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WELCOME Editor’s musings Firstly, I welcome you all to the first issue of Puthumazha replaced by the modern techniques. We started disrespecting (The first rain), a quarterly magazine published by the the nature. The erratic rainfall and destabilized climate nature club of Central University of Kerala that is function- might have warned most of us that we should not take ing from the Department of Animal Science. everything on the earth granted for misuse or abuse. This The first rain is always special to most of us. It is monsoon brought cheers to many of us. But, we also read indeed special to almost all the creatures on the earth. To that many cash crops have been damaged and agriculturists name few, orchids are waiting for the first rain to initiate are trying to get the compensation. One example is the flowering, many insects and other terrestrial invertebrates ginger and banana cultivation. They are now growing in our are waiting for it to conclude their "seasonal sleep" or old rain-fed rice fields. Our ginger and banana farmer dormancy, migratory birds wait for it to prepare for a return friends would have thought that the normal rain would not flight to their winter home. These days it is not infrequent in come back! our nation that the communities of different castes and Through this magazine, it is aimed to publish a religion worship the lord of rain in one way or other for a variety of the write-ups related to nature and its processes timely normal rain! The Indian Meteorological Department contributed by our students and staff members that include forecasted a normal rainfall for India in 2013 with a the alumni. Due to the time constraints and some practical significant deficit rainfall in Kerala. But, against the difficulties to reach all of you, this issue is prepared with prediction, we have got a more than normal rainfall this some solicited articles only. But, a proper system is now in year! place that allows all of you to submit your write-ups and At certain point of time, I was thinking who is photographs. A call for articles is included in this issue of really waiting for the first rain. Being an agriculturally- Puthumazha that gives you an outline and scope of this oriented country, certainly, the farming sector and the magazine. Since, it is being published from the Department farmers of India are in need of rain. But, now we learnt to of Animal Science, the magazine will also function as an cultivate crops without rain or irrigated water with drought interface to highlight the achievements of the present and tolerant cultivars. We developed seeds and cultivars that can past members of the community of the department. In this grow in silt and flood water! Behind every modern technol- very first issue of the Puthumazha, two traditional cultural ogy there is a good mission, which is always to overcome forest types of the southern Western Ghats are highlighted, biotic an abiotic stress that we experience today or that we the soppinabetta forests and the sacred groves. Dr. Tatjana foresee in recent future. But, unfortunately, we started Good, one of our former guest faculty from Australia writes applying these technologies upon our whims and fancies. in the guest column. Like the recent superb monsoon that we Imagine if tea is growing in the outskirts of Ernakulam city have experienced and enjoyed, I hope you all would be at an altitude of 20 m above sea level! What is wrong in it? longing for every upcoming issues of Puthumazha. We on We have cultivars of tea that can grow in low elevations, this side of fence would try our level best to publish the provided the soil is acidic! But, we have to replace the subsequent issues of Puthumazha in time. I hope the centuries old lowland rain-fed rice fields in that region. diversity of write-ups in this edition will keep you enter- Where will all those creatures that depended the wetlands go tained and informed. I look forward to your comments and if rice is not cultivated there? They may either get extinct or suggestions that can improve the magazine. I also take this flourish to become pests of other existing crops or for the opportunity to thank the Hon. Vice Chancellor, the Registrar, substitute crops! I think we have challenged almost all the the Finance Officer and the Deputy Registrar (Acad/Admin) natural processes and functions through our modern for their support. Happy reading! technology. We thought all our traditional knowledge can be Palatty Allesh Sinu/ Editor ......................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................... Puthumazha (The First Rain) 1 GUEST COLUMN involvement and engagement. or around Earth Day) and is an Research overwhelmingly activity that could easily be demonstrates that students learn organized by a few motivated more effectively when they’re individuals in Nileshwar. doing activities than when they’re Of course, a lot of the waste being lectured to. Therefore, I gets washed up on the beach comes organized several field trips to from elsewhere, so what we find illustrate the practical application on the beach in Nileshwar may not of the information and skills be an exact representation of items learned in class. One such trip took used by the residents of Nileshwar. us to Kavayi Lake, south of However, we ALL use the items Nileswar, where we visited a we have found and are thus wetland and talked to a fisherman contributing to the problem. The Greetings all about mussel farming. It is a great pleasure to be After talking invited to write the guest column about the for CUK’s Nature Club magazine. overexploitation It is always a daunting task to get a of the oceans, we new project off the ground and my took a trip to heartiest congratulations to Dr. Mangalore port Sinu and his colleagues for doing where the students so. conducted I had the opportunity of interviews with spending a semester at CUK, fishermen, ship Riverside Campus in Nileshwar in owners and 2012 through a Fulbright Nehru restaurant owners Visiting Lecturer Fellowship. to understand the During this time I gained some socio-economics valuable insight into the enormous of the situation. potential faculty and students of Similar outings CUK have to promote biodiversity can be organized conservation regionally and by the Nature locally. There are so many projects Club. just waiting to be tackled by Towards the motivated, young and talented end of the students as yourself! semester we I was particularly encouraged to organized a beach see the amount of effort Mr. Sunil clean-up. After gaining some Nileshwar municipality needs to and colleagues from the local NGO understanding of the devastating take the problem of waste more (Neythal) was putting into beach effects of garbage on marine seriously and find ways to reduce patrol, egg collection, maintenance wildlife, especially plastic, we the amount produced, find of a turtle hatchery and picked up everything that was not alternative to plastics and consider environmental education. Many natural on a beach in Nileshwar, adding waste bins on the beach that more projects of this kind are documenting each item as we went are emptied regularly. But for needed, targeting the various along. There was A LOT of stuff: government officials to be sectors of society: local We collected 1441 items over the motivated into action, we need to government officials, regional course of 60min on a 300m stretch help them understand the NGOs, schools and the community of beach. Of those 1441 items, 272 problem(s) and to point them in the at large. (19%) were sandals/shoes!!! Beach right direction. University & My teaching philosophy clean-ups are conducted around the regional municipality partnerships focuses on active student world on a yearly basis (usually on should be pursued and memoranda .......................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................... Puthumazha (The First Rain) 2 of understanding established. One of my students (Pooja Ashok) was interested in understanding the level of environmental literacy in Northern Kerala. Environmental literacy can be defined as a process that creates awareness and understanding of the relationship between humans and their natural environments which then leads to environmentally responsible behaviour. She interviewed people to gage their knowledge of environmental knowledge with questions predominantly targeting local or regional environmental issues. Overall, it was found that environmental knowledge was poor, despite relatively high levels of education. She concluded that a literate individual does not necessarily mean an environmentally

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