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Couple Spends 26 Years Replanting A Rainforest They Bought In 1991, And Here’s How It Looks Today
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Couple Spends 26 Years Replanting A Rainforest They Bought In 1991, And Here’s How It Looks Today

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Pamela Gale Malhotra and her husband, Anil Malhotra, own Sai Sanctuary, the only private wildlife sanctuary in India and have been replanting and protecting forests and wildlife since it’s foundation in 1991. Today, SAI Sanctuary covers over 300 acres of wildlife that are home to more than 200 globally endangered species of plants and animals, including Asian elephants and Bengal tigers.

“When we first came here, most of the lands that were sold to us, were abandoned lands,” Pamela told Great Big Story. “Abandoned rice fields, coffee, and cardamom fields as well. A lot of deforestation had taken place. And that took a lot, a lot of care and energy and time and years to bring it back.”

The part of India where the sanctuary is located, Kodagu district, has experienced a dramatic decrease in forest cover – from 86% in the 1970s to 16% today. Pamela explained that this has disastrous effects on rainfall patterns and water supply not only in the district but throughout the south of India.

You could say that the couple is piecing back together the environment by ensuring that the forests can provide shelter for the animals, and the animals can in return keep the forests healthy. “We both feel a tremendous amount of joy when we walk through the sanctuary,” said Pamela. “I’ve never felt this kind of joy in anything else that I’ve done in my life.”

More info: saisanctuary.com (h/t: greatbigstory)

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    Kodagu district in South India is suffering from extreme deforestation

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    Image credits: Infinite Windows

    But Pamela Gale Malhotra and her husband, Anil Malhotra, decided to fight

    Image credits: Infinite Windows

    So the couple co-founded SAI Sanctuary in 1991

    Image credits: The Better India

    Since then, they have been replanting trees and expanding the sanctuary. It now covers over 300 acres of wildlife

    Image credits: Great Big Story

    The area is home to more than 200 globally endangered species, including Asian elephants

    Image credits: The Better India

    “When we first came here, most of the lands that were sold to us, were abandoned lands”

    ADVERTISEMENT

    Image credits: SAI Sanctuary

    “Abandoned rice fields, coffee, and cardamom fields as well”

    Image credits: Great Big Story

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    “[It] took a lot of care, energy, and years to bring it back”

    Image credits: The Better India

    “I remember walking through the forest, you wouldn’t hear anything but the sound of your own feet”

    Image credits: Great Big Story

    “Now, the place is alive with sound”

    Image credits: Great Big Story

    Pamela hopes that the forest continues to be protected and expanded

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    Image credits: Infinite Windows

    “We both feel a tremendous amount of joy when we walk through the sanctuary”

    Image credits: Great Big Story

    “I’ve never felt this kind of joy in anything else that I’ve done in my life”

    Image credits: Infinite Windows

    Watch the couple’s video below

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    Rokas Laurinavičius

    Rokas Laurinavičius

    Author, BoredPanda staff

    Read more »

    Rokas is a writer at Bored Panda with a BA in Communication. After working for a sculptor, he fell in love with visual storytelling and enjoys covering everything from TV shows (any Sopranos fans out there?) to photography. Throughout his years in Bored Panda, over 300 million people have read the posts he's written, which is probably more than he could count to.

    Read less »
    Rokas Laurinavičius

    Rokas Laurinavičius

    Author, BoredPanda staff

    Rokas is a writer at Bored Panda with a BA in Communication. After working for a sculptor, he fell in love with visual storytelling and enjoys covering everything from TV shows (any Sopranos fans out there?) to photography. Throughout his years in Bored Panda, over 300 million people have read the posts he's written, which is probably more than he could count to.

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    Tiny Dynamine
    Community Member
    7 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    This is the kind of story that the mainstream news should be covering. We need to inspire more people to do likewise. They are real heroes.

    Phaedra Gorgon
    Community Member
    7 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    This story really touched me. I live in Sri Lanka and many of our forests have suffered the same fate. Our forest cover has reduced drastically and many endemic animals in our country are endangered. Wild animals are killed regularly either by humans or vehicles as they encroach into human habitat, looking for food as their homes have been destroyed. No one cares. I wish there were more people like this couple.

    Load More Comments
    Tiny Dynamine
    Community Member
    7 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    This is the kind of story that the mainstream news should be covering. We need to inspire more people to do likewise. They are real heroes.

    Phaedra Gorgon
    Community Member
    7 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    This story really touched me. I live in Sri Lanka and many of our forests have suffered the same fate. Our forest cover has reduced drastically and many endemic animals in our country are endangered. Wild animals are killed regularly either by humans or vehicles as they encroach into human habitat, looking for food as their homes have been destroyed. No one cares. I wish there were more people like this couple.

    Load More Comments
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