Going to Ranthambhore National Park has become a ritual that I religiously follow once a month. This time around, I happened to speak to Ramsiya, a woman who waves to us every time our gypsy passes by the Singhdwar Chowki (outpost) in the forest.
Ranthambhore Tiger Reserve (RTR) has as many as 200 forest guards. The 30-something Ramsiya is the only woman who is designated inside the jungle. She looks after the Singhdwar Chowki – the entry pass to zone 1, 4 and 5 of RTR.
As a working mother who cannot afford to keep her child at a crèche, Ramsiya prefers bringing the 19-month-old Tanuj to ‘work’ that involves looking after more than 60 wild tigers. I like how the whole idea of ‘bring your child to work’ is not limited to corporate anymore!
During the conversation, Ramsiya told me how she has been patrolling in RTR for last four years and even continued working through most of her pregnancy. She told me, “I joined the RTR forest department about four years ago. After that, I got married in Sawai Madhopur which is 17 km away from Ranthambhore. I continued with my job since it’s a government job that pays me well. Also, I like it amidst the wilderness.
Ramsiya’s job involves keeping a track of the safari vehicles that enter her zones, reporting the tiger movement through walky-talky to forest officials and guides, noticing any unnatural behavior of the wild animals so that timely medication can reach to them, and making sure no poacher enters the jungle.
Did she have to take a long break from work after her son was born?
“After my son’s delivery, I took a very small maternity break because I couldn’t keep myself away from the tigers for long,” laughed Ramsiya.
In order to let her husband enjoy a sound sleep after long night shifts at work, Ramsiya prefers bringing their naughty son to work. She shared, “Tanuj’s schedule involves eating, sleeping during the day, and later, playing around the chowki. He makes sure he says ‘hello’ and ‘bye’ to every tourist entering the gate of the zone. Sometimes, tourists take pictures with him because he’s always smiling. He adds giggles to the mysterious silence of Ranthambhore.”
Before leaving, I interrogated the lil’ one with the most difficult question – “What’s your name?” To which, he giggled and replied, “Sultan.”
In case you don’t know, Sultan is the name of a tiger, son of two ferocious, strong and beautiful tigers T-39 (Noor) and T-24 (Ustaad) of Ranthambhore.The department guides and drivers fondly call Tanuj ‘Sultan’ after the real one left to create his territory outside RTR sometime back.
