Silpa V Kumar belongs to 2011 batch of Indian Forest Service and allotted to Kerala Cadre. A Post Graduate in Forestry, she started her affectionate association with forests and wildlife from college days. Silpa was the first lady officer to hold the prestigious position of Wildlife Warden, Silent Valley National Park, Kerala between 2014 and 2017. Widely travelled in the country and well-read, she had given considerable impetus to the multi-dimensional management of the National Park with particular focus on nature awareness, research, monitoring and human ecology. Currently she is officiating as the Deputy Director, Periyar Tiger Reserve, Kerala.

Talk Synopsis: Silent Valley: The land, landscape and life

Silent Valley National Park needs no introduction. It is the icon of conservation movement in the country. Silent Valley, as mystique and pristine as it sounds, is a land where life has evolved into most fecund forms. Even on a planetary scale, it is unparalleled in terms of biological diversity. Millions of years of evolution and the intricate processes in the landscape have sculptured these rainforests into a rich cauldron of life. Words cant describe the majesty of the biological opulence of Silent Valley. One needs to experience it. Over the years, the National Park has been facing its own challenges too.  In the modern era, the battles for conserving these rain forests ranged from saving the National Park from damming the Kunthi River to addressing human unrest and extremism in the landscape. Silpa portrays before you the conservation ethos of Silent Valley and her personal experience in managing the National Park.