Sidam Pramila Is The First Lady Forest Officer To Be Rewarded For Her Work In Capturing Tiger Cubs. We Need More Women Like Her
For the longest time, bravery had always been associated with men. ‘Brave were the men who did this’, ‘brave were the men who did that’, read the sayings, hailing them the heroes. A lot of them probably did noteworthy work but we are pretty sure some of them just turned up to claim the prize- a few them awarded only because they are the owners of a penis. But times have changed now, and women have stepped up in roles and while we are writing our names in history, we are also going to changing the sayings. From flying airplanes to leading contingents on the borders, there is nothing that women aren’t doing and they are making us proud while at it. Just like Sidam Pramila Istarl, who too recently gave a whole new spin to the word ‘brave’, after becoming the first lady officer to be rewarded for rescuing a dead tigress’s cub.
Back in 2018, after tigress Avni was shot dead- the authorities were acting on orders of the Maharashtra Supreme court after she had mauled and killed 13 villagers in the Pandharkawada-Ralegaon district, two of her cubs were left stranded in the area, uncaptured. Their lives and those of others were at risk as they were growing up. It was then that the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) initiated a search for the missing cubs.
As forest officers began their dangerous and life threatening search to find and secure the cubs, Sidam Pramila emerged as one of the crucial forces in saving and capturing one of them. Traversing through almost 80 hectares of the enclosure everyday at Yavatmal’s Anji Range, a year and a half after doing this diligently, she finally could catch hold of one of the cubs, while the male one still at large.
So encouraging to see women field foresters creating ripples in the field of nature conservation. PG Sudha, Rasila Vadher, Sidam Pramila and Kaziranga’s lady Forest Guards have been in the news for their stupendous feats. Hats off ! #womenpower @deespeak @RandeepHooda pic.twitter.com/DbC4xT2Ent
— Ramesh Pandey (@rameshpandeyifs) March 15, 2020
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It was then that the National Tiger Conservation Authority proposed the long due idea of recognising the forest officers for their hard work and commitment to bravely having done the rescue and conservation work. And out of the 6 that have been chosen, Sidam happens to be the only lady entitled to receiving a reward of Rs. 1 Lakh for her contributions.
Talking about it, Sidam said, “I hope this encourages more women to take up such jobs.” As do we. Speaking more on how she was able to capture the cub, she shared, “I would cross endless stretches of the forest in absolute darkness hoping to find the cubs. I’d be bruised but I’d push through, sometimes till 3 am. The cubs were already a year old and vulnerable. They had to be rescued before they could harm the villagers or be attacked themselves.”
And it heartens us to know that a woman as brave as her is out there keeping many safe.
