Enjoying nature the way it should be – The WC Nature Club

The Wilson College can proudly proclaim its love for nature by the various activities that it conducts to preserve her wellbeing through its very own nature club under the vigilant eyes of Professor Sudhakar Solomonraj.

The Nature Club had its inception in 1979 under the leadership of the students Farhan Thakur and Subahada Kalyani with the guidance of Dr Vakharia of the Botany department. After his retirement, the club has been effectively managed by professor Sudhakar for the last 30 years along with its various student coordinators.

Throughout the Academic year, the club indulges in activities like treks, clean up drives, tree plantations, screenings of documentaries related to the environment etc. to build awareness and sensitivity towards nature and to generate a consciousness for its conservation. Another highlight of this club is the camps that it organizes to the various parts of the country. These camps have travelled far and wide around India –  once even to Bhutan four or five years ago.

Another highlight of this club is the camps that it organizes to the various parts of the country. These camps have traveled far and wide around India –  once even to Bhutan four or five years ago. During the camps,  members get exposed to various songs that the Crazy Old Man, as professor Sudhakar is fondly called, plays to make us aware about the varied facets and the problems faced by the nature; a favorite being Bob Dylan’s ‘Blowing in the Wind’.

February

This year began with a bang when under the ebullient leadership of miss Tejasvi Lohia, who is the current student coordinator, we went to Rajmachi near Lonavala in February for a trek cum clean up drive. We climbed the Shrivardhan Fort that was once a part of the Maratha empire. Watching it in the moonlight gave a whole new dimension to the trek and the view of the rising sun from the topmost point was very picturesque. While returning we were successful in filling at least 10 to 12 garbage bags. Another interesting aspect of this trek was that some of us were able to stay in tents and the others in wooden cottages.

May

Our next event was the May camp to Arunachal Pradesh for twenty days where we received an opportunity to go to Pakke Forest in the East Kameng District. We stayed here for 2 nights and left for Eagle’s Nest in the West Kameng District. Here, we stayed in tents and went on extensive walks through its bamboo forests and tropical forests. It was here where we spotted the north east’s famous rufous necked hornbill in all its majesty. It was one of the best experiences the nature club has been to.
To be able to reach to the former location we had to cross the Kameng River which is the largest tributary of the Brahmaputra. We went ahead into the Tawang district where we explored the place for cultural sites. We visited the Tawang monastery, the largest monastery in India. The other highlights were the visits to the Tawang nunnery, the birth place of the 6^th Dalai Lama and the Jaswantgarh spot. The most interesting aspect though , was the travel to the MacMohan Line that demarcates the India-China Border. We came back happy and content about visiting Arunachal Pradesh, a forest where many species still haven’t been discovered. The wonderful biodiversity of the entire place took us by storm. We made a video on the journey back from Guwahati to Mumbai! Check this out!!

June

Next, during the occasion of the World Environment Day on June 5^th, 40 members of WCNC participated in a clean-up drive organized by the authorities of the Sanjay Gandhi National Park within its compound and we were successful in collecting 899 kilos of garbage along with the other participating institutions.

On the 20^th and the 21^st of June we again visited Rajmachi for a trek and a tree plantation drive. Firstly, the trek from downhill where the bus was parked till the village was exhilarating because of monsoon, the segregation of the wet mud and certain difficult slippery patches but what added to the fun was to be able to hear the sounds of the Typewriter Frog and the Malabar Whistling Thrush. We began the next day with tree plantation and it was successfully completed as we were able to plant around 110 saplings and certain seeds of Jamun, Litchi and Lime. It was absolutely interesting to learn about the various implements required for agriculture and to use it ourselves. We the members of WCNC sincerely hope that there are more such opportunities for the humankind to return something back to nature after increasingly exploiting her for our own benefit.

Now we are planning to organize a two-day programme in college during the Van Mahotsav festival to celebrate our love for nature in the month of July; it would consist of a few student competitions along with talks by the people who are actively involved in the field of conservation. Treks and camps will be held by the Nature club throughout the year and the first camp of the academic year will most probably be to Yeoor hills. Updates will be continuously posted on www.wcnc.in.

To conclude, WCNC is certainly a place to hang around if you cherish a desire to do something for our mother nature or want to simply cultivate a love for treks that create sensitivity towards your surroundings.
The club also is located in such a prime place within the campus that it would produce a certain amount of calmness in comparison to the hustle and bustle of the urban world. Here we can simply sit or even read from the collection of books relating to nature in our library.
So drop in, say hello, register yourself for an amount of 30 rupees and enjoy a college life full of fun treks and a chance to make amazing friends!

This post was completed with the help of Tejasvi Lohia and the friends and supporters of The WCNC.