Who Is KM Abharna? IFS Officer Who Inspired Vidya Balan's Sherni

After the release of Vidya Balan starrer Sherni, many on social media started to share posts about Indian Forrest Service (IFS) officer KM Abharna.

Sherni narrates the story of a female IFS officer who forms teams and conducts the search operation of a tigress with the aim to find it alive. During the expedition, she faces any societal and political pressures in addition to her personal hurdles.

The story of Sherni's lead character seems similar to that of KM Abharna according to many social media users. Whether Abharna really inspired the film or not can only be confirmed by the makers but Abharna as an IFS officer has made name for herself.

Here Is What We Know About KM Abharna:

• The Indian Forest Service did not include women before 1980, now the forest service has over 284 women officers about five thousand women working as frontline personnel. KM Abharna is one of them working as the Director of Bamboo Research and Training Centre in Maharashtra.
• After graduating from the 2013 batch, Abharna took up many important roles. Like Balan's character, she was also responsible for tackling tigress Avni. Abhrana was posted in the Pandharkavda division as the Deputy Conservator of Forest.
• According to reports, Abharna handled the man-animal conflict in the region by forming a team of female forest guards who would remain in touch with the village people. Camera traps were also laid and the area was monitored 24/7.
• Her work in spreading awareness among people was appreciated. She was also posted as incharge of the Central Range of Kaziranga National Park. The national park has the largest population of one-horned rhinos. Abharna reportedly made efforts to reduce the poaching of rhinos in the region.
• Abharna is reported to have implemented a plastic ban in the area in 2016-17. She also put a stop to illegal fishing in the region.
• Later she worked as the Assistant Conservator Forest officer and made efforts for a community-based study and a report on monkey menace. The 2015 report included manoeuvring the human-monkey conflict in as many as 40 villages of the Dergaon Range, Golghat Forest Division, Assam in 2015. The local community also got involved, according to reports.