With generous donations from Exodus clients and the money raising efforts of Exodus staff and other business suppliers, we have raised nearly £6000 and have been focusing on the rebuilding of the secondary school in the nearby village of Tala.

Currently the school needs a new hall and more classrooms. But the developments are not going to stop with the school. Next door in the park there is much to be achieved: new patrol vehicles, bicycles, and proper clothing and they all cost many lakhs of rupees.

Along with Kanha, Pench, Panna and a slowly recovering Ranthambore, Bandhavgarh is a success story for tigers. However these are small oases in a desert of despair. Internationally, numbers are dropping alarmingly and this puts pressure on these few jewels. The fault lies with the other parks, with the appalling incompetence and complicity of the authorities in Delhi and critically, the desires of some flaccid egos to insist on tiger parts to inflate their pathetic esteem. This is a major problem and money, properly spent, is the answer.

Think of this - 500 pupils at this school and their relations all now know how important the tiger is to their livelihoods. Breakfast cereals, beer, oil and golfers are all happy to use the name, how many actually help this brand they so happily endorse? Think of that next time you see Tiger Woods sink a 40 foot putt. Our passengers have helped and continue to do so, but the light is still a very watery one at the end of a very long tunnel for the tigers.

Please see the holiday page for Land of the Tiger

January 2008

This gives me immense pleasure to inform you all that the renovation and reconstruction work has been completed for the 1st phase of Bhandavgarh School project, this includes as follows:
Completed Construction:
• Toilet block with complete plumbing / flush system.
• Water Tank with complete plumbing work for water supply upto toilet block and 6 outlet taps for drinking water.
• Two new Class Rooms.
• Deep Well and its concrete construction inside / outside fitted with sewerage for un-interrupted water supply to the tank.
• Boundary wall covering the whole premises of the school with proper Iron Gate for safety of the children and to prevent school premises to be misused by local people.

Hopefully the next construction/renovation work at School should start by April' 2008. In the meantime, we have already given order for 60 study tables and benches for the School children which should be ready by the end of this month.

2007 Update

Friends of Conservation UK has issued a letter of intent for funding the reconstruction work of School's admin block. Also a letter of intent from FOC, was received by us for sponsoring to donate a Jeep for anti-poaching purposes to the Park authorities at Bhandavgarh.

2006 Update

Since January 2005, we have completed the reconstruction of several classrooms, built a new ablutions block, installed two new clean water towers, have begun work on the main school building and the boundary walls of the school grounds.

May 2006
Further increasing our commitment to Bandhavgarh, we have joined forces with the owner of one of the local lodges to help equip the 300 or so dedicated rangers, who patrol the borders of the park. This list of equipment includes motorbikes, winter jackets and blankets. This is a major addition to our projects, and we project that we will need to raise around £5000. We are going to split donations between equipment for the rangers and the school.
April 2006
Exodus’ India program manager Emma Garrick, raised nearly £400 by completing the Welsh 3000s – a gruelling 15 peaks over 3000 feet in just under 2 days. This money is already in India.