To commemorate World Photography Day on 19 August 2021, our Counter Wildlife Trafficking Programme held its Annual Photography Contest for all their trainee officers. Officers from different enforcement agencies across the country sent us their photographs.
We had four categories to choose from based on the pictures received. They are: Best Wildlife Photograph 2021, Best Mobile-Camera Wildlife Photograph, Perfect Timing Photograph and Best Wildlife Macro Photograph.
Below are the winners of the Best Wildlife Photograph 2021 category:
First place: River terns by Mr. Manohar Mhasekar, Range Forest Officer, Maharashtra FD
Second place: Painted spurfowl and chicks by Mr. P. Mahesh, Deputy Range Forest Officer, Karnataka FD
Third place: Yellow-bellied fantail by Mr. Lansothung Lotha, Range Forest Officer, Nagaland FD
The following photos came very close to being in top three in the Best Wildlife Photograph 2021 category, so we would like to give a special mention to:
Yellow-throated bulbuls by Mr. Venkatesh Naik H., Deputy Range Forest Officer, Karnataka FD
Kingfisher by Mr. Yogesh Suresh Deshmukh, Forest Guard, Maharashtra FD
Flamingos by Ms. Shital Nagrale, Range Forest Officer, Maharashtra FD
Barn owl by Mr. Yuvraj Marathe, Forest Guard, Maharashtra FD
The winner in the category of Best Mobile Camera Photograph, for images taken on a smartphone or using mobile camera, is honey bee by Mr. Ravindra Koli, Forest Guard, Maharashtra FD.
The following photos came very close to winning in the Best Mobile Camera Photograph category, so we would like to give a special mention in this category to:
Cuckoo wasp by Mr. Akash Sarda, Forest Guard, Maharashtra FD
Scorpion by Mr. Amol Appa Khude, Forest Guard, Maharashtra FD
Pupa by Ms. Varsha Bansi Jagtap, Forest Guard, Maharashtra FD
The winner in the category of Perfect Timing Photograph, for images that capture wildlife in a comedic or candid manner, is Jackal – I hate Mondays by Mr. Rahul Singh Sikarwar, Range Forest Officer, Madhya Pradesh FD.
The following photos came very close to winning in the Perfect Timing Photograph category, so we would like to give a special mention in this category to:
Spotted owlet – thank god it’s Friday by Ms. Punam Ashokrao Sarode, Forest Guard, Maharashtra FD
Tawny eagles – guards on duty Mr. Danveer, Forest Guard, Rajasthan FD
Indian robin – mirror mirror on the bike..? by Ms. Aarti Fule, Forest Guard, Maharashtra FD
The winner in the category of Best Wildlife Macro Photograph, for close-up images that capture small details of wildlife, is Dragonfly by Mr. Shendge Aadeshkumar, Assistant Conservator of Forests, Maharashtra FD.
Congratulations to all the winners of our contest! We thank each and everyone of them for sending their best shots.