10 Conservationists of India
India has a long history of efforts to protect wildlife and manage natural resources, shaped by both state policy and local practice. Early examples include the 3rd-century-bce edicts of the Mauryan emperor Ashoka, which called for restraint in the use of forests and animals, as well as long-standing beliefs and customs among communities that emphasized coexistence with the natural world. In the modern period, conservation has developed through the work of individuals from varied fields, and their initiatives have influenced public policy, research, and local stewardship. The following list brings together 10 of these conservationists and outlines their contributions.
Amrita Devi Beniwal
Amrita Devi Beniwal, a member of the Bishnoi community of Rajasthan—renowned for its environmental ethic—is regarded as one of India’s earliest conservation martyrs. On September 11, 1730, she was beheaded by the maharaja (ruler) of Jodhpur’s men for refusing to allow the felling of a khejri tree (Prosopis cineraria), considered sacred by the community. For the construction of the maharaja’s palace, the men had been ordered to procure wood from the village of Khejarli, western Rajasthan. Beniwal reportedly stood before their axes, embraced a tree, and declared, “Sar santey rukh rahe to bhi sasto jan” (“If a tree is saved at the cost of one’s head, it is a cheap price to pay”). She was followed by her three daughters and other Bishnoi villagers in a collective act of resistance that culminated in a massacre, in which 363 community members were killed. Their sacrifice later inspired the Chipko movement of the 1970s, which sought to protect forests from state-supported logging. In recognition of this legacy, the Government of India instituted the Amrita Devi Bishnoi Wildlife Protection Award to honor exceptional courage and service in the field of conservation. The country also observes National Forest Martyrs’ Day on September 11 every year to commemorate her sacrifice.
Sunderlal Bahuguna
A leading figure in the Chipko movement (1970s to early 1980s), Sunderlal Bahuguna was an Indian social activist and environmentalist who advocated for the protection of Himalayan forests and ecosystems through nonviolent means. Guided by Gandhian principles of satyagraha (nonviolent resistance), he, along with other leaders such as Chandi Prasad Bhatt and Gaura Devi, organized marches, hunger strikes, and public campaigns against deforestation and ecologically harmful development. These efforts contributed to policy measures favoring conservation, including a 15-year ban on the felling of living trees in the area announced in 1980 by Indian Prime Minister Indira Gandhi. Bahuguna led sustained opposition to the Tehri Dam project from the 1980s to the early 2000s. His maxim “Ecology is permanent economy” became a slogan of the Chipko movement and remains associated with the principle of sustainable development. His honors include the Right Livelihood Award (1987), received on behalf of the Chipko movement, and the Padma Vibhushan (2009), India’s second highest civilian award.
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Kailash Sankhala
Shifting from issuing hunting licenses in his earlier years to driving the ban on wildlife hunting, Kailash Sankhala’s story as a conservation crusader began with the remorse he felt when he had to shoot a tiger (Panthera tigris) as part of his job as an Indian forester. He subsequently became a leading opponent of game hunting, which was popular among sections of India’s wealthy landowners and foreign tourists in the mid-20th century. While serving in the Indian Forest Service and later as director of the Delhi Zoological Park, he advocated for hunting bans and the conservation of endangered fauna, particularly the Bengal tiger (P. tigris tigris). Sankhala’s field research on India’s tigers helped lay the groundwork for the centrally funded tiger conservation initiative Project Tiger, which was launched in 1973. He served as its first project director. The program began with 9 reserves holding an estimated 268 tigers, and by 2022 it encompassed 57 reserves with 3,682 tigers. He campaigned against hunting, poaching, and trade in big cats and raised concerns about declining tiger numbers in national and international forums, including the International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN). His advocacy contributed to the nationwide ban on tiger hunting in 1970 and to the Wild Life (Protection) Act of 1972. Often called the “Tiger Man of India,” Sankhala received the Padma Shri (India’s fourth highest civilian award) in 1992.
