Twenty Two Shades of Tadoba!

 

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“There are infinite shades of grey. Writing often appears so black and white” … Rebecca Solnit.

Well, Rebecca, who is an American writer & activist these words may make you think the sharing seems to be about some thinker’s deep philosophy but no, it’s about Tadoba (Not again, many must be saying) & the reason I used this particular quote is entry gates of Tadoba! If you are confused then, the quote is about shades of colour grey & shade is concentration of the colour, so there can be dark grey & light grey & many options in between, same way Tadoba has nearly 22 gates if not infinite & each gate is like some shade of tadoba, showing you the forest differently, is my analogy! It's February & I am fortunate to visit tadoba in this particular month which has become a ritual now (that way visiting tadoba itself has become one) but this period of year is more special! February, by me, is the best month to visit Tadoba as tiger sightings may be a bit less (though I have returned from Tadoba without sighting even in May also) but the forest is like a bridge connecting two different seasons, winter & summer. The grass is all shades of green, yellow & black & if mornings are typically misty the noon’s are hot & evening brings cool breeze! The tigers perfectly get camouflaged in this grass & they love it as this season suits their hunting best. Even with binocs, a tiger hiding in the grass is difficult to sight, no wonder Gaur, Deer & Wild Boars are caught off-guard & there are kills, meant sightings! The grass just has started thinning & drying yet its average height is three to four feet, which easily hides even a big male tiger, unless it comes out of it! 

I am not a photographer by professional terms but one need not have to be as every frame is like a dream unfolding in front of you, sometimes it's best to keep camera aside & watch the wilderness with naked eyes, images get imprinted forever on the hard disk of the brain. I just thank God for making me able to witness these shades of life where somebody's death is somebody's life! Wild life has everything in it, duty, care, compassion, aggression, fitness, alertness but unlike humans it doesn’t have any place for things like cruelty, cheating, sorrow, or bad luck; all it has is survival & celebrate every day with a prize as your life!

 

And speaking about shades, this tadoba trip was unique (read as more unique) because I got to circle the entire tadoba forest, just the way people circle earth (Prithvi pradakshina)! To make you understand tadoba geography, it has two main entry roads, one is from Chandrapur side you can call eastern side & another is from Chimur, western side. Moharli village is on Chandrapur side known as mohrali gate & Kolara village is on Chimur side, known as Kolara gate. These two are gates of core & then there is on northern side Kolsa i.e. Zari & pangdi gates & on southern side Khutwanda gate. So, in total there are four sides to enter the core forest of tadoba with five gates. And eventually outside of this core part of the forest there is a vast expanse of buffer where there are nearly 17 gates, so in total 23 gates are there for the wildlife lovers to explore colours of tadoba! Each of these gates takes you to a different part of the forest & you feel like you are watching a kaleidoscope as each forest is different, with its flora & fauna as well the terrain & it keeps changing as per the season! This time I started from Kolara gate, went to Moharili gate which is 180 degrees opposite & then again travelled to kolara, in the process visiting all the gates & circling entire tadoba, a wonderful experience of seeing all shades of tadoba ion one day! Though I didn’t go inside, buffers, core, gate & are created by humans while nature doesn’t know or define any such thing & you can witness the forest shades changing along the road encircling the region! At the same time the people, the plus & minus for wildlife, all these things you can experience in such a journey, which I did!

 

The road which I travelled has been in great shape & this is the reason it’s a death trap for wild animals. Its Chandrapur-Mul road (a patch of some 60 km) claims maximum road kills as because of good quality of the road speed of vehicles is high & it cuts the forest directly, with no place to cross for wild animals making them exposed to the fast-moving traffic! Indeed, there are signages easily readable all along the road to keep slow & care for wild animals but we all know how much we care for such signages! At the same time this is dangerous even for slow going two-wheeler riders also as an animal like wild boar or Indian gaur if it collides with two-wheeler then chance of injury to the two-wheeler rider is more! The need is, at least clear the shrubs & bushes along the road for 20 ft on both sides so at least the wild animals as well vehicle drivers can see what’s coming on the road & will have some time to apply breaks, provided the drivers are driving at moderate speed! The real solution is net fencing all along the road where it traverses through fields & forest patches & make under passes for wild animals at regular intervals! My own car just got saved as we were travelling at low speed as suddenly a wild boar came running in-front of our car, making our driver skip his heart beat! This part is on the Kolsa side of tadoba & a large number of wild animals often are needed to cross this road because of their basic needs like water, food & shelter & high time we must do something to protect their lives. Even a railway track also passes through this region which already has claimed seven to eight tiger’s lives & equal numbers of sloth bears & leopards, again nothing is being done by railway dept to avoid these deaths! On one side Hon Courts’ (High Court & Supreme Court) are keen on protecting wildlife & asking forest dept to take actions on even the slightest disturbance by tourists but Hon Court, why can’t you take these serious issues where not just disturbance but Tiger’s lives are at threat, is my sincere question to you!

