Conservation of our natural resources, sensible development and better living conditions for all....
I had a keen interest in wildlife since school days and the city of Bhopal, where I grew, provided ample opportunities to nurture my interests in bird watching and wildlife. Academically inclined towards mathematical sciences, I did my Masters in Physics from the University of Bhopal. It was during this period that I also conducted a small study on the avian fauna of Bhopal, and developed my first stand-alone software to help identify birds. This led to my association with BNHS where I later joined as a Research Analyst. I carried out extensive field research for four years in Panna National Park on Ecology, Distribution and Behaviour of Four-horned antelope and obtained my PhD from the Mumbai University. During this tenure, I associated with Dr. Raghu Chundawat and worked closely with him in his long term study of tigers in the dry deciduous forest of Panna and also had some exposure on snow leopard monitoring in Ladakh.
My academic interests lie in quantitative ecology, population ecology, conservation biology, and ecological and GIS modeling. Study designs, data analyses, developing application algorithm for specific, and training are my inclinations in addition to conducting field work in remote locations.Apart from conducting field research and helping several research projects, I have delivered several lectures and interactive talks on wildlife and environment related issues. I have conducted several training workshops for capacity building of field workers, researchers and officers in various countries, and also worked on some model programs that marry science with tourism.
Currently working with the Snow Leopard Trust (SLT) as Regional Field Biologist and with Nature Conservation Foundation as Research Associate, my main responsibilities are to help research planning, conduct training and field work, and help analyze research data in the various range country programs of SLT. I have recently worked with colleagues on developing protocols for monitoring snow leopards and its prey populations in Ladakh and Mongolia using detection/non-detection surveys.
