“Did you know there is a forest in Puducherry?” asked J. Elanthiraiyan, agriculture officer of the Forest Department. The students looked at each other a bit confused.
While the 20 students of Thilarshpet Government Boys School knew that they were going on a field trip, they had no inkling of the magic the forest of the Swadeshi Cotton Mills campus held for them.
The Swadeshi Cotton Mills campus forest is around 11.2 hectares, with more than 180 species of flora and thick with vegetation. With extensive undergrowth, climbers, lianas, creepers and trees, it is Puducherry’s unique biodiversity spot.
As part of the annual ‘Vanamahotsava’ that is observed across India, the Forest Department organised a 1-km trek within the forest for government school students. For the students, it was a truly out-of-the-textbook experience. Sensitising the children to environmental degradation, deforestation and natural disasters, Mr. Elanthiraiyan told them how they could contribute to conserving forests. “All of you, even children, can do something to help. Start with the local environment around you, what we do today affects the future,” he said and also spoke on how the forest cover of Puducherry had been decreasing.
The first stop for the students was the Talipot palm tree (Corypha umbraculifera) which flowers and bears fruits just once before dying. “The leaf of the tree was used as an umbrella for shade long back,” said Mr. Elanthiraiyan to the students. On their trek, the students saw a massive termite mound. Mr. Elanthiraiyan explained its role in nature by providing shelter to snakes and increasing soil fertility. “Has this actually been made naturally,” asked one of the boys in wonder.
“This is superb,” said Kumaran and Govindasamy of Class VII in unison. “We have learnt how important trees are and how we must protect them.”
Another stop is at a rare tree, the gigantic Baobab (Adansonia digitata), also commonly known as the dead rat tree. “Look at the fruit, see how they look like dead rats,” said Mr. Elanthiraiyan. The tree provides shelter and was even used earlier as a place for water storage, he said.
Some of the children wanted to take the fallen seeds home to try their luck in planting it. The students were also shown the Thiruvodu tree, also referred to as the begging bowl of the ‘sanyasis.’ The split shell of the fruit was used as a bowl for food. The shell is believed to keep away infections, said Mr. Elanthiraiyan.
However, it was the bat zone that caught the fancy of the students. With around a hundred of bats hanging upside down, they were fascinated.
“This is the first time I am seeing an actual bat. I had only seen it on Discovery channel,” said Sasikumar. “The children have a poem on bats. Now they are thrilled to be actually seeing the bats,” said Sreepriya, their teacher. “Look at how they are swinging while hanging upside down,” said Surender.
“This forest has a mix of big trees, creepers and undergrowth. This is how everything co-exists in the forest,” said Mr. Elanthiraiyan to the students, who enjoyed their communion with Nature.