 

Coming back to the gates, my intention was to visit a new gate near Chimur i.e. Shedegaon which is not part of Tadoba project tiger in technical terms but is of great importance as its one side is adjoining to Navegaon buffer of tadoba & another goes to Umred Karhandala & is a corridor for migration of Tigers in MP. This forest comes under territorial forest but as I said such terminologies are for humans while the wild animals know only one thing, safe way of their survival!  Now with a gate there will be tourism in these parts of forest as well the locals will be more careful to keep an eye on the wildlife as that’s how they will earn their livelihood at the same time wild animals will also have a secure path for their transition! With this gate, now the tally must have gone above 22 figure mark but then as I said, it’s just one more shade of Tadoba, so enjoy it to the fullest.

Oh, yes, one good thing, for years the entry road to Mohrali gate was aligned with garbage & human excreta & I have written about it many a times but in this trip, I found no garbage or any foul smelling objects & the road was clean & fresh air, this is big achievement, & congrats to forest dept as well Moharli villagers as cleanliness around villages & forest road is one big support for health of wildlife!  On the journey around Tadoba I witnessed people working in their farms, people walking on roads, people grazing their cattle, people at rivers & lakes for their thirst, people going to temple, school-kids walking to their school & all this with vast forest on their backdrop & I know a tiger is also nearby-by in that forest, silently watching these people & yet both the humans & the tiger are at their ease! This is coexistence at its best at Tadoba & this is why I get drawn towards these forests again & again, adios with this satisfied feeling of being part of that coexistence!

 

Gates of Tadoba Forests!

Moharli, Khutwanda, Kolara, Zari, Pangdi.. Core

Mamla, Agarzari, Dewada, Junona, Adegaon, Zari, Pangadi, Keshlaghar, Somnath, Shirkheda, Belara, Madnapur, Kolara, Alizanza, Navegoan, Shedgaon.

 

You can watch some coexistence moments at the link below also…

https://www.flickr.com/photos/65629150@N06/albums/72177720323886782/

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Sanjay Deshpande 

smd156812@gmail.com

Sanjeevani Dev.

Please view my sharing about finding a Right Home/ Office in Pune, at YouTube link below & share if liked...

 

https://youtu.be/27j3I3rwGPQ?si=-ODYBxVI2Dl_C345

 

Please do visit my blog links below to read about real estate & home buying! 

https://visonoflife.blogspot.com/2024/12/right-home-buying-in-2025.html

https://jivnachadrushtikon.blogspot.com/2024/12/2025.html

Creating Togetherness; team Sanjeevani Way (Click link below) 

https://www.flickr.com/photos/65629150@N06/albums/72157627904681345

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Think Green, Think Life

Fairy Tale of UKWS!

 

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“If you want your children to be intelligent, read them fairy tales. If you want them to be more intelligent, read them more fairy tales.”
― Albert Einstein.

No introduction is needed for Mr Einstein yet apart from being one of the most intelligent brains ever alive he was a philosopher, kind hearted good human being & he believed in things like fairy tales! I have used his wisdom many times but the above words are just tailor-made for this sharing which is about Fairies, though they are tigresses (what else) & one (rather many) might say how can a fearsome, deadly, dangerous animal like a tiger can even be called a Fairy! But then all such people (read as humans) haven’t understood neither the concept Fairy nor wildlife, is what I will say! Ok, this sharing is about wildlife & tigers & people around forests (don’t worry, it’s not about Tadoba) & this time the forest is Umred Karhandala Wildlife Sanctuary popularly known as UKWS, though unfortunately been in the news for the wrong reasons of late! Most of you must have come across a clip where a tigress with five cubs is walking in between gipsies with title as rare sight of six tigers in tadoba which actually is from UKWS & the clip has been wrongly interpreted by the authorities as the path of tigress with small cubs has been blocked by the tourist vehicles etc etc! Well, that is not subject of sharing as I have already shared my view about it but the subject is the tigress in that clip, F2 is her name, which is by the forest dept & locals call her by name Fairy 2, that’s why the reference of Fairy tales!