Jamuna Tudu
More than two centuries after Amrita Devi Beniwal resisted a maharaja’s order to fell trees, rural women in the Indian state of Jharkhand organized armed resistance against illegal logging by timber mafias. They were led by Jamuna Tudu, widely known as “Lady Tarzan” for her resolve and leadership. Since the late 1990s, Tudu has become a prominent figure in a grassroots ecological movement to protect vulnerable forest tracts in the region. Under the direction of Tudu’s Van Suraksha Samiti (Forest Protection Committee), groups conduct regular patrols over vast tracts of forested land in collaboration with local police and forest authorities to deter illicit felling. She has also promoted afforestation and encouraged the adoption of alternative fuels to reduce dependence on firewood. In recognition of her bravery, her efforts, and the risks she faced in opposing organized timber interests, Tudu was awarded the Godfrey Phillips National Bravery Award in 2014 and the Padma Shri in 2019.
Rajendra Singh
Environmentalist Rajendra Singh, famous as the “water man of India,” has devoted his career to the restoration of water bodies and the promotion of water security in some of India’s driest regions. He advocates what he describes as the “wisdom of the land,” which combines traditional ecological knowledge with contemporary scientific approaches to support river rejuvenation and groundwater recharge. Beginning in the mid-1980s, his initiatives have contributed to ecological restoration and to changes in the lives and livelihoods of local communities through water conservation. His work in the Chambal River valley, an area historically associated with organized banditry, has coincided with the transition of some former outlaws toward agricultural livelihoods. Singh and his organization, Tarun Bharat Sangh (Indian Youth Association), have constructed more than 8,600 traditional earthen dams, known locally as johads, and have supported the revival of more than 20 rivers and rivulets flowing across drought-prone regions of the Indian states of Rajasthan, Karnataka, Maharashtra, and Madhya Pradesh. His efforts have received recognition through awards including the Ramon Magsaysay Award (2001) and the Stockholm Water Prize (2015).
Purnima Devi Barman
Another proponent of community-led management of nature and natural resources is biologist Purnima Devi Barman. Concerned by the decline in the population and nesting sites of the greater adjutant stork (Leptoptilos dubius) in her native state of Assam, she initiated an awareness campaign and mobilized rural women to protect the species. In the mid-2000s, the stork—known locally as hargila (“bone-swallower”)—was declining because of habitat destruction and cultural aversion that threatened its survival. Widely regarded as an ill omen and disliked for its scavenging habits, the bird faced hostility in many communities. While studying the species for doctoral research, Barman began efforts to change local perceptions. These developed into a broader cultural movement: Birds once reviled came to be represented in folk songs and rituals and were incorporated into traditional attire as positive cultural symbols. Barman established the Hargila Army, an all-women conservation group about 20,000 strong by the mid-2020s and dedicated to protecting the species. Their efforts have led to an increase in the number of greater adjutant storks in Assam from 430 in 2007–08 to more than 1,800 in 2023, when the species’ conservation status was revised from endangered to near threatened. For her leadership in community engagement and conservation, Barman received the Whitley Gold Award in 2024 and was named one of Time magazine’s Women of the Year in 2025.
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Jadav Payeng
Jadav Payeng is on a mission to fight climate change by planting one forest at a time. Beginning in 1979, when he was hired as a laborer in an Assam state-sponsored afforestation drive, Payeng planted and tended a forest on a barren sandbar of the Brahmaputra River. Spread over 1,360 acres (550 hectares), Mulai (or Molai) Kathoni (literally, “Mulai’s forest”) is named for Payeng’s middle name, Mulai, and is a prime example of a human-made forest. He began by planting bamboo and transporting ants and earthworms to the site to help rejuvenate the soil. The area now contains more than 100 species of plants—including cotton tree (Bombax ceiba), north Indian rosewood (Dalbergia sissoo), and monkey pod tree (Samanea saman)—and supports large mammals such as deer, tigers, rhinoceroses, and occasionally visiting elephants in addition to a number of migratory birds. The success of this initial forestry effort encouraged Payeng’s daughter, Munmuni, to plant a second forest, Mulai Kathoni 2.0. His work earned him the Padma Shri in 2015.
