Pitchandikulam Forest

Parvathi Nagarajan is a healer, herbalist, educator and community builder who spent 24 years running and supporting Pitchandikulam Forest projects in local communities.

On the 4th January, many people were shocked to see many Service trees (Peltophorum pterocarpum/ Copper Pod tree) being felled on the Crown between the Solar Kitchen and Mahalakshmi Home.

On 19 March, Eric Ramanujam passed away at the age of 58 in PIMS, where he had been taken due to advanced jaundice. Many of us know his beautiful and educative wild life stone paintings placed in Pitchandikulam, at the visitors walk way to the Visitors’ Centre, as well as at the toll plaza of the East Coast Road.

As Auroville's forests have grown over the years, new wildlife corridors have evolved, which have brought new kinds of animals to the area. A large bear has reportedly been sighted in Pitchandikulam Forest in recent months.

Last month the dried plant collection of the Auroville Herbarium moved to a new dedicated building in the Botanical Gardens. Funded by SAIIER, inaugurated this March, slowed down a bit by corona, its establishment marks a new phase in the work of preserving and classifying our indigenous flora.

Pitchandikulam Forest has issued its 2019-2020 newsletter which includes: reflective musings on the 47-year old history of Pitchandikulam Forest; the story of a monograph on the Owls of South Asia; a report on Pitchandikulam Forest’s nursery which is responsible for the growing of around 20,000 seedlings a year to help re-establish the Tropical Dry Evergreen Forest (TDEF) in Tamil Nadu; a report on the Environmental Leadership and Skill Development Programme for 350 Rural Women; the work of Pitchandikulam Forest in building water retention landscapes and the restoration of the twin lakes of Siruseri Chennai; environmental artwork for Toyota Kirloskar Motors, Bangalore, on a 25-acres ECOZONE; and creating a master plan for an Ecopark/Nature lab and teaching space for practitioners of Restoration Ecology on a piece of land near Ousteri lake.

The A4A team reports on the results of supporters’ solidarity.

It’s that time of year again. Aurovilian eyes are burning, heads are aching, throats and noses are sore, and so many of us feel exhausted and nauseous.

Survey markings in the Greenbelt installed by a consultant working for the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) revealed that plans were afoot to build a four-lane National Highway through the Auroville Green Belt for a length of 3.5 kilometers, crossing the Forecomers, Pitchandikulam and Aurogreen areas.

Markings left by a consultant working for the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) revealed that plans are afoot to design a 4-lane National Highway from Ayyur near Vilianur to the north of Kalapet before the toll gate.

Auroville displays an increasing amount of art in public spaces. Two of the recent murals are telephone-themed and are located on telephone boxes on the Auroville main road near Kindergarten and the Eukies field.

From 4th December - 7th January, an Ecovillage Design Education (EDE) course was held in Auroville for the first time. The Aurovilian organizers invited participants not only from Auroville but also from the bioregion, India and the world.

Elvira, a Spanish Aurovilian from Catalonia, who lived with her partner Jean-François Audic in Pitchandikulam, passed away in Spain in the morning of Tuesday 9 August after a struggle with cancer.

Alain Bernard, a trustee of Auroville Village Action, introduces the Sustainable Livelihood Institute (SLI) project, a joint project of Auroville and the Government of Tamil Nadu.

On 2nd January, Aurovilian Georges Blanchet left his body at the age of 65 in PIMS hospital. He had suffered a general systems collapse caused by a long-festering lung infection, which had become only apparent a few weeks before.

Kavitha was one of four Aurovilians who recently attended the Global Eco-village Networks’ (GEN) 20+ Summit, held in Findhorn, Scotland. There she represented Auroville as well as Youth Link.