The name Fairy 2 has been given by her blood line as her mom was Fairy, a tigress which took IKWS on the world map of wildlife. There was a time, nearly eight years back, first images of a tigress carrying five tiny cubs boldly on the narrow roads (mind these details) of UKWS surfaced on social media, which was FB only then. Sadly our (India’s) wildlife is tiger centric & I am not a judge to comment right or wrong but fact remains every person going to wildlife sanctuaries unless its birding or aqua wildlife wants to see a tiger & seeing six tigers together is not something you get to see often! No wonder, UKWS not only came on the wildlife map, but the entire social life changed here as the tourists started flowing in & came along, the money! If you are not familiar with the geographic location of UKWS (most of you are certainly not) Umred is known for its mineral rich grounds but now many know the forests here are corridors for ages connecting wildlife in Tadoba or Andhra forests or even MP forests. Tigers were here all the time but most of them have been in transit form, rarely making these forests as their home & that’s why UKWS was never on ranking charts of places to be visited for the wildlifers. But come Fairy & things changed as here is a tigress walking boldly on the roads unfazed by the gypsies surrounding her & that too with five cubs which are growing fast. And where in neighbouring forests of Tadoba the cubs are getting separated from their mom in mere one & half years, here there is no pressure of mating from many male tigers around these cubs that have remained with Fairy for nearly two & half years. Outcome was, in the period just before separation when these six tigers used to walk together it’s like a gang of big tigers moving around making the tourists awe about the sight they are looking at & I also was one of them! I have seen Fairy with her five cubs when the cubs were one & half years old & they had problems fitting themselves on the roads of UKWS.

This is why Fairy name must have been given to this tigress as UKWS was a poor sanctuary with its location cut-off from developed urban world, money was scares here & so was tiger sighting but Fairy changed that scene overnight & a place which wasn’t having even a decent hotel for stay now has nearly more than twenty resorts including MTDC! Now you can understand the sentiments of the people towards this tigress which is fondly called as Fairy, as she has changed lives of thousands of these people for good purpose bringing happiness in their families by mere her presence around! For those who doesn’t know details of UKWS, it has two zones Karhandala & Gothengaon & there is another gate Pauni which is on other side of highway but Fairy made her home for the zones of Gothangaon & Karahandala all alone with entire area for herself. This is the story of Fairy 1 & the problem with such cases is once the cubs are grown-up & dispersed to find their own territory then suddenly the sightings get reduced & again tourists dry up, especially when the spread of your forest is small like UKWS has. With Fairy, what she did is unique, she took a step back & gave away parts of the entire forest to her two female siblings one of which is current F@ i.e. Fairy2. Now UKWS has three tigresses with cubs, the Karhandla zone there is a tigress which is known as X1, while Gothengaon zone is ruled by F2 i.e. Fairy 2 & Fairy herself has taken shelter in a corner of forest which extends towards Pavani gate & even buffers.

 Best part of this Fairy tale is about the legacy which F2 is taking ahead as to the surprise of all the wild lifers, few months back tigress F2 appeared on the narrow roads of UKWS (again don’t miss the detailing) with five tiny cubs toddling along & for once the locals thought Fairy herself has appeared as this is the sight for which tourists flock the place & wait for days! And in one such flocking of the tourists the earlier mentioned clip got viral & caused a lot of botheration for the forest dept as well locals too! Coming to the price of being a Fairy which not many tourists are interested in but is very much there & which I witnessed during my recent trip to Gothengaon. Giving birth to five cubs at a time & making them grow is one of the hardest jobs beyond imagination of our human brains also. First, to give them birth all alone, no maid-servant to look after them & then standing to their basic demands like hunger & thirst. When five cubs are there the mom tigress can’t afford them to breast feeding for long as that takes her entire energy out. At the same time, imagine every day you have to feed six stomachs’ that too of the tigers, so each day F2 (and earlier F i.e. Fairy) has to move around for hunting & then the stress of keeping her tiny cubs which are jumping around all the time, behind with nobody to guard them. Indeed, fortunately unlike Tadoba the threats from other predators as well other male tigers are lesser at UKWS yet the cubs are exposed to many dangers such as snake bite & water-bodies to fall in. And the mom has to keep herself safe as well as fit because even if you are queen of forest, it’s just a tag as there is no servant to serve you food here! Recently F2 got injured during a wild boar kill & her nose was swollen with a cut also which was clearly visible when I clicked her. She was in pain but five cubs were in playing mode & the mom in her has to do the job keeping her pain aside. Poor queen, she played with the cubs for a while & the guide told me she hasn’t ate much from the earlier kill as it was as small fawn of deer which was barely enough for the cub, so she was hungry & all she did was got away from the cubs & rested in water body to ease her pain. The wound is at her nose where she couldn’t even lick, the best medicine for the wild animals & yet she put on the show for her cubs, that’s what Fairy is!

