Tag: Delhi Ridge
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Cities – Far Away from Nature?
Global populations continue to urbanise at an unprecedented rate, with cities expanding into huge concentrations of concrete, steel, and glass, raising sustainability concerns. I’ve attempted to explore this issue from the standpoint of urban ecology, an interdisciplinary branch of study that looks at the complex interactions between the built environment of cities and non-human species.
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Rights to a ‘World-class’ City
Ajay Immanuel Gonji In a previous blog article, I had mentioned that in many Indian cities, there exists a certain shared precarity between poor humans and non-humans in access and rights to the city, and both groups are often similarly excluded (Narayanan & Bindumadhav, 2019). In this present article, I wish to elaborate on this…
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Unique Disposition of Urban Wildlife
Ajay Immanuel Gonji Urban Landscapes and Wildlife Urban landscapes are unique in that they represent one of the most managed and domesticated landscapes on the planet (Kareiva et al., 2007) that have been modified to fulfil not just our needs but also our wants. However, interestingly, Urban landscapes, by their very nature, also offer distinct…
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Ventilators For A Burgeoning City
Divya Mehra Delhi, the capital of India, is the second-largest city in the country and one of the fastest-growing urban metropolises, catering to a population of more than 16.76 million people (Census, 2011). The pressures of a growing population have led to unbounded urban sprawl, and over the last six decades, agricultural and fallow lands…
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Dodging the Dog
Ajay Immanuel Gonji Annoyed and slightly dejected was I as I dragged my feet back to the entrance of the Sanjay Van forest patch of the Delhi Ridge. Early morning that day my friend Amit and I visited the city forest hoping to spot the elusive golden jackal and capture the animal on our cameras.…
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Alien in the Forest
By Sonali Chauhan “If a forest isn’t replacing itself, it’s a garden. Just standing back and letting trees grow is not going to work.” – Dr. Robert J. Warren Delhi, the capital of India, enjoys a special place in history. Situated on the alluvial plain of Yamuna, it is a unique landscape. To the south-west…
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Fauna in the City – Part II
Ajay Immanuel Gonji About three weeks ago, a solitary male leopard was found loitering in the national capital’s Yamuna Biodiversity Park (YBP) – one of the two biodiversity parks (the other being the Aravalli Biodiversity Park) that has been established in the capital by the Delhi Development Authority. According to park officials, the animal is…
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Fauna in the City – Part I
Ajay Immanuel Gonji About a month ago, Delhi witnessed a bizarre incident where a Nilgai was found in one of the most unlikely places in the city – the lush green lawns of parliament house! The front page of newspapers featured an image of the frenzied animal being caught by trappers after it probably strayed…