IUCN SSC Asian Rhino Specialist Group

After a Bachelors degree in Physics, I studied seed dispersal by large mammals in a tropical dry forest in Southern India for my M.S. Degree in Ecology and then went on to study elephants and their interactions with the habitats in Rajaji-Corbett National Parks in North West India for a Ph.D. During this time, my work involved estimating elephant population numbers using a mark-resight methods, studying elephant ranging using telemetry, assessing human-elephant conflict and the interaction between elephants and their food plants. Over the years I have worked species and issues as diverse as saving Olive ridley sea turtles hatchlings to finding a suitable sites for translocation of Asiatic lions and Indian rhinos to create new populations and have lobbied for setting up of new protected areas. I have also helped WWF field staff employ cutting edge technologies to study the impact of the expansion of agricultural commodities (eg. Oil palm, coffee, tea etc.) on elephant and rhino habitats including tracking elephants. In my current position over the last 15 years, I have visited every single Asian elephant and rhino range country and have helped with developing programmes to address some of the challenges these species face in their struggle for survival. I work on illegal wildlife trade in ivory and rhino horn, improving PA management and addressing the impact of developmental infrastructure (eg. Roads, dams, oil drilling etc.) on elephant and rhino conservation through lobbying with investors, transferring best practices in mitigating elephant-human conflict between sites and networking extensively with Government, NGOs and Inter-governmental agencies to present a unified approach on critical conservation issues. In addition, I have been the principal investigator of a project monitoring Elephant Population Parameters in Rajaji-Corbett NP since 1995.