Coming to tourism & its so-called disturbance aspect, something I can’t skip from sharing! We have taken a full day safari which means just two vehicles were inside after the morning safari in the entire forest. We saw F2 resting & her cubs playing around but the tigress was fast asleep. And the moment afternoon safari vehicles came inside the forest she was awake on her own & came on the road like she was waiting to put on the show for the tourists as she understood her duty towards the local people also whose earnings (read as life) depends on tiger sightings of the tourists! I am not a man of emotions & understand the hardships of wildlife yet when I was watching F2 bravely putting up the show on all fronts keeping her all pain & troubles aside from my camera lens, my eyes were wet, witnessing the sufferings & hardships the tigress was paying for being Queen of UKWS, & I saluted her from my heart! At the same time those who says wildlife tourism is disturbance to the tigers then with due respect F2 rather seems enjoying people around her & she seems to feel protected in their presence as her cubs are safe now under the eyes of the tourists & guides & gypsy drivers as she left for the hunt leaving her cubs in the hands of us, this is what actual field observance of mine & not some office seated Chat-Gpt writing! At the same time, I might have experienced this behaviour of F2 by accident but the guides & drivers confirmed this is the way she always behaves, which means rather than getting offended or disturbed by the safari vehicles the tigress is rather comfortable with them, & doesn’t look at tourists as intruders rather trusts them that in their presence her cubs will be safe! Another logic to confirm my this statement is, if F2 feels that when she is on walk on road with her cubs the gypsies obstructed her path then she wouldn’t have ever let her cubs out when the vehicles are around but scene is different, every day she is bringing them on road when the gipsies are around, what this indicates, is the question I want to ask all those who hail wildlife tourism as obstruction to wildlife! One reason is, F2 herself is familiar with safari vehicles & tourists cameras focused on ger every move since when she was a cub & she knows this is part of her forest now & she is ok with it, what else we can than this but coexistence!

Yet this doesn’t mean we block the tiger’s path or disturb it or refrain any wild animal from its right on the forest. But that can’t be achieved without following some basic simple rules which can differ from park to park as per geographic situations of the respective forest. In UKWS the roads are very narrow & either we can widen them a bit or we can follow self-discipline by which everybody can have tiger’s sighting by turn keeping our greed away for the best shot! As scene there is such that if F2 or any tiger is on road then only two or three gipsy’s tourists can watch the tiger & those behind will be left with just some part of tigers in sight & if they click photos of such sighting then it’s tagged as obstruction of tiger or wild animals which is not the case actually! High time for forest dept to form a committee of experts who won’t make policies with a biased mind on either aspect of wildlife tourism & define the rules which will make wildlife tourism a fun or say a path for coexistence for all concerned. If forest dept is having some issues on this, the Hon High Court please intervein proactively & ask the forest dept to make right guidelines for individual forest as well at large but with right mindset about wildlife at large & not just some aspect of it.

Will use a quote for first time in twelve years of my writings to conclude,

“Fairy tales are more than true: not because they tell us that dragons exist, but because they tell us that dragons can be beaten.”
― Neil Gaiman; & here in the story of Fairy of UKWS, the dragon means our wrong attitude toward entire wildlife, is all I want to say as that will be the right end rather start of this Fairy tale of UKWS, adios for now!

-

 Sanjay Deshpande 

smd156812@gmail.com

Sanjeevani Dev.

Please view my sharing about finding a Right Home/ Office in Pune, at YouTube link below & share if liked...