Medha Patkar
A prominent figure in the anti-dam protests that erupted across India in the mid-1980s, Medha Patkar, a social activist and environmentalist, is known for her involvement in movements concerning large dam projects on the Narmada River and their environmental and social consequences. Through the organization Narmada Bachao Andolan (Save the Narmada), which she helped establish, she drew attention to the ecological and livelihood impacts associated with the Narmada Valley Development Project and called for public scrutiny of large-scale river development. She worked with local communities to develop methods of energy generation and water harvesting and became linked with conservation efforts that focused on the environmental and human aspects of river and dam projects. Patkar has also lent her voice to the opposition of large-scale industrial and development projects that threaten to displace Indigenous and rural communities. She received the Goldman Environmental Prize in 1992 for her environmental activism.
Romulus Whitaker
Famous as the “snakeman of India,” Romulus Whitaker has spent most of his life studying snakes and educating people about them. He established India’s first snake park, the Chennai Snake Park (formerly the Madras Snake Park), in 1969. Located on about one acre (0.4 hectare) within the Guindy National Park campus, it has grown into one of the country’s leading centers for reptile conservation, research, and education. Whitaker has also founded a reptile research center and gene bank, including initiatives for critically endangered crocodiles, and helped set up wildlife research stations in the rainforests of the Western Ghats. When the Wild Life Protection Act of 1972 put the Indigenous Irula community of southern India—whose livelihood depended on catching snakes and selling their skins—out of work, Whitaker stepped in. He helped establish a snake catchers’ cooperative that allowed the tribe to continue catching snakes and extracting venom without harming them. Whitaker’s lasting legacy lies in his efforts to change public attitudes toward snakes and his contributions to India’s venom research. Through films, writing, and outreach, he has sought to explain their ecological importance and to promote practical ways of avoiding snakebites. His many honors include an Emmy Award for the 1997 documentary King Cobra and the Padma Shri (2018) for his contributions to reptile conservation and public awareness.
Sonali Ghosh
In 2023 Sonali Ghosh became the field director of Kaziranga National Park and Tiger Reserve, the first woman to lead the park since its establishment. In the two years that followed, Kaziranga came under a style of management that sought to be inclusive of both people and methods. To address recurring floods, poaching, and increasing human pressures on the park, Ghosh combined modern scientific tools with traditional ecological knowledge. She also brought local communities into the process of wildlife conservation, working to ensure that the park’s wildlife and ecosystems were protected without undermining the livelihoods of those living in and around Kaziranga who depend on it for sustenance. Ghosh’s work was recognized by the IUCN’s World Commission on Protected Areas, which conferred her with the Kenton R. Miller Award for Innovation in National Parks and Protected Area Sustainability in 2025, making her the first Indian to receive the honor. It follows earlier recognition for her conservation efforts, notably her work at Manas National Park, where she oversaw the first successful rehabilitation and release of captive-bred clouded leopards (Neofelis nebulosa) into the wild.
Honorable mentions
Among the many pioneers and leaders who have shaped wildlife and ecosystem conservation in India, the following merit special mention:
- Jim Corbett was a hunter turned conservationist who played a key role in establishing India’s first national park, Hailey National Park, later renamed Jim Corbett National Park in his honor.
- Sálim Ali was an ornithologist and naturalist who conducted the first systematic bird surveys across India and helped popularize ornithology, earning the sobriquet “Birdman of India.”
- Mahesh Chandra Mehta, as an environmental lawyer, secured from India’s Supreme Court more than 40 landmark judgments on industrial pollution and was instrumental in introducing lead-free petrol in India.
- Madhav Gadgil was an ecologist whose scientific work contributed to the creation of India’s first biosphere reserve, the Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve, in 1986.
- Jayshree Vencatesan, a conservationist, has been recognized for her efforts to protect Tamil Nadu’s wetlands and marshes; in 2025 she became the first Indian recipient of the Ramsar Award for the wise use of wetlands.
