How Attappadi-native Manav paved a ‘GATE’way to forest

His fervent love for wilderness was the perfect shot in the arm for Manav Sajan to crack the tough Graduate Aptitude Test in Engineering (GATE) for Ecology and Evolution with flying colours. “I want to learn more about the forest…do more research, and that’s why I appeared for GATE,” says a confident Sajan, who secured all-India third rank in the highly competitive exam. GATE is a national-level examination conducted for admission to post-graduate and research programmes. Candidates from non-science streams such as Arts, Commerce and Humanities can also take the GATE exam, provided they meet the eligibility criteria. 

Lessons from nature 
Manav, whose hometown is the picturesque mountain valley of Attappadi in Palakkad district, treaded a different path regarding education. He studied from class V to class X at the Vidyavanam School, a modest, children-friendly educational institution at Palakkad’s Aanakatti on the Kerala-Tamil Nadu border. The school's pedagogy was unique as it followed the ‘open school’ syllabus, and more stress was on independent learning. As the teaching style was different compared to the traditional schools, the students themselves had to find answers to the questions raised, and projects were mandatory for each and every subject. Moreover, the pupils constantly interacted with nature, animals and birds, setting a perfect platform for a harmonious bond with nature. And this experience was good fodder for Manav’s interest in bird watching and wildlife photography. 

Manav had to be in self-study mode to clear the class X SSLC examinations, and that exposure to independent learning stood in good stead for him while preparing for the GATE exam. 

To Dehradun via Bengaluru 
After completing class XII with the science stream, Manav did his graduation from Farook College in Kozhikode. He joined the prestigious National Center for Biological Sciences (NCBS), which comes under the Tata Institute of Fundamental Research, in Bengaluru to do a Master’s in Wildlife Biology and Conservation after graduating in Zoology. But before completing the course at NCBS, Manav shifted his focus to the Wildlife Institute of India in Dehradun to study MSc in Wildlife Science. 

The path to GATE 
Manav was always passionate about research and decided to take the GATE exam after being admitted to the post-graduate programme. Extensive reading from childhood and tidbits of information garnered from relevant videos were the foundation for his research interest. Moreover, the invaluable lessons he learnt during journeys to the heart of the forest and the pieces of advice from people he met there augured well for Manav. He didn’t get enough time for GATE preparation as he was in the midst of a post-graduate programme, but time constraint was never a matter of concern as the topics were close to his heart. And now Manav is busy completing his dissertation for his Master’s; after that, he will channel his energy towards research. 

Manav, who has made a mark as a birdwatcher and wildlife photographer, is the son of Sajan, an environmental activist, and Sindhu, the headmistress of Karara Government UP School.