They climbed through deep snow & reached high in
the mountains,
Where airs are thin & grounds are freezing.
One was making the rounds for caterpillar fungus &
the other was counting the big snow cat.
But the two heroes of the woods couldn’t make their
way back home, for they were consumed by the mountains.
No more to be seen or heard, the most beautiful
souls gave away their lives to guard riches of the nature.
They drove through the heavy rain & reached low
in the foothills,
Where rivers are swelling & grounds are
scorching.
One squad of ten men was returning to their base &
other of six was making the regular rounds.
But ten heroes of the woods couldn’t make their way
back home, for the Guerrillas took them by surprise with a booby trap &
bullets.
No more to be seen or heard, the bravest hearts fought
until their last breath to guard riches of the nature.
They hiked through the thick cloud & reached in
the center of dense woods
Where cliffs stand thousand feet tall & the sky
is darkening.
One was looking for the safest route & others
were reading the signal
But one hero of the woods couldn’t make his way back
home, for he went tumbling down the cliff.
No more to be seen or heard, the dedicated leader of
the squad was buried when guarding the wild riches.
No matter in which cardinal directions they dwell,
the stories of fallen & standing heroes of woods are of sad and subdued
genre.
Being outnumbered sometimes they were pelted with
stones & threatened with knives by poachers & loggers.
Being not equipped well sometime their lives are taken
away by the wild animals they protect.
However, they have no time to look back into the
lowliness of past.
For the glory of future they have to guard the
garden of wilds
Footnote:
In the year 2019, Department of Forest & Park Services detected 1911 numbers of offences of which illegal logging was the highest with 795 cases. In so doing, Rangers, the front-line
conservation heroes faces life threatening challenges from harsh environments,
wild animals and the poachers, smugglers & illegal loggers. In the past two
decades, about 21 Rangers died and 11 were injured in line of duty.
According to Ranger Federation of Asia, over the past nine years, 871 Rangers were killed around the globe when protecting the nature. So, I being a member of Ranger family pay a tribute to all the fallen and standing heroes of wildlife on ‘World Rangers Day’ which is marked annually on 31st of July.
According to Ranger Federation of Asia, over the past nine years, 871 Rangers were killed around the globe when protecting the nature. So, I being a member of Ranger family pay a tribute to all the fallen and standing heroes of wildlife on ‘World Rangers Day’ which is marked annually on 31st of July.
 |
| Fig: Patrolling across the country |
 |
| Fig: Wildlife rescue & medication |
 |
| Fig: Some of the forestry related offences |
