From barren land to dense forest: The story of Aranya Forest

From a barren land with no vegetative cover in 1994 to a dense green forest now, which is home to many endangered species of birds and animals, the Aranya Forest and Sanctuary in Auroville is a classic example of how one person can make a difference.

Meet D Saravanan, the man whose efforts over a quarter-century led to the transformation of nearly 100 acres of severely eroded barren wasteland into a thick forest in Poothurai village in Tamil Nadu's Villupuram district, located just 20 km from the famous tourist destination of Puducherry.

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It all began with the planting of indigenous plants collected and creating water bodies by ensuring that the barren land got an adequate green cover. Once the ecosystem was in place, birds and animals came flocking.

“I had always loved going into forests since my childhood and I learned trekking at the age of 14. I received an offer to join the Auroville Greenwork Research Centre (AGRC) and that is how this fascinating journey began. It was very difficult, of course, to create a forest. I had remained with an empty stomach for hours together as there was nothing available in the forests,” Saravanan told DH.

Over 36,000 species of indigenous plants carefully chosen for regeneration from some of the last remaining pockets of coastal vegetation have been planted in the 100-acre forest over the past 26 years.

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Slowly, the efforts of Saravanan, who made Auroville his home in 1994, began to pay dividends. The forest and sanctuary is now the cynosure of all eyes with scientists, researchers and students flocking the village to study the successful model.

Today, the man-made forest has over 700 species of plants, 248 varieties of birds and 54 butterfly species. It is home to slender loris, a genus of loris native to India and Sri Lanka, hedgehog, bubo bubo (eagle owls), varanus bengalensis (monitor lizards), deer, jungle cat, fox, civet cat, and over 20 species of snakes, including at least four venomous varieties.

Saravanan is actively involved in creating awareness among the younger generation, with workshops for students on biodiversity conservation and organising trips inside forests.

“The numbers have increased over the years. Students who come here for research purposes help us in studying the growth of the forest and increase in a number of species present inside Aranya Forest,” Saravanan said.

“The first question I ask the children is 'Whom does the Earth belong to?' and I tell that the Earth belongs to the future. I tell children that it is imperative on them to save ecology to hand it over to the future generation. Only if ecology is preserved, the world will survive. This thought needs to be inculcated in the minds of children at a very young age,” Saravanan added.