Hailstorm, strong wind dampen spirit at Okhla Bird Sanctuary

By Radhika Tiwari

New Delhi, Oct 28 (SocialNews.XYZ) Sunday's hailstorm and strong winds continue to dampen the spirit of many bird watchers in Delhi-NCR who used to visit the Okhla Bird Sanctuary in Gautam Buddh Nagar on a regular basis.

"Due to heavy rains, several naturally grown trees of Subabul were uprooted, obstructing visitor's movement on the Left Afflux Bund road between gate no 1 and 2," Tarun K. Roy -- an ecologist and conservationist told IANS.

Formed in 1990, the sanctuary is one of India's 466 IBAs (Important Bird Areas).

Roy says that Subabul trees (Leucaena leucocephala) on the river bunds -- embankments made of stones or soil to control the flow of water, do not stand firmly rooted to the ground as the roots cannot reach deep into the soil and thereby, these trees get easily uprooted and fall down if the land is too wet or the weather too windy.

Along with heavy rain, water released from Okhla dam by Head Works, Agra Canal of Uttar Pradesh Irrigation Department is another reason behind the dampened ground, causing trees to fall and river banks to flood.

While over 50 per cent of the tree clearance has already been done, it may take one more day for the sanctuary to return to normal, Roy said.

Meanwhile, an official from the sanctuary said that it would take at least 10 days for the water level to return to the normal level.

Bird watchers who visited the sanctuary said the release of water from the reservoir is a reason behind birds' disappearance.

The sanctuary is home to over 300 species of birds and attracts migratory birds during winters and passage migrants during summers. Here the birds start arriving in October with a majority of them being spotted around December.

Source: IANS