Bittu Sahgal

Bittu Sahgal
Born 12 October 1947
Shimla
Residence Mumbai
Education B.Com
Occupation Writer, environmental activist
Years active 1981–present
Employer Sanctuary Asia
Home town Mumbai
Spouse(s) Madhu Sahgal
Children Tara Sahgal and Miel Sahgal

Bittu Sahgal, an Environmental activist and writer, is the founding editor of Sanctuary Asia, India's premier wildlife and ecology magazine. He is a member of the National Board for Wildlife of the Ministry of Environment and Forests.[1] He is also at the forefront of the battle to protect India from the worst impacts of climate change.[2][3]

Early life

Born on 12 October 1947 in Shimla, where he graduated from Bishop Cotton High School in 1963. He grew up in Kolkata before moving to Mumbai in 1970, where he currently lives.[4] He has been associated with Project Tiger from its inception and was greatly influenced by Dr Salim Ali the famous "Birdman of India", Kailash Sankhala, the first Director of Project Tiger and Fateh Singh Rathore, Field Director, Ranthambhore Tiger Reserve, to propagate the concept of tiger protection in India.[5]

Publications

He founded Sanctuary Asia in 1981 at the suggestion of Fateh Singh Rathore who told him "Start a wildlife magazine. So that city people learn to appreciate wildlife and do less damage!".[5] He founded Cub Magazine, which is now edited by his daughter, Tara Sahgal.[6] He has authored numerous book on wildlife including, most recently: India Naturally, The Bandhavgarh Inheritance, The Sundarbans Inheritance, The Bharatpur Inheritance, The Kaziranga Inheritance, The Corbett Inheritance and The Periyar Inheritance.[7] He writes for both English and local language newspapers and magazines in India. He has produced over 30 conservation-related documentaries.[8] He contributes regularly to Bittu Sahgal's Blog where he expounds on topical environmental issues.[9]

Kids for Tigers

He founded Kids for Tigers, the Sanctuary Tiger Programme in the year 2000. A mass contact campaign, this reaches out to over 650 schools in 15 Indian cities and covers one million children. Their mission is simple; Kids for Tigers wishes to convey to adults that: "The tiger will only be saved if its forests are saved. By saving these forests, India protects over 600 of its purest rivers and in the process the forests sequester and store carbon in the most effective way possible."

References

  1. ↑ "Annexure-1" (PDF), Summary records of the 21st Meeting of the Standing Committee of National Board for Wildlife (NBWL), New Delhi: Ministry of Environment and Forests, Wildlife Division, 24 January 2011, retrieved 14 April 2011
  2. ↑ "Prerna Singh Bindra in a têtê-à-têtê with Bittu Sahgal". Sanctuary Asia. Retrieved 2011-09-30.
  3. ↑ Sahgal, Bittu (January 2012 1). "Climate Change Updates". Sanctuary Asia. Retrieved 9 January 2012. Check date values in: |date= (help)
  4. ↑ "Info – Bittu Sahgal". Facebook. 29 September 2011.
  5. 1 2 "Bittu Sehgal, Environmentalist And Editor of Sanctuary Magazine – His Story". Youngbuzz. Retrieved 2011-09-30.
  6. ↑ Sahgal, Bittu (April 201 1). "National Shame". Sanctuary Asia. Retrieved 11 December 2011. Check date values in: |date= (help)
  7. ↑ Sahgal, Bittu (2012-1-5 1). "Sanctuary Books". Sanctuary Asia. Retrieved 9 January 2012. Check date values in: |date= (help)
  8. ↑ "On a mission to save the tiger", The Hindu, New Delhi: Kasturi & Sons Ltd, 6 August 2009, retrieved 2011-09-30
  9. ↑ Sahgal, Bittu (2012-1-5 1). "Bittu Sahgal's Blog". Sanctuary Asia. Retrieved 9 January 2012. Check date values in: |date= (help)
This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the 6/4/2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.