He may have retired from forest service, but the lure of nature is proving hard to resist for him. Praveen Rao Koli, who retired as Principal Chief Conservator of Forests in May this year having worked in Agra and other parts of Uttar Pradesh for 34 years, is spending his time capturing images of nature, far from the hustle and bustle of the concrete jungle.
In fact, the 60-year-old has his own YouTube channel ‘Nature Revisited’, which has become a hit across the country for creating awareness on the importance of conservation of forests, nature and wildlife.
Recently, an image of star trail taken by him 15 km from Mancherial created buzz in photography circles. To freeze the “unforgettable” phenomenon, he had to choose a locale free from light pollution. “When I was told that I could find one near the footsteps of Gandhari Fort on last Amavasya (no moon day), I made a serious attempt and was glad that I could come up with this picture. It will remain special for me,” says Mr Praveen. “It is never easy to indulge in star trail photography because of the very difficult gradations,” the former officer adds.
Speaking about conservation of nature, he opined that the rate of afforestation has gone up, but not the development of forests. “We still have a long way to go,” says Praveen, who is now shuttling between Hyderabad and his native place, 70 km from Mancherial.
He points out that while development means improvement of infrastructure, especially in the transport sector, the environment and wildlife cost cannot be ignored. “Of course, there are more conscious efforts now to ensure wildlife is not disturbed, if you look at the long corridor in Seoni (Madhya Pradesh) passing through the Pench Tiger Reserve. But, we need more of them,” he says.
Mr Praveen is, however, happy about the increasing awareness about wildlife and nature. “Social media platforms are playing a very constructive role in this regard,” he says, adding, “Thanks to digital cameras, which has apparently made photography easy, I wish more youth play their role in conservation of wildlife and nature.”
