When Bunty Tao walked up to receive his award in New Delhi, he wasn’t just collecting a trophy — he was carrying the weight of every silent forest, every saved tiger, and every sleepless night spent protecting Arunachal’s wild heart.
A Moment at the National Stage
Range Forest Officer Bunty Tao of the Kamlang Tiger Reserve in Wakro, Lohit district, was honoured by the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) on the occasion of International Tiger Day. The award, recognising excellence in wildlife protection and anti-poaching activities, was handed over by Union Minister for Environment, Forest and Climate Change Bhupender Yadav at a ceremony held in New Delhi. Awardees came from eight states and twelve tiger reserves across the country, including Bihar and West Bengal. But in that crowd, one name stood out as a first — Bunty Tao.
He is the first and only recipient of this honour from Arunachal Pradesh, and the sole RFO from the entire eastern zone to be recognised. That’s not a small thing. That’s history.
Gratitude from the Jungle
Tao didn’t take the credit for himself. Speaking after receiving the award, he said he was dedicating it to his department and to every colleague and frontline staff member who had stood by him in the field. “Without them, I would not have succeeded in my fieldwork,” he said. Simple words. But anyone who’s been to the forests of Lohit knows that fieldwork in those terrains is anything but simple — it’s gruelling, dangerous, and often invisible to the outside world. His second statement hit even harder: “This recognition has not only rewarded my dedication to my job but has also strengthened my resolve to uphold the responsibilities entrusted to me.” That’s not a man who’s done. That’s a man just getting started.
More Than Anti-Poaching — A Conservation Trailblazer
What makes Tao’s journey remarkable isn’t just the anti-poaching work. Back in June 2019, while posted under the Hapoli Forest Division in Lower Subansiri district, he was central to the first recorded discovery of Manouria impressa — the impressed tortoise — in India. That discovery alone would have defined most careers. He has also written about indigenous conservation practices, especially those tied to hornbills — birds deeply woven into the cultural fabric of Northeast India. Tao sees conservation not just as a job, but as something that belongs to the land and its people.
A Man the World Already Knows
Since December 2023, Tao has served as the elected president of the Ranger Federation of Asia, representing 22 nations. He stood for India at the 9th World Ranger Congress in Nepal in 2019, and was a panel member at the 2nd Asia Parks Congress in Malaysia in 2022. Arunachal may be far from the corridors of global policy, but through people like Bunty Tao, its voice reaches rooms that matter.
Somewhere in the dense forests of Kamlang, a tiger roams free. It doesn’t know the name Bunty Tao. But in a very real way, it’s alive because of him — and that might be the only recognition that truly matters.
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