“The first thing we did after buying it was nothing,” recalls Ankit Rastogi.

For about three years, he and Pradeep Vijayan left the 10 acres they had bought near Kanha National Park largely untouched. The semi-barren land in Madhya Pradesh had fewer than 300 trees when they purchased it in December 2015.

Today, the same protected stretch holds more than 6,000 native plants and trees, 59 bird species and a man-made pond that draws wildlife during summers, when water becomes scarce across the region.

Ankit and Pradeep had spent decades in India’s travel industry and stayed in almost every kind of property imaginable. Through those years, they often saw tourism serve visitors while offering limited benefits to the surrounding communities and ecosystems.

They wanted to build a different model near one of India’s best-known conservation areas.

“We did not want to build something that looked responsible from the outside but operated like every other property on the inside,” says Ankit.

Surwahi Social Ecoestate was conceived as a long-term impact venture where tourism could help restore the land, support local people and preserve traditional skills.

The two founders continued with their corporate careers while building it. Ankit currently serves as the Chief Product Officer at Angel One, while Pradeep leads Hotels Business and Partnerships at Ixigo. Their corporate incomes funded and sustained Surwahi through its long development period, including the pandemic years.

For its first 10 years, Pradeep worked as an active co-founder involved in every stage of building and running the estate. Ankit shaped the environmental vision and overall direction, while Pradeep led its execution on the ground.

He handled inbound sales and marketing, business development, sustainability partnerships, digital distribution and content, as well as staff onboarding, training and engagement. His relationships with the local administration and the Forest and Revenue departments also helped the project find its footing.

The estate was being built by two outsiders, and the idea initially faced scepticism in the area. Over the past year, Pradeep has stepped back from daily operations, although he remains involved as a founding promoter.

What happens when you let nature be?

The land, locally recorded as Satkata Jungle, began recovering after the founders fenced it.

The fencing stopped illegal tree felling and blocked vehicles involved in illegal sand mining along the neighbouring Sandook River. Tractors and lorries had previously moved through the land, damaging the roots of existing trees and plants.

Within two to three monsoons, the forest began regenerating naturally.

The team also dug a man-made pond called Arjun Talab to collect monsoon run-off and recharge the groundwater. This reduced the amount of rainwater flowing unused into the Sandook River.

Before drilling a borewell, they commissioned a hydrogeological survey to map the aquifer and identify the appropriate location. The survey also recommended catchment trenches to retain run-off and native species suited to the available water.

These included Paras Peepal, Cassia siamea and local bamboo. The findings guided the planting of around 1,000 trees.

Of the more than 6,000 plants and trees now growing on the estate, roughly 1,500 were planted. The remaining 4,500 emerged through natural regeneration.

As the forest recovered, bees, birds and butterflies returned in greater numbers. Their pollinating activity supported further growth with every monsoon. More recently, the team added around 300 fruit and flowering varieties within the main compound.

Once the land had begun recovering, Ankit and his team spent years looking for architects who shared their values. They eventually found Mrinmayee Architects from Bangalore, led by eminent professors from IISc and a young architect who worked........

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