What started 10 years ago on the Bhavan's College campus in Andheri as a simple effort to connect youngsters with nature has emerged into a massive festival. Back then, Himanshu Prem Joshi, an environment education expert and founder of an eco-tourism firm, was invited by the college to create activities around the environment that could involve youngsters. It was around this time when Bhavan's Nature Adventure Centre was established. Till date, the centre has conducted sessions for 65,000 school students in one-day visits, around the year. "The idea of the centre and the festival in particular is to connect people with nature and its various elements. For us, it is not just another one-time activity; it's the need of the hour. The ecological and educational value of the festival is unmatched for," he adds.

Besides the animal adoption camp, dog show, nature photo exhibition and Rajasthani folk music; this year, a special activity on a turtle rescue mock drill for amateur animal rescue volunteers; demonstrated by scuba diver Sushant Joshi will be one of the highlights. There would also be a presentation by Dr Dinesh Vinherkar, a veterinary doctor on First Aid to be administered to an injured turtle. "Often, sea turtles get washed ashore, entangled in fishing nets — therefore, it's a great skill to learn to rescue them," he adds.