“My interest in exploring natural history and forests was nurtured by my cousin and mentor, S. Shyama Sunder, IFS. He is recognised as one of India’s most eminent foresters of the post-independence era, retiring in 1990 after decades of distinguished service. He was a genuine conservationist who argued as far back as 1980 that tropical rainforests should not be logged, and during his tenure as the head of the forest department, drastically reduced intensity of logging, particularly in protected areas. Not many know that the much-lauded Bhadra relocation project was a brain child of his (with Parameshwarappa), and became possible only because the fertile land needed was diverted and reserved for this specific purpose all the way back from 1980s, before the project was finally implemented in 2000-2004 period.
 
Mr. Shyam Sunder has authored two books, both of which are must-read for anyone seriously interested in forest conservation. The first book, FOREST CONSERVATION CONCERNS IN INDIA, was a scholarly tract that he coauthored with his colleague S. Parmeshwarappa in 2014.
 
Recently he has published his own memoir, RELIVING THE MEMORIES OF AN INDIAN FORESTER (2020), Manipal Universal Press, which is available online for sale. It is a brilliant and very humorous semi-autobiographical book with great insights into forest ecology as well as the society and politics of India in relation to forests-use and conservation. I do encourage you to give it a read!
 
To whet your appetite, I am providing the link below to a review of the book in Prajavani by associate editor, Praveen Kulkarni.”