IN SEARCH OF BARTA WHEN THE BAMBOO FLOWERS
Text by Tanmoy Ghosh.
Leporiang – an obscure and picturesque village in the Papum Pare district, bounded by East Kameng District in the west and the state of Assam in the south, is roughly 180 kms from Itanagar .The village is dominated by the wonderful Nyishi tribe who prefers to live in isolation, and has proudly retained most of their original cultural and religious traditions and self-sustaining lifestyle. Lush green valleys, lofty mountains, virgin rain forest and numerous snow-fed streams and rivers have made this small village a Nature’s bounty.
Help Tourism and ACT, in association with the Itanagar-based Duyu Tours had organized a series of expeditions in Leporiang area for filming the Gregarious flowering of Bamboo on behalf of Discovery Channel/Animal Planet. The filming was a great success, and the film entitled “When the Bamboo Flowers”, was telecast by Discovery Channel, all over the world on the 12th November, 2006-thanks to Mr.Gaddi, the then C.O of Leoporiang Circle, Nabam Hanyia-the Secretary of the Gaon Bura Committee, all the Gaon Buras of Leoporiang Circle, Nabam Radhe- a community leader and his team, and the local villagers.
The expeditions had not only revealed many interesting aspects of the Nyshi tradition and the legends associated with the flowering of Bamboos, but also helped us in gaining understanding about their social custom and community life. The outstanding conservation initiatives of the local Gaon Buras(GB) to stop hunting deserves appreciation and support.
Few surveys were conducted while the filming-expedition was in progress, and it was found that the Leoporiang circle is extra-ordinarily rich in various species of Medicinal Plants and Bamboos, Butterfly, Insects, Bird life and Herpetic fauna. It was during the survey and filming that our team came to know about an unknown species of Pit Viper, locally known as BARTA. Few research-expeditions were, later organized by ACT with noted Herpetologists Mr.Kedar Bhide and Mr.Ashok Captain as leaders, and Mr. Sishir Adhikary and Mr. Duyu Tamo as Field Coordinators. The survey has further substantiated the assumption that BARTA could be a new species of Pit Viper- first ever recorded in the Indian Sub-continent. Confirmation from the expert scientists is expected soon.
