Wildlife Week is a weekly event celebrated annually in India. It is celebrated from the 2nd of October to the 8th of October. The main reason behind celebrating this day is to accelerate awareness of conservation of wildlife among the people by the central and state governments, environmentalists, activists, teachers, etc.
India has a large repository of organisms of various species, so the conservation and nurturing of these natural resources are extremely important for us. This weekly event is celebrated every year with a different theme to work from different aspects of the same issue.
Wildlife Week 2020
Although Wildlife Week is observed every year from 2 October to 8 October, there are some places in India that start celebrating it from 1 October onward. In the year 2020, the program will start as well as end on Friday as the 66th observation of Wildlife Week. The theme for the 2020 observation will be declared later as there is no information available about it yet.
History
Wildlife Week, also known as National Wildlife Week, is a national event in India that has a place in almost all states and union territories. The credit for celebrating National Wildlife Week goes to the National Board of Wildlife, which makes almost all preparations related to this program and also controls its operation and management.
The first proposal to celebrate National Wildlife Week was put in the year 1952. After considering this proposal, the first observation of Wildlife Week took place in 1954. Since then, this event is observed every year from 2 to 8 October in full swing for the protection and development of wildlife in India.
The National Board of Wildlife, the organization implementing National Wildlife Week, was established by the Indian government primarily for the conservation and nutrition of wildlife.
Activities/Celebration
Various activities are organized by the central and state governments, environmentalists, activists, teachers, etc. to accelerate awareness of conservation of wildlife among the people. India has a large repository of various species, hence also many conferences, awareness programs, and public meetings are held between nature lovers in India. In schools and educational institutions, utilities like writing, painting, speech, film screenings, etc. related to wildlife are organized for children.
This week, the government launches varieties of various sanctuaries, and the development of national parks is started in suitable areas across the country. Children work on a small level to protect the biodiversity around their residences. They build small houses for animals and birds and to provide them with a safe shelter and food together.
It is also done to nurture their younger ones and save them from dangerous animals. The students are told about the benefits of natural biodiversity through various lectures, seminars, and conferences throughout the week. Even social media platforms, TVs, and radio share information related to conserving these natural resources.
The Forest Department of India plays a very crucial role in the celebration of National Wildlife Week. It conducts various programmes to make people aware of the current situation of the biosphere in India. The Government releases funds for the zoological parks and sanctuaries to make them more developed and the life of animals and birds there happier.
Objectives and Significance
There are many major objectives of celebrating Wildlife Week in India. Through this variety of programs, on this day, every community and family are connected to nature. Creating a sense of protection inside humans can be considered as the most important goal of celebrating this day. It is our duty to be aware of the protection of wildlife and the environment.
The solemnity of celebrating Wildlife Week is to educate and make aware school children, young people and the general public about wildlife, as well as it also helps in the work of the government, designing policies and resolving wildlife conservation issues in today’s changing environment. India is a symbol of culture and civilization.
Every day is given importance here, which we celebrate in one way or the other. Due to this, from 2 October to 8 October, we celebrate as Wildlife Week in the country. Wildlife is an integral part of the environment. The wealth of the country is formed from them. It includes wild animals, birds, plants, etc.
Themes of Wildlife Week
As we have already discussed that the National Wildlife Week is observed annually with a different theme so that we can check the problems and look for their solutions from a different perspective and make things easier. We have mentioned below the theme for some of the previous year celebrations:
- The theme for 2019 – Life below Water: For People and Planet
- The theme for 2018 – Big Cats: Predators under Threat
- The theme for 2017 – Listen to the Youth Voices
- The theme for 2016 – The Future of Wildlife is in Our Hands
- The theme for 2015 – Living with Wildlife
- The theme for 2014 – Wildlife and Water
- The theme for 2013 – Branching out for Wildlife
66 Years of National Wildlife Week
India has always been home to a wide variety of live animals and their various species. It has been our wealth that has helped us in maintaining our environment from time to time. But the human has become insensitive and greedy about them. It has hunted them for his benefit. As a result, we have lost many organisms and their major species.
However, there came a time when human beings realized that their preservation and nurturing is extremely important. Perhaps that’s why an event like National Wildlife Week was created that could work in this area.
Because of the deliberate behavior of human beings, we have almost all the important species of birds and animals. Some of them are the Red-headed Vulture, Forest Owlet, Spoon Billed Sandpiper, Eagle, Sparrow, Himalayan Quail, Cheetah, Sivatherium, etc. Many like these have extinct while many of them are on the verge of extinction. Their protection is as important as the oxygen is for us.
After launching the National Wildlife Week in 1954, there has been a significant improvement in the number of animals that were about to extinct. The Government of India has provided them with protection and shelter to grow and sustainably. In order to make the plan successful, many wildlife sanctuaries and reserves were established like Bandipur National Park, Kaziranga National Park, Bhitarkanika National Park, Gir Forest National Park, and many others like this. All these are fully equipped with the facilities to grow for animals and birds.
As a result of it, there has been a significant improvement in the situation. The animals like White Tiger, Cheetah, Bengal Florican, Yellow-Breasted Bunting, Toad, Indian Kangaroo, and such other animals have survived successfully and increased their number. It needs some more effort to restore the initial values of nature.
What should we do during this Week?
Since we are a part of the environment and a living being on earth like birds and animals and such plight of the environment is caused by us, we can contribute the most in making the nature glow again.
The first thing that we can do is that we can plant as many trees as we can. Instead of throwing away the leftover food, we can keep it in a clean place so that hungry animals and birds can feed their hunger. We can also keep water in a clean utensil which can help in easing their thirst.
We also need to control our population as an increasing number of humans is the biggest reason for the decreasing number of animals and birds. We can also control pollution. It is also a major reason for the extinction of birds and animals. Instead, we should work on increasing the number of trees in our localities.
There are various programs organized during the Wildlife Week around us. We should participate in them with our family members and friends to raise awareness among all. We should also visit Zoos, National Park, and Sanctuaries so that they also can come in contact with nature to learn to love it more.
Cleaning your surroundings and providing a place of habitat for street animals can also be a good way and a basic thing to observe the event on a small level.
Conclusion
As much we love ourselves and our family, we should do the same with our nature, environment, birds, and animals as well. Our Environment, including the wildlife, is the base of our survival on earth. It is not very hard to protect our wildlife if we start to act accordingly. Animals and birds also have the right to live like us, so we have to support them in this. Our life depends entirely on their survival.