Interview
of Fr. Ted Bowling SJ on historical development of “Green Cover” at De Nobili
College, Pune, by Sch. Jaya Singh on 22nd of February, 2019.
1. Could
you express your experiences of initiating and taking care of plants in the
campus? [from the time you arrived]
My
experience of planting tree saplings on the campus of DNC and taking good care
of them from June 1952, the year I arrived here to begin my theology studies,
and from 1957 onwards when I was assigned to the staff of DNC for teaching
Basic Science and Scientific Questions connected with philosophy.
By
nature I like to do heavy manual work. My theology and Tertianship batch mates
told the Tertianship Master in Kodaikanal in 1956-1957 that “I was a giant for
manual works”. That’s why in my first year of theology I very often volunteered
to dig tree pits 1m.x1m.x1m, deep and fill up the pits with alternate layers of
organic matter (grass, leaves, banana skins, etc.,) and mud, to give a chance
to a sapling to establish deep roots. In my second year of theology I was
appointed the sub-beadle and among other duties I had to assign fellow
theologians to do 1½hrs. of manual work two times per week to plant trees in the
empty DNC spaces, and also to water them for 2,3, or 4 years till they could
survive the summer heat of April and May.
2. What
do you think, are some of the factors giving rise to “Green Zones”?
The
chief factor is accountability for a specific area. Don’t simply ask students
or staff members to take care of the DNC trees. Tell the groups clearly for
what parts they are responsible. Assigning “Green Zones” to specific areas is a
splendid idea. Then some groups who are lax in their care giving can be pulled up,
or those groups whose area looks clean and green can be congratulated.
3. Can
you throw some lights on your experiences of “nature walks” in the evening?
When
I arrived here in 1952, there was no such thing as a ‘nature walk’ except along
the road on DNC property from Nagar Road to the DNC House entrance, where two
rows of Rain trees and Gulmohar trees had been planted by the Jesuit Brothers
who built the ground floor of the theologate in the two years of 1942-1944. It
was early June when I first arrived here, and the bright red flowers of the
Gulmohar trees was a beautiful and welcoming sight that I cannot forget. The
rest of DNC’s lands were very barren. However, as time went on more and various
kinds of trees came up on the DNC campus as well as within nearby Housing
Societies. In Kalyani Nagar, Viman Nagar and Chandan Nagar, there are now many
more trees and some public places for a nature walk. My favourite was DNC South
to the Mula Mutha River and along one of its banks up to the Kalyani mansion,
and back to DNC. Right now on our property the best nature walk is along the
Stations of the Cross and the borderline with the Fransalian’s property.
