E-Paper
Man-made water crisis keeps ?visitors? away
THE DROUGHT-LIKE situation in the Nawabganj Bird Sanctuary is man-made. Despite available water sources, the Forest department has made few attempts to tap them and as a result, even in the month of December, the bird sanctuary is dry and deprived of any ?foreign visitors.?
THE DROUGHT-LIKE situation in the Nawabganj Bird Sanctuary is man-made. Despite available water sources, the Forest department has made few attempts to tap them and as a result, even in the month of December, the bird sanctuary is dry and deprived of any ‘foreign visitors.’
Sources in the Forest department, who have worked at the sanctuary for over a decade, blame the department for the present situation. “Kosambi canal is a water source but to tap it, our officials need to coordinate with the Irrigation department,” said one of the former employees of the forest department.
The source said that for a few years the Irrigation department supplied uninterrupted water to the jheel (pond) at the sanctuary irrespective of the kind of rainfall. “Water supplied through the canal was enough to invite migratory birds,” he added.
Neeraj Srivastava of the Indian Bird Conservation Network (IBCN) claimed that it was for the first time in the last several years that the sanctuary was facing such a “pathetic” situation. Nawabganj was one of the important bird areas (IBAs) in the country and it called for active protection, said Srivastava, adding that the IBCN would take up the issue with the higher authorities.
Bird watcher Suresh Choudhary claimed to have sighted all important migratory water birds from Coots to Floricans in the sanctuary. He said even in the world famous Bharatpur bird sanctuary, water is fed through the canal, and is not dependent on the rains.
It may be mentioned that the forest department has cited rainfall as the cause for drying up the Nawabganj sanctuary water source.
Chief wildlife warden of Uttar Pradesh Mohammad Ahsan said a demand for releasing water had been sent to the Irrigation department. But he said priorities for the irrigation department were different. Ahsan clarified that even in past Irrigation department did not release water and the jheel was refilled by water seeping in through different openings. Asked if there were any outstanding bills to be paid to the Irrigation department, Ahsan said money was not a problem and could be paid.
Chief engineer Irrigation department Ram Awadh confirmed that the forest department had sent a requisition for releasing water into the jheel. He said the department would not charge any money for the cause as the State Government’s order for providing to the water-bodies already existed. Ram Awadh hoped that water would be released in the jheel by Saturday next.
