churumuri.com is delighted to join in the celebrations at noted wildlife biologist M.D. Madhusudan bagging the prestigious Whitley Award also known as the “Green Oscar”, in recognition of his efforts to reduce the human-wildlife conflict in the Western Ghats of Karnataka.
Dr Madhusudan, son of M.D. Doraiswamy, a retired reader at the Regional College of Education (RCE), and C.S. Anandalakshmi, a retired teacher at the CFTRI school, is director of the Nature Conservation Foundation, which he founded in 1996.
Madhu, as everybody calls him, received the 30,000 pound award from Princess Anne (in picture, above) at the Royal Geographical Society in London on Wednesday.
Madhu told the gathering that his work—showing farmers how to reduce crop raids, improve their incomes and avoid park encroachment—was partly inspired by an elderly couple, whose crop was destroyed by marauding elephants despite keeping strict vigil.
“One morning, I found the couple disconsolate. The night before, the exhausted man had nodded off briefly yet in those few moments, their entire crop had been destroyed, leaving them with nothing. For someone raised in the city, like me, it showed the true harshness of marginal life and the high cost our very poorest people pay for wildlife conservation.”
An alumnus of CFTRI school, Madhu did his BSc at Yuvaraja’s College, and then obtained a masters from the Wildlife Institute of India, Dehra Dun. Madhu hit global headlines in 2004 when he and his team photographed the Arunachal Macaque, a species of monkeys unknown to science.
Photographs: courtesy The Whitley Fund for Nature; NCF
Also read: BBC on the Arunachal macaque
Congratulations Madhu !
Congrats Madhu..
One Mysorean Snake Shyam clocks 20k – doing great service to environment..and another, Madhu gets Green Oscar
I am proud to be a mysorean..
Green Oscar? Oh! The awardees are super stars!
Congratulations Madhu!
Interesting…
Swalpa ee City Haiklu India discover madtha madtha awards gittiskoltha iddhare!
Another Sainath in the making?
Karnataka Jai Ho!
After winning the ‘Award’ why the ‘daasaiah’ get up? Can’t he appear like a normal Mysorean? Why appear in a period costume hysterical drama like Mughal Times or such?
He has done well. But appearing the way he does more like the
Moghul emperors’ images we see at Agra Fort seems like representing both India and conservation. He is not the only one. Me and my colleagues who as academics went to States for studies in 1960s, and I am the only one clean shaven today and perhaps fossilised and wear ” normal clothes”. All my buddies sport beards (you do not need beards to look like professors or practitioners) which grow despite bald heads!
Karnatak must be proud of Madhusudan’s achievement. Hearty congratulations
Congragulaions to Madhu sir.. As i hail from Uttara Kannada, a forest district know the human intervention and its consequences on forest… Good work by Madhu sir and hope it will create awareness in our people.
Doddi Buddi, Mysore get uppu andre yEnu?
kacche panche, kari coatu, thale mele pETa na?
athava namma snake shyamana bling-bling goodness aa? ;-)
Accept it, madve manegaLinda hiDdu yella kaDe nu ide ceremonial dressu.
Whstever may be his attire his attitude is important. Caring for and concern for the nature is his aim. Whether he is a city-lad or a village boy it is not important. Knowing his background and activities well let us feel proud. Hearty Congratulations Mysore Boy Madhusudan………
Congrats Madhu,
Proud Mysorean & C.F.T.R.Iean
Not sure if he’s an alumnus of CFTRI… but he’s certainly an alumnus of DMS. I know, because I’m from DMS!
Congrats Madhu!!!
My hearty Congratulations to Madhu! Really appreciate his efforts.
Congratulations on a great achievement.
Oscars are for acting. Why is this award known as the Green Oscar? Why not the Green Nobel?
Hopefully our man wasn’t acting ;)
N-A-W-N & Truth,
Sure his attitude is important. How about shirt and trousers made of Khadi in keeping with his image? Call me a quibbler but appearing as a ‘jumped up’ North Indian is sending a wrong message to other youngsters…QED.
Unless all youngsters in Mysore (Karnataka) want to appear as ‘wannabe’ Northies…)
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Hi Sriram,
I am from DMS too!
1972-1978
hi Madhu,
we were excited by news you recieved prestigious award! you may remember us …from Mala village,karkala taluk,;my mother conveys ABHINANDANE TO YOU..My father Narayana dongre expired in feb 2008,would have showered his glad acknowledgements to you!
congrats!