 

https://youtu.be/27j3I3rwGPQ?si=-ODYBxVI2Dl_C345

 

Please do visit my blog links below to read about real estate & home buying! 

https://visonoflife.blogspot.com/2024/12/right-home-buying-in-2025.html

https://jivnachadrushtikon.blogspot.com/2024/12/2025.html

Creating Togetherness; team Sanjeevani Way (Click link below) 

https://www.flickr.com/photos/65629150@N06/albums/72157627904681345

For any of your complaints about city, log in at link below

www.punecorporation.org

Think Green, Think Life

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Union Budget 25, Real Estate & Reality!

 

                                         

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“A budget should reflect the values and priorities of our nation and its people” … Mary Landrieu.

“This budget is of the people, for the people & by the people” …Nirmala Sitaraman.

Mary Loretta Landrieu is an American entrepreneur and politician who served as a United States senator from Louisiana for nearly two decades! No need to introduce the second name as the lady who has just delivered 8^th consecutive Union Budget, our very own Finance Minister of India! Both women may be worlds apart literally, yet both are from politics & see the similarity between what they express about budget, the only difference if emotions just the way there is between Hollywood Movies & our Desi movies (exception Disney movies). The sentiments which Mary has put in professional language, have been expressed by our honourable finance minister Ms NS (Short Form for sharing, no offence) only in simpler language. Well, enough of word play which definitely is not object of sharing & I am bad at it as I am not a politician nor a trader, I am a civil engg & a builder, so the sharing is about Union Budget & you must have already read enough doses of the same but this is not about decoding of union budget, so don’t worry! I am not a financial expert nor even an accountant yet budget is the key word for any business so is for mine & in both ways, i.e. from the provisions in it when it’s for our country of which I am a part & to make my team as well readers (young ones) know importance of this term!

First about the union budget, well when my journalist friend (yes, a journalist can be a friend too) asked me to write something about the budget, my first reaction was looking around, Who, Me? As I have just started understanding my own company’s balance sheet a bit, that too after running it for nearly two decades, not a great thing to brag about definitely, yet the reason is they don’t teach you a single thing about money in engineering nor in that field when you start working! Another aspect is I don’t understand why a budget has to be made in the most complex way so as a common man (like me) has to be dependent on the Finance Gurus’ (most self-proclaimed) for understanding it! May be its same way why a common man can’t buy even few gunthas(few sq fts) of land on his own & get plan sanctioned & completes his own home, just to allow some builders to make money, here also the same logic applies though the money earner is not builder but some fraternity, may be Chartered Accountants! One thing is sure whoever or whichever segment may get benefitted from the budget the end winner is always the govt & Hon FM will say it’s a way to help people as unless govt earns money how can it help people, right? Hundred percent right but which people earn & who lose, as common sense is someone’s gain is someone’s loss, this also is a logic, right? Unfortunately, from the times I have started reading or knowing about budget its always the real estate which is at loss, is what my perception & this is why I thought of writing about budget even though I don’t understand it much!

Here I will mention a story of a learned Pundit (sorry a Pundit is always supposed to be learned) & a Boatman. In a remote part of the country a village's only connection with the pouter world is by a ferry boat & a local villager used to run that ferry who was illiterate. One day a Pundit came to his ferry & asked the boatman to carry him to the village across the river in his ferry. As the journey started Pundit was carrying many books with pride in the ferry & he asked the boatman, have you read Veda (Sacred Books), on which the boatman replied no sir. On this, the Pundit says, a quarter of your life has been wasted! After some time, Pundit asks the boatman, have you read Upanishads (philosophical books), and the boatman replies he has never even heard of such books & Pundit says half of your life has been wasted! After some time again Punit asked have you even read Panchatantra (books of folktales), on this, the boatman shyly answers that he doesn't even know reading. Hearing this Pundit says three fourths of your life has been wasted. In the meantime, the season changes & suddenly there was turbulence in the water & a heavy storm occured with the boat starting to wobble heavily. The Pundit gets afraid & the boatman asks him, does he know swimming, Pundit replies no, he doesn't know swimming. Hearing this boatman says, Punditji full of your life has been wasted!

Well, I don’t want to disrespect any Pundits over union budget & neither I am a boatman but the analogy is when you are doing any business or earning any rupee in any way (even as housewife) the you have your own takeaways which you understand how such things are going to affect it & I know my business just the way boatman knew his! So, this budget has nothing for real estate or making the homes affordable in any direct way is my take away from the budget! There may be statements from many Pundits that the provisions are such that there will be saving for the middle class which will make them able to invest in the homes & there will be rental income with lesser tax or two properties can be claimed for tax rebate or something like that but none of this is going to help to save the real estate or say help the real estate the way it wants to get helped! Here, many will say why real estate needs to be helped in the first place as the builders have earned enough for decades & I don’t blame them but that was past & those builders are no more in the industry or most of them have perished is a fact! I am talking about helping real estate & that means everybody associated with it, even the buyers, is my subject of sharing!  

