Jai & Veeru: The accidental dons of 1,000 hectare Gorewada Jungle Drive
Nagpur: Inside the walled 1,000-hectare
Gorewada Jungle Drive
(GJD) forest on the outskirts of Nagpur, 'Jai' & 'Veeru' walk with a swagger, displaying complete disdain for leopards which abound in the area.
The dynamic duo has ruled the vast forest for a decade now, and no predator dares to cross their path, let alone pick up a fight.
No, 'Jai' & 'Veeru' are not predators with natural killing instincts – rather your friendly neighbourhood
water buffaloes
! But 'friendly' is not a tag which these two carry, and the Gorewada Jungle Drive's leopards can vouch for that. The two are massive in size, almost giving a 'bison' feel. The duo feed off verdant grass and are not subjected to any 'work', like their city counterparts.
S Bhagwat, in-charge of the Gorewada zoo project, said "Their size is massive because they are feral, which means not wild and not domesticated either. They eat as much as they want, they rest as much as they want and wander off as per their mood. In city, water buffaloes follow a specific schedule based on human interference. But here, they live by their rules." But being feral means, others around them must respect boundaries.
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Bhagwat said, "They won't harm you. But if you get too close, or make them uncomfortable, then feral animals charge." Dozens upon dozens of leopards seemed to have learnt this lesson in the last decade, which is why nobody messes with 'Jai' and 'Veeru'. And just like the movie 'Sholay', it was destiny which brought this Jai-Veeru jodi to Gorewada.
Back in 2014, they were young water buffaloes munching on grass, completely unaware that the last portion of the boundary wall had been set up, closing all exit routes forever.
And since then, these two have mastered the landscape, survived leopards and other hazards to emerge as the real kings of the jungle. The next time you book a safari at GJD, keep an eye out for Jai-Veeru. If you are lucky, you might see the regal duo, walking through the thickets surveying the vast lands which they now lord over.
Nagpur: Inside the walled 1,000-hectare Gorewada Jungle Drive (GJD) forest on the outskirts of Nagpur, 'Jai' & 'Veeru' walk with a swagger, displaying complete disdain for leopards which abound in the area.
The dynamic duo has ruled the vast forest for a decade now, and no predator dares to cross their path, let alone pick up a fight.
No, 'Jai' & 'Veeru' are not predators with natural killing instincts – rather your friendly neighbourhood water buffaloes! But 'friendly' is not a tag which these two carry, and the Gorewada Jungle Drive's leopards can vouch for that. The two are massive in size, almost giving a 'bison' feel. The duo feed off verdant grass and are not subjected to any 'work', like their city counterparts.
S Bhagwat, in-charge of the Gorewada zoo project, said "Their size is massive because they are feral, which means not wild and not domesticated either. They eat as much as they want, they rest as much as they want and wander off as per their mood. In city, water buffaloes follow a specific schedule based on human interference. But here, they live by their rules." But being feral means, others around them must respect boundaries.
Bhagwat said, "They won't harm you. But if you get too close, or make them uncomfortable, then feral animals charge." Dozens upon dozens of leopards seemed to have learnt this lesson in the last decade, which is why nobody messes with 'Jai' and 'Veeru'. And just like the movie 'Sholay', it was destiny which brought this Jai-Veeru jodi to Gorewada.
Back in 2014, they were young water buffaloes munching on grass, completely unaware that the last portion of the boundary wall had been set up, closing all exit routes forever. And since then, these two have mastered the landscape, survived leopards and other hazards to emerge as the real kings of the jungle. The next time you book a safari at GJD, keep an eye out for Jai-Veeru. If you are lucky, you might see the regal duo, walking through the thickets surveying the vast lands which they now lord over.
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