It was another regular night in the forests of Bori wildlife sanctuary, with only a bunch of humans in a forest truck to break the serenity of the wild surroundings. We were going on a night patrol, along with the forest guard of the beat. We knew that animals were surprised by the sudden approaches of vehicles and generally froze in the headlights. But as usual, we did not consciously expect anything, as the forests could play tricks with you, by not disclosing any of its inhabitants as long as it pleases, try as you may to find them, and experience had taught us NOT to expect anything. But luck was surely on our side that night. As we trundled along a dust track, straining our eyes to catch any movement, two animals of the size of huge dogs appeared in front of us. The swish of the longish bare tail and the roundish head as it turned towards us to look at us, made us shout out in suppressed whispers... L.E.O.P.A.R.D.S... And not 20 ft in front of us, one of the most elusive animals of the Indian forests gave a mindblowing exhibition of it's acceleration and speed, as both the leopards leaped across the road, and bolted away into the darkness, but not before running alongside us for a full second. That sequence of images, of the leaopard turning to look at us, and its lovely flight as it ran alongside us, is something that will stay in memory for a long long time, Since then I have seen quite a few leopards, with IIT itself having its share of them, thanks to the proximity of the Borivli National Park.

Wildlife!! The mother of all my passions. Nothing surpasses the joy, that I derive from watching wild animals and birds in their natural surroundings. I do NOT anthropomorphise animal behavior and am quite content NOT drawing any similarities between us unfortunate humans and them. I prefer animals in the wild, with minimal intrusion from man. (An anamoly, as animal lovers have to get near animals to appreciate them too! The least we can do is be as unobtrusive as possible, and not be in any way harmful to them)

I am proud to have been born in India, for I doubt if there is such an abundance of floral and faunal wealth else where (this is not the only reason for my pride!). Unfortunately, most Indians are unaware of this, and blissfully (for people like me, frustratingly) go making picnic spots out of National Parks and protected areas. The average awareness among us, about the non-human world is pathetically little. If only there was better education to tell everyone about how close knit the ecologocal web is and how easily we will die off as a race, if we do not try to protect the tigers and the butterflies of this lovely country (and of this world too). I hope our next generation will fortunate enough to see the tigers.