The Covid-19 lockdown in 2020 provided IAS officer Nitin Khade time to share stories about rhino poaching in parts of Assam's Kaziranga National Park, where he was posted as a district magistrate years ago. As schools remained shut and the home became his workstation in Guwahati, Khade, the 2004 batch IAS of Assam-Meghalaya cadre, was forced to share his story with his two sons.
While telling stories to his children at bedtime, Khade recorded them on his mobile phone in episodes. As his children found the stories very interesting, Khade decided to give them the shape of a graphic novel. "I also shared audio stories in the WhatsApp group of my extended family. And the children in my in-law's house also found them thrilling and interesting. Their interest brought the idea of converting them into a graphic novel. Accordingly, I found Shruti Kshirsagar for an illustration of the stories and gave it the shape of a graphic novel in October this year," Khade said.
Khade, now 44, is posted as Chief Electoral Officer, Assam. He originally hails from Maharashtra's Satara district.
The story revolves around how young animals caught hold of a wildlife poacher, the myths surrounding the use of rhino horns and the success story for conservation of the prized one-horned rhinos in Kaziranga, their largest home. Kaziranga now has 2,613 one-horned rhinos (2018 Census) but poaching remained a serious concern until a few years ago.
The 77-page graphic novel is now available in e-book format and will soon be in print.
"I have always wanted to convey a social message that rhino horn has no medicinal value. It is inhumane to kill innocent rhinos for their horns. In this regard, Kaziranga's conservation story is a grand success. But I wanted to take these stories to more and more people, particularly children. I just hope that the children will love this graphic novel," Khade told DH on Sunday.