Alia Mir, the only woman wildlife rescuer in Jammu and Kashmir, is a prominent name in the field today, known for her work in rescuing and rehabilitating wild animals for over 17 years. Aaliya recently received the Wildlife Conservation Award from the Government of Jammu and Kashmir for her extraordinary efforts in the field. She is the first woman of the state to receive this award.
A few years ago, Aaliya became the talk of the town in the Kashmir region after her video of rescuing wild animals went viral. She is the first woman wildlife rescuer from Kashmir Valley and Program Head of Wildlife SOS Jammu and Kashmir. Alia has been rescuing snakes, bears, birds, leopards and other animals.
becoming a wildlife rescuer
At the start of her career, Alia faced several challenges as she was entering a male-dominated profession. Many people questioned her abilities based on her gender until they saw her rescue an animal.
But Aaliya’s team at Wildlife SOS Jammu & Kashmir never doubted her and always encouraged her at work. “Difficulties are everywhere, but it also depends on the team you are working with. I cannot be thankful enough to the almighty, that I have had the best of colleagues and the work environment was encouraging. Didn’t feel that way.” I am the only woman in this area. I feel blessed to have such an environment to work in.”
Alia is married to a veterinarian and, she says, it helped her explore the field of wildlife rescue better.
“Every parent in the valley wanted their daughter to either become a doctor or go into teaching, these two professions are considered good for girls and my family wanted the same for me. But fortunately, I was married to a I met a veterinarian and through that, I got a chance to explore this area. I started volunteering, and it felt like wildlife rescue was my destiny,” Mir said of how she got into the profession.
Man-animal conflict in Kashmir
Man-animal conflict is on the rise in Kashmir due to rapid urbanization and waste management activities. Alia suggested that instead of rapid development and increase in tourism, sustainable development and eco-tourism should be adopted.
“It was a dream to see a brown bear in the valley, but now you put some garbage out and you will see a brown bear, why is this happening? Waste management is a failure because all wild animals are attracted to garbage. Come leopard Because they see a lot of dogs near garbage dumps. That’s why leopards are roaming in cities and not in forests. We are doing multi-cropping in paddy fields and hence wild animals like bears come to these areas,” she explained.