In Jharkhand’s Jamtara district, some 210 kilometres away, forest officer Ajinkya Bankar has identified approximately 150 bird species in the last two years. He is certain that an awareness campaign is the best course of action for the conservation of birds.
Bankar, the Divisional Forest Officer (DFO) of Jamtara, has not only identified up to 146 species of birds in the district but has also compiled the names of these species, some of which are rare, in Santhali and Hindi so that regular people can easily recognise them and take action for conservation. Additionally, he has taken the initiative to plant trees that draw birds. Despite the fact that Jharkhand has a lot of greenery and is thought to be a safe place for birds to live, poachers frequently target the feathered animals.
“I discovered bird poaching to be a problem in the area. Because they are not aware of how important they are to the environment and society, even schoolchildren are murdering them. So I made the decision to start a campaign for awareness,” Bankar told PTI.
Jharkhand: 26-year-old techie, on work from home, raped by 10 men in Chaibasa (newsd.in)
Up to 146 species, including 40 different vulnerable migratory bird species, were found during the two-year survey. According to the officer, numerous threatened species were discovered during the exercise, including Common Pochard, Indian River Tern, Woolly-Necked Stork, Black-Headed Ibis, and Alexandrine Parakeet. We decided to assemble it in the regional Santhali language and Hindi because the locals are not familiar with the English names of birds, the man explained.
The Indian Bird Conservation Network (IBCN) lauded Bankar’s activities as evidence of his success. In an effort to raise awareness, about 40 people have received training in bird conservation, according to Bankar. They have a duty to educate people about the need to protect birds. Our efforts to conserve and rescue birds are now yielding positive outcomes,” he stated.
He added that in the last two years, emphasis has also been placed on planting tree species that cater to birds.
We concentrated more on cultivating peepal, banyan, and sycamore trees in the district to improve the habitat for birds because they play a significant role in preserving the environment, according to Bankar.
I admire the officer’s initiative,’ Satya Prakash, the IBCN coordinator for Jharkhand, said. However, if we wish to properly conserve birds, we need such programmes all over the state. The forest department should also guarantee effective bird monitoring. In 2008, Prakash, who also serves as the state coordinator for the Asian Waterbird Census (AWC), began a bird census in a select few bodies of water. He has been doing the state’s 25 largest water bodies’ bird counts since 2016.
If we examine the data from the five years since 2016, we discover that there are between 65,000 and 75,000 birds in total over 25 different bodies of water. In these water basins, there were still 20,000 to 30,000 migratory birds, according to him.
During the winter, a considerable number of birds come to Jharkhand, particularly Jamtara, from the Himalayan area and central Asia. However, a lot of them are killed by people who engage in poaching. In the water bodies where tourism, boating, fishing, and other activities have grown recently, according to Prakash, a tendency of declining bird population has been noticed.
Birds dislike being disturbed. In order to find safety and tranquilly, people migrate,” he stated.
