Labourer From Gujarat Sets An Example For Animal Lovers As He Saves More Than 500 Whale Sharks

Dinesh Gohil from Kodinar lives in a tiny house somewhere in the district of Kodinar, Saurashtra in Gujarat. A daily wage labourer, he lives a normal life with his family. However, he gets calls on a random day if there is any animal needing help on a beach, in the forest, or near residential areas. Goswami is the go-to person for anything that has to do with rescuing animals.

Newspapers and NGOs scream at us about how the environment is endangered and how we need to protect it. And despite the publicity of the gory picture of it all, there are those who have had no exposure to the concept of global warming or endangered species, but are responsible for saving a large number of the few of these creatures who remain. Dinesh Goswami is one of them.

A labourer in a factory in Kodinar in Saurashtra, Goswami did not really know the importance of whale sharks that migrated to the coast of Saurashtra. These sharks would get stuck in the nets, or die due to some form of suffocation and be found on the coast. Near Kodinar. Goswami¡¯s life changed when he met award winning director Mike Pandey who informed him about the marine creatures. Since then, there has been no looking back for Goswami. He runs an NGO called Prakruti Nature Club, Kodinar where people from around the place call him to rescue animals. He has so far, saved more than 500 whale sharks on his own.

He began this operation alone after 1997, when he would stay in touch with the heads of villages on the coast and get calls from them whenever there was a whale shark spotted in trouble. He would go ahead in a fisherman¡¯s boat, free the creature and come back to his normal job as a labourer. ¡°Sometimes it takes not more than 15 minutes, and sometimes it takes an hour to detangle these sharks. They are large in size which is only one of the challenges I faced in rescuing them,¡± Goswami told us.

Rescuing Olive Ridley Turtles

¡°I am not educated enough to do this, but all I have is love for the nature in me to push me for this kind of work,¡± he expressed. Word about Goswami¡¯s work began to spread all around the state and his pictures used to be published in local newspapers. This was when he met Jignesh Gohil, is partner in forming the nature club. ¡°I worked in a telecom company when I met Dinesh. He would show me new pictures of his rescue, and also newspaper clippings that he would save and stick around his house later. I found his work very interesting and noble. He did not have the resources or the procedure to approach bigger organizations for help, which is when I decided to help him,¡± Jignesh shared.

Rescuing a Whale Shark

The whale sharks that migrate to the coast of Gujarat come from Madagascar, and bring other species of fish along with these magnificent beasts. Goswami says that this is a part of the ecological balance in the marine life. ¡°If the whale sharks are killed, whether hunted or not, we lose many other coexistent marine species along with them,¡± he tells us.

Goswami and Gohil together also rescue other animals, including sea turtles. They have been effective in connecting with the Turtle Action Group and attended around 6 years ago and have been a part of forming hatcheries near a few sea coasts of Gujarat. ¡°We later became a part of the International Sea Turtle Society and have tried to gain knowledge about all the marine species that thrive on our coast,¡± he shared. Goswami and Gohil have helped in establishing new hatcheries of the Olive Ridley turtles in Santeshwar, Sutrapada, Jalana in Vadodara, Chorwad in Veraval, Silbara in Mangrod, Madhupur in Porbandar, and Okha in Dwarka.

Dinesh and the local fishermen rescue a Whale Shark

Goswami still works as a daily labourer, but answers all calls for the rescue of animals at all times. ¡°We do not have any help from the government and do this at our own dime. Someday, I wish to establish my own research centre that educates young kids about the marine life and its importance, so there are many Dinesh Goswamis who save hundreds of more animals after my last breath,¡± Goswami concluded.

Rescuing a Whale Shark on the beach