I have already cleared that I am not a fiancé guy but like the boatman I have some very basic questions in my mind as I have been watching/ reading outcomes from the budget over last decade & they are, why real estate is not being given as industry status when it’s one of the largest jobs creating sector. Why real estate’s brains (there are still a few alive) are not ever called by Hon FM or her team to discuss our issues before budget proactively for understanding this business. Why no direct benefit such as GST reduction on basic raw materials for construction is given if we want to make affordable Homes for the people. Why there is such disparity in the GST policies about real estate that No GST on ready possession homes while fixed 5% GST on Homes in making & that too on Home’s agreement price which includes the land/tdr price which plays major role in price of a Home i.e. up to 75% in same cases so the GST is actually nearly 30% on construction cost if you say land is exempted from GST! Gain tax is one such pinching issue as when there is Income Tax, how can there be Gain Tax again that too only for real Estate Industry, as Gold also people invest for appreciation why not on Gold there is Gain Tax then! Real Estate business probably needs maximum NOC’s & has to deal with most govt depts, why there is not a single window system suggested & applied for this sector in any budget ever! Why there no benefit of export (is what my CAs’ tells me) for any foreigner/ NRI buying property in my projects by paying me in foreign currency! Why there is no direct fund provision (Barring Urban Challenge Fund, which is not clear about its use & governence) for acquiring reservation lands in all the towns & cities as because of that thousands of reservation lands remain undeveloped & eventually fall prey to encroachment (slums) which again is a big threat to the real-estate which are doing it in legal way & makes legal homes unaffordable! Why don’t the banks (read as SBI, Maha bank etc) considers real estate as priority sector & allocate funds at low interest for it1 Why don’t Hon FM guides (read as orders) banking sector to consider cost of land which makes nearly 70% of the project costing also part of project finance while the very same banks do mortgage the same land for meagre finance they do!   Why not abolish TDS, GST, Gain tax, Income Tax & all such & have one simple tax system for entire real estate! So many “why” comes to my mind when I read the figures of lakhs crores of rupees being given for this industry & that purpose while real estate’s bag always remains empty except some meagre rental TDS types announcements, is my subject of sharing! I know the experts will call me a fool with all my doubts but then the Pundits always think the Boatman is a fool, so be it!

Till then, coming back to another budget which we neglect in a great way at our end & that is proper budgeting of everything when it comes to expenses. This aspect or part of sharing is especially for Maharashtrian builders who think sale is their profit (sorry, no region offence)! Hon FM may bless us or not but we must have a keen eye, ear, nose & everything when we spend even one rupee & that is possible in a right budget about expenses we are supposed to do. Budget is something which many organizations claim they have but either the budget is with loopholes or its not being tightly followed. That way a budget is like a red signal on the road, it may warn the vehicles to stop but can’t stop them from jumping it yet the outcome is an accident someday for sure! So dear real estaters, taxes will be there & you will always be a step-child for the govt but you can have your own budget for your work & respect it for your own protection is what I will share!

Finally, I am a wild lifer too (by heart if not by business) & the union budget makes me unhappy here also as hardly any headlines (I read those only) were there about sizable provision for wildlife protection or forest dept. We need land for wildlife (tigers) which needs money, we need big staff to protect wildlife again money, we ned to make people around forests aware & have jobs which again needs again money, though homestays are going to be promoted as per budget but it means loan & we all know what happened with loan system from farmers suicides, right?  Hon FM, a war is going on between humans & entire wildlife (read as forests) & the humans have you to make provisions for them to win the war as you only have said the budget is, by the people for the people of the people. But whom the tigers & deer should look at as their people for money provision for their protection is the war with the humans, is the question I will ask to you, adios with this question!

-

Sanjay Deshpande 

smd156812@gmail.com

Sanjeevani Dev.

Please view my sharing about finding a Right Home/ Office in Pune, at YouTube link below & share if liked...

