Vishwas Dattatray Katdare

Wildlife Service Awards (2008)

(Bhau) Katdare protects species that most Indians have never even heard of, let alone seen. In the quiet of his Konkan homeland in Maharashtra, he fights to keep a population of Indian Swiftlets safe from the international trade that profts from edible-nest-soup buyers. His perseverance saw a fledgling organisation, the Sahyadri Nisarga Mitra (SNM), started in 1992 in Chiplun, turn into a force to reckon with in Maharashtra’s Konkan region. White-bellied Sea Eagles, White-rumped Vultures and olive ridley turtle nesting sites are also protected by Bhau and his volunteers. A Member of the Maharashtra State Wildlife Advisory Board, he is currently involved in documenting the Konkan’s flora and fauna on film. Bhau Katdare believes that education can make a significant difference to wildlife protection and has initiated several community and action-oriented programmes.