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Call for volunteers
Volunteers are invited for patrolling the forest in Bhimashankar Sanctuary. This is a joint
program between Indian Wildlife Club and the Forest Department( Chief Conservator of Forests( Wildlife), Pune).
Each volunteer is requested to contribute 1 week of their time for patrolling at Bhimashankar Sanctuary.
Volunteers will stay with the Forest Guards in forest quarters. Two volunteers will stay with one Forest
Guard. They will go for patrolling every day according to the regular schedule of the forest guards.
Volunteers should be physically fit and capable of walking at least 15 km in the forest every day.
Trekkers and nature lovers will enjoy the opportunity of staying and walking in the forest. This is a wonderful
opportunity for youngsters and nature lovers to experience the forests so closely by living in wilderness,
interact with field staff, cook their own food, observe the forest life and contribute meaningfully towards
wildlife conservation.
Volunteers should note that the facilities in the forest quarters are very basic. There are no closed toilets
and bathrooms in some of the camps.
Volunteers are requested to bear their own travel and food costs during their participation in the program.
Each volunteer will stay for one week from Sunday to Saturday. The departure for the sanctuary will be from Pune
by State Transport bus. More details will be provided after receiving the application.
On completion, each volunteer will be issued a participation certificate by the Forest Department.
Steps for volunteering
Step1:
Fill in the application form online here.
Not a member? Register free here.
Step 2: Pay Rs 400/ towards documentation fee.
If you do not wish to use our payment
gateway , you can credit our account directly. [
View account details]
This project is open to Indian Nationals only.
As soon as the application form along with Rs 400/- is received by us, yur application
will be forwarded to Chief Conservator of Forests(Wildlife), Pune for further action.
Once the application is found acceptable, you will be advised the next course of action.
Disclaimer
The final selection of volunteers is by Chief Conservator of Forests ( Wildlife), Pune.
Documentation charges of Rs 400 is non-refundable.
Why Volunteer?
Read our blog
and be a part of it by contributing your volunteer experiences.
More About the Sanctuary
Bhimashankar Sanctuary is located in Western Ghats of Maharashtra State at a distance of
110 km from Pune city. Bhimashankar has a beautiful landscape set in lush semi-evergreen forests
interspersed by grassy meadows. It is well known for the Giant Squirrel, which is the
state animal of Maharashtra. The giant squirrel is a beautiful large squirrel, deep chestnut
in colour, which stays on trees and rarely comes to the ground. Bhimashankar is also a
good place for bird watching. If you are lucky you may see a sambar or a barking
deer. At night one can see the palm civet, and, rarely, the mouse deer. Leopards are present but very rarely seen.
Bhimashankar Sanctuary is named after the famous Bhimashankar Shiva Temple. The terrain of
the sanctuary is a very hilly. There are steep climbs and descents at some places while on
some of the plateaus the terrain is almost flat. From the edge of the Western Ghats one
can see the Konkan plains below. The weather is cool and pleasant in summer but it
can get quite cold in the rainy season and in winter. It rains very heavily from June
to September. During late August and September the meadows are covered with wildflowers Senecio,
Balsam and many other beautiful flowers.
Giant Squirrel in Periyar Tiger Reserve, Kerala - Photo Susan Sharma
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