yamuna yatra
April 2011

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"Night Sky Watch"
18th March 2011

On the 18th of March 2011, the "Night Sky Watch" was organized in the school from 6 pm to 8 pm. This day was chosen as the Moon was closest to the Earth on the 19th,a phenomenon occurring in 18 years.On this day,the moon appeared brighter and bigger as it reached its perigee - the closest distance in the moon's orbit around the earth. Scientists are researching whether there is a correlation between lunar perigees and earthquakes. Mr. Balachandran and Mr. Chikara had come in from the Nehru Planetarium to conduct this activity.The craters in the Moon were clearly visible. We were also shown the brightest star, " Sirius", and the constellations of Taurus and Orion with the Orion nebula.

Class 7 Students visit the Yamuna river

March 11th 2011

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Shubham Aggarwal from class 9 went for the trip to Ranthambhore, which was organised by Kids for Tiger
February 2011

Day-1 After long and tiring journey we reached our lodge in the morning and rested for sometime. The Day started with an ice breaking session where we introduced ourselves with the SAWAI MADHAVPUR KIDS. We were handed our kids which had a whole lot of goodies like badge, tea shirts, sanctuary book, questionnaire and itinerary. Followed this was a wonderful nature walk in the RANTHAMBORE NATIONAL PARK. We saw some very special birds namely:

1. Red Vented Bulbul
2. Red Whiskered Bulbul
3. Fan Tailed
4. Lapwing

The highlight was a moth’s empty cocoon (Picture attached) underneath a stone which we even got to hold in our hands. It was brown in colour and some parts were rough and some parts were smooth. Indirect evidence of a porcupine gnawing on a tree was fun to see.

After lunch the safari we were waiting for finally happened. One canter and one Gypsy reached the park. We were divided into five groups which included the SAWAI MADHAVPUR KIDS.

First we saw:

1. Common Jungle Babler
2. Brown Fish Owl
3. Long Build Vulture soaring above

*b & c are both rare to see
           

1. We of course saw lot of Sambar, Cheetal & Neel Gai
2. What really got me exited were the marsh crocodiles (Pic. Attached)

We saw plenty of these swimming in the reservoir

Towards the end Mrs. Banerjee spotted a Leopard at a distance. It was so big that it seemed a huge Male Tiger. Thanks to my powerful binoculars we realized it was a Leopard. I could not believe my eyes or my luck because I had never seen a Leopard in the wild. We could see its slightest details like the spots and the whiskers. Unfortunately more Canters came and disturbed the scenario. Driving a 100 Kms. Screaming and shouting that they spotted the Tiger named Machli. This made the Leopard go away.

In the night we had a fun session of field identification of the animals we had seen. We managed to crack the code of how Sambars and Cheetals stay together peacefully in the jungle.

Day-2 Morning started with nature walk and we saw the small poisonous scorpions then we saw Assasin’s Bugs and nymph of a Beetle. Young of a Lace Wing covered with garbage was interesting. We learnt this is how it survives in the wild. We even saw a dead Langoor. Interaction with the foreign guard was an eye-opener when he shared his sad storey of how the villagers hate him because he stops them from cutting trees and other things. The sad thing about poachers we learnt was that they are just sent to jail for a few months and then set free. Other people who violate jungle laws go unreported. The forest guards are just equipped with a torch, lathi and a walky-talky which is not enough for their protection. I wish the Government and KFT can come together and make some changes.

After this we went for a Safari. We saw :

1. the spotted owlet,
2. black shouldered kite,
3. Crested Serpent Eagle,
4. Black Comorant,
5. Woody Neck Stork,
6. Pond Heron,
7. Of course we even saw Sambar, Cheetal, Marsh Crocodile and Neel Gai

We were lucky this time as we again saw the Leopard bouncing off the Road and disappearing into the thicket right in front of our Jeep.

Day-3 It was fun doing a skit with everyone. Followed this we had a debate on “Whether Eco Tourism is Good for Wild Life or Not?” I was against the motion and I won the debate. We were heading back today we had a hearty dinner and left for the station.

Whether I get selected as the Brand Ambassador representing the National Level for Kids For Tiger. These three days had been the best days of my life. It was a wonderful learning experience and the memories of it will be edged in my heart for ever. I am very passionate about Wild Life and would like to take an aggressive stand towards poaching and would like to help KFT in whichever way I can.

SHUBHAM AGARWAL

Ridge Walk
February 12th 2011

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The Ridge Walk

On a fine Saturday morning I woke up at 5:00am and got ready for school. Today was theRidge Walk after all. when I reached school, it was still quite dark but everybody was already there in the bus. I got off my car and ran hurriedly to the bus. After about 10-15 minutes, we reached our starting point of the ridge walk, the Nelson Mandela road. From there we walked to the Jawaharlal Nehru University campus (J.N.U). And then we moved on to Partha Sarthi point, the highest natural point in Delhi. It was a beautiful view from up there. You could see beautiful peahens, peacocks, parakeets and also the ancient Qutub Minar. From there we crossed the ridge towards Sanjay-Van and stopped there for a while, to have some breakfast. The teachers cooked a unique kind of delicious maggi noodles for us. We all had our breakfasts and set off again to Mehrauli and there we visited a temple where we saw these cute geese! And instead of seeing The Qutub Minar from far from the Partha-Sarthi point we saw it from up close! As all good things come to an end we had to soon end our walk in a place called ‘Phoolon ki Mandi’. There there were many kinds of different colored beautiful flowers, especially my favorite Marigolds! From there we got on the bus and came back to school. Though tiring, it was a fun filled experience!

Agrima Rai 7A

Tiger Talk

Students of classes 5, 8, 9 and 12 interacted with Mr Bittu Sahgal, the editor of Sanctuary Asia and the founder of Kids for Tigers on the 25th of January, 2011 in different sessions. He emphasized upon the urgent need to save the tigers in the wild as they are the indicators of how “green” our planet is.

If we make sure tigers live, we have to make sure that deer, antelope and all other animals that the tiger eats live. To make sure that these herbivores live, we must make sure that all the trees, grasses and other plants that these prey animals need for food are protected. In this way, the whole forest gets saved! Saving the tiger means saving the entire forest kingdom with all the other animals in it.
Also forests catch and help store rainwater and protect the soil. In this way we protect our rivers and recharge groundwater sources. Areas with less trees lead to floods, killing people and destroying homes. It takes away the precious soil, leaving behind a wasteland. The soil jams up our lakes and dams, reducing their ability to store water. By destroying the tiger's home, we not only harm tigers, but also ourselves. The entire talk revolved around a simple equation :
Tigers = Forests = Rivers = Us
He asked us the simple question - “Nadi jeevan ki maa hai aur agar hum Ganga ko poojte hain to jo paani ganga nadi se pehle behta hai, use doshit kyon karte hain?
Much different from normal talks and lectures, this was an interactive discussion which actually made an impact and left food for thought in all our minds. It was not just about environment conservation but also about we could do to save our very own tigers. According to Mr Sehgal, the most powerful weapon we have is our VOICE and that is what can make an impact. He felt that the “Bachcha Party” knew more about conserving resources and needed to remind the “Buddha Party” that the Earth needs to be saved from disaster.

Akarshita Dhawan & Tanya Nijhawan
Class 12

Ongoing Projects in VVSenvironment