By Ferdinand Rani
Dapboklang Marbaniang, fondly known as Bah Hep, is a young man from Wahlong Poh, who grew up seeing people with caving gears visiting his village. “When we were little, we only wanted to see the foreigners; we had no interest in caves then”. In 2004, Bah Hep says a caver by the name of Andy Taylor came to the village. Since there was no place for them to stay, the villagers took the people home. “There was also no one to show them around, so I and a few other children went along with him to the caves; since then, I developed an interest in caves”.
During the day, Bah Hep earns his keep as a construction worker, often travelling outside the village for work. “Apart from that, I do agricultural work too, but farming is not productive anymore except in a few places”. Although his family resides 40 km away in Laitryngew, he routinely returns to Wahlong, his home, where he assists as a tour guide for visitors.
“I think it was 2017 when four of us from the village went for a short training programme at Pinewood Hotel. After completion, we were informed that they will show us how things work, but it just ended that way”. With few opportunities to assist in caving, Bah Hep lost touch with caving.
When the Meghalaya Adventures Association (MAA) reached Wahlong for their expedition in February, Bah Hep led a team of volunteers to guide the professional cavers in identifying most of the caves in and around the village. On the very first night, Bah Hep provided all the details of the caves located in the village and what the team could expect throughout the expedition.
“Now that the team is here, it’s reviving me again. I thought I lost interest in caving, in assisting people to enter caves or even identifying new caves for that matter. But their being here is inspiring me again”.
The MAA in their 31st expedition to the village was accompanied by tour guides from Mawmluh, themselves trained by the association, to get them acquainted with the new caves in this part of the Ri War. When the caves are opened for tourists, these young men will guide visitors.
Ferdinand Thongni, an experienced tour guide, says, “Any new cave, you need to visit on your own first. How will you take tourists there without knowing the details of the cave beforehand? You need to know which part of the cave you have to climb or crawl, and which part of the cave has water”.
Thongni and his comrades are deeply familiar with Mawmluh’s caves, but Wahlong is new territory and promises to increase their source of income.
“Since the association is operating the tour for Mawmluh cave, it is through them that we get clients, but only during winters, as the caves fill with water during summers”.
A series of training programmes have been conducted from time to time so guides may be well acquainted with the basic requirements of caving with tourists and expeditionists. “We were trained extensively, starting out with tying knots for about a month, during which we almost quit. Soon after, they took us for rappelling and training in single rope techniques, which increased our interest. Last time, we visited Mumbai for first aid training to allow us to assist an injured person before getting to the hospital”, says Thongni.
Bah Hep’s team of guides, however, have skills far beyond what is generally seen elsewhere. With minimal gear, the residents of Wahlong have reached the full-lengths and depths of these caves in no time. However, without professional training and gear, the team is not equipped to take visitors along with them. Traversing the depths of these caves is riskier than treks to Nongriat, Mawrynkhang or Living Roots Bridge.
“Our body is like rubber. We can climb up and down with ease even without training and it’s a great privilege for us to get this opportunity to scout the caves with them. It would be more helpful if they give us more training so that when tourists come, we can guide them safely and avoid accidents”, says Bah Hep.
In Wahlong, there are few opportunities for employment, for both the young and old. Mining has morphed into work requiring fewer humans, forcing many here to move out of the village for their livelihood. But now, Wahlong wishes to rely on what it has for a long – an appreciation for nature.
“We don’t have employment in the village and vegetation is dying, so this field can become an alternative source of income for the youths here. It will also benefit their future. Few opted to manage the mining sites, but people like us chose to protect the rich heritage our village has.
“We look forward to our caves becoming world-renowned, and famous for their cleanliness and other attractions. We want to restore what we have lost before and for that, we need support, since we are starting from scratch”.
On the issue of limestone, Bah Hep is more cautious in his criticism. “Mining goes through the government and is carried out with certain agreements. Nobody can stop it. If they already have permission, there’s nothing that we can do. I hope that tourism here will work; otherwise, if the land owner has sold off this land with this cave inside, it’s like snatching away our livelihood”.
For self-trained guides like Bah Hep, and the others in the village, hope springs eternal.
“The whole world knows about this. If I have money, I can put it to work, but poor folks like us would want nature to remain so that we can plant and reap the fruits. The cave is out of the question, but if we conserve the environment, it will nurture us. Tourism is a small spring that will last; other works here are like a flood that comes only once”.