Stork sister Purnima Devi Barman and her hargila military in Assam

The solely Indian lady featured in TIME’s Women of the Year 2025 listing for her contributions to conservation, Barman is famend for her pioneering efforts to avoid wasting the endangered larger adjutant stork, domestically often called hargila (which means ‘bone swallower’ in Assamese).

In her mission to guard the hen and its habitat, Barman has mobilised a robust group of over 20,000 girls, forming the Hargila Army, an all-women conservation group. The birds — there are round 1,800 in Assam — are principally discovered within the three districts of Guwahati, Morigaon, and Nagaon.

A testomony to their success is the regular rise within the stork numbers and the Hargila child showers, now on as it’s nesting season — this group occasion welcomes new hatchlings. “From being seen as a nasty omen to being celebrated with child showers, we’ve come a great distance,” says Barman.

Growing up with bushes and birds

Recalling her first time within the subject in 2007, urging villagers in Dardara (close to Hajo) to not minimize bushes the place the larger adjutant storks nested, she says, “I wasn’t certain what I used to be doing or how I used to be going to combat for the birds. I used to be in Dardara that day as a result of I heard bushes with nesting birds have been being felled. By the time I arrived, to my horror, the kodom gos [Neolamarckia cadamba, also known as burflower-tree, laran, or Leichhardt pine] had already been minimize down, destroying many nests with chicks. As I pleaded and argued for the bushes and the birds, the villagers thought I had misplaced my thoughts. To them, the hen was a harbinger of unhealthy luck.”

At the time, Barman was a brand new mom to twins. As she pleaded with the villagers to avoid wasting the birds and their nests, she instinctively picked up the fallen chicks and rushed to Guwahati in an autorickshaw. “To me, they have been no completely different from my infants. I used to be helpless, scared, but additionally decided to avoid wasting them.”

Looking again, Barman recollects what drew her to those birds. She grew up in Palashbari, about 30 kilometres from Guwahati, together with her grandmother, who would weave magical tales about nature. In these tales, bushes have been kingdoms, whereas birds and bugs have been their loyal residents and warriors. “Aita [grandmother] at all times made up these tales that includes adjutant storks, egrets, vultures, and Asian openbills, amongst others. But, unknowingly, she was instructing me about nature. I may establish birds from a younger age and shortly learnt their nesting seasons and most well-liked bushes,” she says.

Her grandmother’s love for nature formed Barman’s path in life and led her to pursue a Master’s diploma in zoology, specialising in ecology and wildlife biology at Gauhati University. “My professors impressed me immensely. They despatched us on varied bird-watching camps, and through discussions on endangered species, the subject of hargila and bortukula [lesser adjutant stork] got here up. It was an instantaneous connection to my childhood, and I made a decision to do my Ph.D on the larger adjutant stork,” she says.

From analysis to conservation

Barman’s work has earned her international recognition. She is the recipient of honours such because the Champions of the Earth Award, in 2022 — the UN’s highest environmental honour — and the Whitley Gold Award, which she obtained in 2024, typically known as the Green Oscar, for her work in biodiversity conservation.

Now a member of the IUCN Stork, Ibis, and Spoonbill Specialist Group, Barman recollects how the 2007 incident shifted her perspective. She realised she was busy gathering materials for her Ph.D on a hen that was liable to disappearing. “What good is a thesis if the hen itself can’t be saved?” she thought. That second modified every thing — her focus shifted from analysis to direct conservation.

Determined to make a distinction, she returned to the village, this time as an advocate for the birds. “The villagers complained that the birds made the world soiled and smelly. So, I provided to wash the foot of the nesting bushes myself,” says Barman. These birds who principally fed in marshy areas and shallow pits at the moment are scavengers due to the lack of habitat and urbanisation.

At first, her efforts have been met with ridicule, says Barman. “People laughed, mocked me with songs, and known as me loopy. But I used to be persistent. I confirmed up on daily basis till they lastly determined to pay attention.” That was her first small step, however she knew it was not sufficient. She started rallying like-minded folks, together with households on whose properties the birds nested. “We organised pitha competitions [local food contests], naam competitions [bhajan singing gatherings], cleansing drives — with the hargila on the centre of all of it,” she shares. These gatherings at all times concluded with consciousness talks concerning the birds and the significance of preserving bushes for biodiversity.

Recognising the ability of collective motion, she has targeted on together with girls in her efforts. “Women can drive actual change. That’s why we name ourselves the Hargila Army, and we are saying it with pleasure,” she says. Thanks to their work, the once-neglected hen is now protected, celebrated, and even rising in numbers domestically.

The motion has since expanded to incorporate environmental schooling. Barman and her crew have established the Hargila Learning Centre, the place they introduce youngsters to conservation and instil a love for nature from an early age.

prabalika.m@thehindu.co.in