 

https://youtu.be/27j3I3rwGPQ?si=-ODYBxVI2Dl_C345

 

Please do visit my blog links below to read about real estate & home buying! 

https://visonoflife.blogspot.com/2024/12/right-home-buying-in-2025.html

https://jivnachadrushtikon.blogspot.com/2024/12/2025.html

Creating Togetherness; team Sanjeevani Way (Click link below) 

https://www.flickr.com/photos/65629150@N06/albums/72157627904681345

For any of your complaints about city, log in at link below

www.punecorporation.org

Think Green, Think Life

www.sanjeevanideve.com / https://junglebelles.in/

Secure Your Home!

 

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“Security is an attitude towards life & not just some systems or rules”… Me.

Above is not just a quote or set of words but these were the feelings which came to my mind when I offered to speak or share my views on the subject of security of a building. Well, in a society very close to my residence, a chain snatching incident happened with a resident of that society right at the gate & in the crowded hours of evening, which started a big discussion on that society’s WhatsApp group. We happened to have our small unit in that society so I too am a member of that WhatsApp group. After going through the discussion of which focal point was obviously safety & security, I said to the members with my little exposure to this aspect I can give a small presentation to interested members about the security aspect of a building & then members can decide further course of action on which they agreed, & outcome is as below! I am deliberately using the format of the PPT slides & elaborating the points, as that way every point can be explained to the readers also to the core of its meaning!  At the same time this is a learning or say innovating experience for me also as by me, nearly fifty percent of security is achieved in the planning of a project itself & rest is its execution once people start living in that building, so I thought the process of presentation about security will be useful to my team as well our project’s residents also! And of-late (post Corona) somehow crime rate is increasing as may it be Cyber Crimes or chain snatching or breaking in flats, large number of people either don’t have jobs or are interested in making easy money & the outcome is, every day you open any newspaper & you find city news page full of housebreaking & such crimes is a fact! Though that’s not the subject of my sharing & many will say what’s Police is doing , well police can’t protect your head while driving but you have to wear a helmet the same way, it’s your home of which you also must take some precautions to protect it, that’s security!

 1.Object of Security Systems.

Theft, Mishap, Natural Calamity, Life Threats, Property Loss, Goods Loos (Cars/ bikes)and such. As its important to understand the object or outcome we want before we initiate some system or else like the phrase in Marathi “Aag Rameshwari & Bamb Someshwari” like situation, means we spend & form some system which will be useless for the object we have in mind!   This fact not only the society people but even the building/ project planners also needs to be understood.

2.Residential Society.

Let’s focus on a residential complex as in a commercial building users are different so will be the means . Here the first object is to prevent theft , protecting our valuables & safety of life of the residents & later our valuable goods.

3.Preventive Measures & Corrective Measures.

Security is two-fold, post & after! This means just the way we take vaccines to prevent a disease, the vaccine doesn’t ensure that we won’t ever be infected but it increases our immunity for the disease & in case we suffer from the disease then we have to take necessary medicines. Same way security measures are like a vaccine against theft & that’s prevention yet incase if theft happens, we can then look at post measures for the same.

4.Preventive Measures.

Study the society layout & planning. Mark loopholes from the angle of objective. Most important is to avoid any bad incident & let the bad people know what you are dealing with, they must know what are preventive measures taken by the society as that creates fear in the mind of a criminal. No theft or burglary like crimes happens by chance or is an accident because the thief is risking his life & can’t afford to return empty handed. He or they (a gang) usually study the target which is your home & society & they will hit the weakest one on the security front.

Display signages  of safety measures in bold. Just the way the sign of “Beware of Dog” on a bungalow gate makes you cautious while entering that bungalow, the  security measures must be visual enough to make the thief remind you are not unprepared! Unfortunately, in the respective society where the chain snatching incident happened there was CCTV but no signage of its existence displayed was there!

Right entry exit checks. Every entry & exit must be checked! For that you need right security servicemen equipped with whistle, stick torch etc. This is the weakest link in most societies especially single stand buildings. If you hire a watchman with meager payment to save the money then first, he will find a parallel job to make his needs meet (Moonwalking for IT guys) which will make him less alert on his job as a watchman. And second is, he won’t risk his life when the need arises i.e. To confront the thief or say bad guys! So always hire the right security service.

Single entry Single exit. This is important in planning aspects then the security team can keep a clear watch on who has entered the premises & who has left, which many buildings especially projects with a greater number of buildings don't follow, just for convenience of easy entry & exit nearer to their buildings or wings!

Spend on compound walls & secured entrances to individual buildings. Even if the builder has not given you a safe & proper compound wall, the society can extend its height, as it must be felt like an obstruction for the thief!

