1st bird festival at Nagi- Nakti bird sanctuaries in Bihar to start from Jan 15 - Hindustan Times
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1st bird festival at Nagi- Nakti bird sanctuaries in Bihar to start from Jan 15

By | Edited by Abhinav Sahay, Patna
Jan 14, 2021 02:10 PM IST

Nagi-Nakti bird sanctuary has been selected for this event because of its uniqueness. Apart from the dense deciduous forests, moram land and variety of birds and animals, there’s unique rock formation in the area.

Bihar’s first state-level bird festival ‘Kalrav’ will be held at the world famous Nagi-Nakti bird sanctuaries in the Jamui district from January 15. The three –day event is expected to draw experts and bird lovers from all over the country.

Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar will inaugurate the event on January 16(Ajay Aggarwal/HT PHOTO)
Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar will inaugurate the event on January 16(Ajay Aggarwal/HT PHOTO)

Hosted by the department of forest, environment and climate change, the event is intended to create awareness about conservation of birds and their habitat, the wetlands. And to discuss these issues, the department has invited experts from different parts of the country to explain how to identify rare species of birds and protect them. Scores of other activities like a quiz on the topic, a marathon, walk and a cycle rally have also been planned at the festival to encourage people’s participation in the bird conservation programme.

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Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar will inaugurate the event on January 16. He will also launch the logo of the bird festival and also release a coffee table book on the birds available at the sanctuaries. Tarkishore Prasad, the deputy chief minister, who also holds the portfolio of forest, will preside over the function.

The Nagi- Nakti Bird Sanctuaries have been the home of a wide variety of indigenous species of birds and of migratory birds that turn up during the winters from places like Eurasia, Central Asia, the Arctic Circle, Russia and Northern China.

Over 136 species of birds have been spotted at these sanctuaries. Not just that, around 1,600 bar-headed geese, which is about 3% of the global population of this variety, have been seen here, as per a report of the Wetlands International and because of this rare phenomenon, the Birdlife International, a global body, has held the Nagi Dam Bird Sanctuary to be globally important for conservation of birds' population and has declared it as an important bird area.

"A wide variety of migratory birds come to this area during winters and till February –March they can be seen here. To draw the attention of bird lovers and experts, we planned a bird festival here," Tarkishore Prasad, deputy chief minister said.

Birds form an important part of the ecology and need to be protected and conserved. “It makes one aware about any natural disaster. Those who are familiar with bird behavior must have noticed that it sends a signal of any impending natural calamity,” he said. Prasad added that the state government has been serious about the conservation of the birds and wetlands and has taken many steps in this direction.

Deepak Kumar Singh, principal secretary, department of forests, environment and climate change, said, the bird festival is a part of the government initiatives.

“We selected Nagi-Nakti bird sanctuary for this event because of its uniqueness. Apart from the dense deciduous forests, moram land and variety of birds and animals, there’s unique rock formation, tor in Jamui area. In our country, this rock formation is available only in Hampi in Karnataka,” the principal secretary said.

The chief minister will visit the site during his visit to Jamui for the bird festival, he added. “People who may visit the site may witness its beauty. We planned the bird festival to promote the Natural beauty of the wetlands,” he said.

The official said that the state bird festival will be held here every year. “But at other wetlands also, the department will hold these kinds of events at a smaller level,” he said.

Deepak Kumar Singh said that conservation of birds and the development of wetlands and their fauna and flora has been on the priority list of the government. “It will be done in different phases. In the first phase an action plan for 133 wetlands, which are of over 100 acre land area, will be created,” he said.

As a part of the bird conservation plan, the forest department has developed a bird ringing station at Bhagalpur, he added.

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  • ABOUT THE AUTHOR
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    Reena has been a journalist for over two decades. She has the experience of covering wide range of issues, including art, culture, archaeology, tourism, forest and women issues. She has also authored a book and is a recipient of the ‘Ramdhari Singh Dinkar Award’, given by the government of Bihar.

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