Meet Purnima Devi Barman, Indian biologist on Time's Women Of The Year 2025 list for saving world's rarest stork
Purnima Devi Barman, a tireless conservationist from Assam, saved an endangered species of stork, which put her on the map. She went from saving the population of a near-extinction bird to being featured on Time's Women Of The Year 2025 list.
A biologist from Assam, Purnima Devi Barman, was featured on the Time's Women Of The Year 2025 list as a conservationist for saving one of the most endangered storks in the world, according to Time.
Barman recalled the 2007 incident when she received a call about a tree about to be cut down. The tree was home to a family of greater adjutant storks.
After Burman arrived at the spot, she saw that the nest of the endangered baby storks was lying on the ground. The man cutting down the tree said that the bird was believed to be a bad omen which is seen as a pest and a disease carrier in the society.
The endangered stork was locally known as “hargila”, which means bone swallower, as most of the time it is found near garbage dumps. Burman even received angry looks from her neighbours, who were unhappy about the biologist's action to save the birds.
“Everyone surrounded me, started whistling at me,” the 45-year-old conservationist told Time highlighting that it was the first time she felt compelled to rescue the birds.
Burman talked about how the birds made her think about her infant twin daughters, and since then, her journey to hear the call of nature began.
“For the first time, I felt the importance—the call of nature,” she told the publication. “From that day, my mission started.”
Stork at Risk
Purnima Devi Barman's move to save the stork came at a time when the greater adjutant storks were highly endangered and were reportedly estimated to be only 450 left in the region.
Burman's work prompted the authorities to put the breed of stork under the “near threatened” category under the International Union for Conservation of Nature in 2023. According to the report, the population of the stork now has increased to over 1,800.
Purnima Devi Barman and her team of ‘Hargila Army’, which comprises 20,000 women, contributed to this growth and rescue of the bird species that were nearly threatened with extinction. The group protects the bird's nest and also educates others about the beauty of the five-foot-tall scavengers.
According to the report, the network of people interested in saving this bird is increasing past the borders of Assam throughout the nation and even in foreign countries like Cambodia and France.
“This bird is now a part of our tradition and culture,” Burman told Time.