Free entry only to the authorized/ legitimate occupants. In any building only the real occupants or users must have free entry that too via card or some recognition.

All visitors must be monitored at entrance. This is something many people find irritating or inconvenient or insulting but very same people smilingly allow themselves to be frisked at malls or hotels! And let’s accept, security is above emotions then only it's effective!

Emergency Contact Numbers boards in each lobby & entrance. The local police & all such essential numbers must be displayed in bold in all lobbies as well near watchmen. And the watchman cabin must be near the washroom so even during that time the gate must not be unguarded & under his eye sight!

5. Secured entrance lobby.

With a manual lock key system. MS Grilled entrance lobby is the best & basic thing for every building entrance. Which you can lock at late night & the keys can be with every flat holder for late night visitors.

Thumb entry system. This is a lock which opens with only the thumb impression of authorized residents. But the problem is elderly people’s thumb impression it doesn’t take.

Intercom confirmation entry. Best & most effective, any visitor is allowed inside the premises only when confirmed by the security via intercom call with the respective flat holder. This takes a bit of time but it is an effective system.

ID Card entry. Just like in Five Star hotels, all the residents have their magnetic card which is the access key to their respective building’s lobby door.

Emergency Alarm for Watchmen. There must be an emergency alarm switch hidden near the watchman, so incase of such a situation he can alert society with one push.

One more thing is, the society must give the watchman a dedicated mobile phone with its sim card, maybe a basic model & with society key members numbers feeded in it as this will help him to communicate with the watchman.

6.Security of property i.e. vehicles.

Jammers by society. When going outstation for longer duration the society can have its own set of vehicle locks & the member can lock it like traffic police jammers with it for added safety.

Society Stickers. Every vehicle must have society issued stickers on it, if possible, with bar-codes also can be there on the stickers.

Anti-Theft Alarms should be fitted to all the vehicles for any attempt to open or start the vehicle with the wrong key or forcefully.

Tracking devices are a must especially for cars. As well you can have them fitted to your two wheelers also now. And display all such initiatives in the parking lots in bold!

7. Corrective Measures.

CCTV is nowadays a common amenity but nobody takes effort to check its footage’s effectiveness. Good quality night vision cameras & regular servicing & results of the system, is the matter of concern here.

Right & aware record keeping of entry/ exit is a must &, if possible, make it in a computer of society office. At the same time maintain a database of all maids/ drivers/ visitors including character certificates from local police.

 

8.Personal Attitude of Residents

Detailed Information of all occupants is important data in case of some crisis & needed to be stored at society computers. We can use any committee member or office bearer’s personal PC/ laptop also for this in case of small size society.

Information of regular outsiders, maids, drivers & their character certificate from local police stations, this is the responsibility of every flat holder.

Know your neighbors & keep keen eye on any irregular activity around, such as suspicious persons, broken or open doors of a flat etc. Small things make a difference such as, having a light fixed outside of your entrance with a switch inside flat for night visitors in case lobby lights are off, then you can check who is standing outside of the main door. As well have a  security/safety gate with double Kadi/Konda so as nobody can lock you from outside. MS Safety grills to toilet windows also are a must & right design of grills & fixing so they stand firm & can’t be easily removed.

Periodical cross checking of security systems is also necessary & for that form a committee for the same with adequate powers through general body meeting.

9. Budget of the security systems

There are two types of expenses, one time & recurring. One time is civil works & systems such as CCTv & whatsoever needed to be done. Recurring is maintenance contracts for all these systems & staff you appoint such as watchmen etc. And you can always take expert advice as well security audits done by them & even take assistance from local police also.

10. Friends, security, as I said, is an attitude & it's ever evolving & your attitude only will define how hard you can make it for a thief or burglar to break into your home or society; thank you & I conclude with this note!

The video of this presentation you can watch at YouTube link below & please do share to make others aware as well improvise…

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6aj3AAD1lmA&t=1s

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Sanjay Deshpande 

smd156812@gmail.com

Sanjeevani Dev.

Please view my sharing about finding a Right Home/ Office in Pune, at YouTube link below & share if liked...

 

https://youtu.be/27j3I3rwGPQ?si=-ODYBxVI2Dl_C345

 

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https://visonoflife.blogspot.com/2024/12/right-home-buying-in-2025.html

 

https://jivnachadrushtikon.blogspot.com/2024/12/2025.html

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