pune – AbhiKNotes – The blog of Abhishek Karadkar

Hazards of Dry grass burning

I often visit the local hills in Pune, which are known as Vetal hill, or Tekdi. They are the most visited by nature enthusiasts, joggers, trekkers, and those who like to spend some time breathing fresh air for few hours, which is so rare in the city nowadays.

But I was shocked today to see that the dry grass has been allowed to burn inside the reserved forest or green spaces. Usually, in India, the farmers, have a practice to burn the stubble to reduce time to replace the land with a new crop. And that creates air pollution and smog in the capital of India, for which it has been notoriously infamous.

But burning the dry grass in the grassland or forest is something very dangerous for the ecology as well for the air quality of the city. Many times dry grass catch fire due to summer heat, or even due to mistaken use of cigarettes by un-responsible people. But the forest authorities have also turned a blind eye towards this, and have let the fire burn the grass to such an extent that the entire grassland is burnt as seen today in the below pics.

Due to the grass being burnt, the surrounding trees are also affected, even to the extent of being burnt completely. I saw a volunteer trying hard to stop the inside of the trunk of a neem tree from catching fire. As the hill does not have water sources, I immediately gave my water bottle to atleast wet the trunk to stop the fire. But the water was less, and hence, we had to use dry sand/mud to extinguish the fire.

Not long before, the grassland used to look green or even dry, but beautiful. It hosts many birds nests, insects, squirrels and rabbits. But now, after burning the grass, they have deprived them of their homes.

Below are the pics showing the beautiful grass before.

Hence, its high time that we should take care of nature, and not let them burn like this. Forest fires are a matter of concern not only for the environment, but also for our well being. We have to be cautious for not using cigarette or any thing that can catch fire. Also, laws should be made to avoid purposefully burning of the dry grass, whether in the fields or grassland.

The hills of Pune!

I recently moved back to Pune, India. And I have been visiting some of the hills which surround the city. Pune is blessed with many hills or in local language, they are called ‘Tekdi’. Some of the famous ones include ‘Vetal’ hill, ‘Parvati’ hill, Hanuman hill etc. Fitness enthusiasts often visit these hills for running, jogging, walking etc. Due to Covid-19, and the declining number of parks and jogging tracks in the city, these hills stand as one of the last remaining option to exercise besides the gym. They also remain a well known tourist destination for city dwellers to have a quick visit away from the crowded buzz in the city.

I have captured some of the pics which shows the beauty surrounding the city.

This picture is captured with the view of MIT Pune ( which is my bachelor’s college). The college is located on the right which has a dome at the top. The mesmerizing clouds adds beauty to the view.

This lush green landscape is known as ‘panchvati’ area in pune. This forest abodes quite a few peacocks, and its beautiful to listen their song.

This picture is captured at the top of ‘Vetal’ hill, just after the sunset.

*This park has a beautiful pond, where we can find many fish, tortoise and frogs.* The northern part of city can be seen behind the pond.

This picture is taken from the south, which shows the ‘Sinhagad’ fort faraway. This is a famous spot for joggers and morning walkers.

Picture of sunset on the top of hill. The grassland is a wealth of exotic flowers and plants.

Finally, this snapshot captured before the sunset shows the urban jungle of Pune.

I plan to do some more photography of the city and its beautiful surroundings. I hope this natural beauty is preserved as they are the lungs of the city.

Stay tuned to my blog for future travel updates and nature photography.

#Pune #NaturePhotography #SunsetPhotography

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City amidst the hills!

The treasures of Pune!

Pune is one of the top 10 cities in India. Popularly known as the “Oxford of the East”, this city is the educational capital of Maharashtra, and even ranks one of the top cities in the country for living, education and job opportunities. Pune is known for its IT industry just like Bangalore, and is also the automotive hub with several auto manufacturing plants in and around the city. And its my hometown, with my schooling, my college all being completed in this wonderful city.

But the lesser known thing about Pune is that it is one of the few metro cities surrounded by mountains and hills on all its sides. There are many hills and mountains surrounding the city such as Vetal Tekdi ( Tekdi is a local marathi name for hill) in the west which is also known as ARAI hill. The hill is surrounded by regions of Kothrud, Bavdhan, Pune University, Law college and SNDT college. This hill is one of the most beautiful oxygen generating spot in the city. Many people come here for walk during early mornings or evenings. The hill is covered with medium to dense vegetation, and can be accessed by all locations from the city.

Google Maps showing the area covered by the hill

Below are few pictures taken from the Vetal Tekdi which shows different locations of the city.

Picture shows the Kothrud region from the hill

Picture shows the MIT Pune ( this is also my college)

Picture shows the Chandni Chowk-Bavdhan region from the hill

Besides Vetal hill, there is another small hill called Hanuman tekdi, which is located just near the Fergusson college. It is located in the middle of city, surrounded by Fergusson college and S B Road. Then, there is a famous hill called Parvati hill, which is named after the temple located atop the hill. This hill is quite frequently visited by tourists who visit Pune.

Though the Parvati hill is not covered by dense vegetation, but it is joined by another forest within a few miles, which is known as Taljai Hill, and it is filled with lush green forest.

These hills are all located in the west, central and south of Pune. There are small patches of hillocks in the north and east part of Pune as well. But they are not much accessible for trek or sight seeing. But the eastern part of Pune is fairly plain and barren as compared to the mountains and lush green western part of Pune. If we go further away from Pune, we see the tallest mountains such as Sinhagad fort in the south-west, Katraj Ghat in the south and Dive Ghat in the south east. Trekking through these tall mountains is quite a feat.

Thus, I feel Pune is blessed with being surrounded by hills and mountains. We, Punekars ( local people addressed as Pune-kars) always mock Mumbai-kars as they only have beaches for exercise or jogging. But we have the luxury of several hills and mountains for trekking, exercise, jogging and sight-seeing as well. But considering the growing urban jungle expanding the city, it is becoming more important for the Punekars to protect the lungs of the city from urbanization, deforestation and traffic ( air & noise) pollution. The number of people allowed on the hills should be limited to protect the hill from being over-crowded. Also, well-defined paths for walk or trek should be laid out to avoid the possible destruction of flora and fauna.

I plan to visit more hills in near future, and take more pictures just like the above pics taken from Vetal takdi. I missed Pune’s tekdi for 5 years, and it always nice to visit them back! I hope we all protect the environment, forests, and the lungs of the city!