At a time when birds are increasingly become rare species in concrete jungles that cities have become, it is heartening that this colony houses nesting site for Baya weaver birds. Even sparrows are being sighted.
Bird watching is catching up among residents of Sector 10, Dwarka, after environmentalists and bird lovers engaged in sensitising the community on saving them, as they are important to nature and play their designated role.
These days, the weaver bird, Baya, is the centre of attraction of the residents, as a site in Sector 10 is the spot where these winged visitors arrive in droves. People visit the site and take pictures. There is a dedicated WhatsApp group that has evolved working to save the habitat of Baya in the area.
The group comprises social activist working with visually challenged persons and poor kids for education, Poonam Tyagi, a member of Dwarka Collective Shameera Ashroff, a social activist working on woman and education, Madhuri Varshney, RTI activist Ramesh Mumukshu and RTI activist Shobhit Chauhan.
The group has started a campaign to save such fauna in the area by telling the residents about the bird, their habitat. Shobhit Chauhan, who formed the WhatsApp group, said, “We want to unite people and work for the cause of Baya birds.” It is unfortunate that in cities like Delhi, birds have almost vanished. Finding baya birds in the concrete jungle Dwarka is no less than a blessing. “So, we decided to get together and ask the authorities to save the birds,” he said.
On Sunday, few members of the group visited the site of birds’ nesting and took some pictures, that were shared on the group. Nature photographer, who is passionate about living creatures, Ashok Makkad, now pushing 70 years, and his nephew came all the way from Ghaziabad in Uttar Pradesh, a distance of over 40 km, to see the baya weavers in Dwarka. He spoke with the residents who flocked to the site.
Madhuri Varhsney, one of the group members told City Spidey, “It was an amazing experience for all of us. Seeing these birds in Dwarka, I have started informing the authorities about it and hope that they would do something to save the birds and their habitat.”
She added, “We are also planning to focus on more such things related to the fauna in the ecology of the area. These birds have shown a ray of hope that we could do something in this direction to save them. Another thing that makes us happy is that these days, we can spot a few sparrows also in this region,” Varshney said, adding, “I must say, there is a need community action to save the birds.”
Poonam Tyagi, another group member, said, "We interacted with Ashok Makkad and his nephew Rohan who were there shooting the birds with their cameras. They said that the nesting at one place in this number in Dwarka is a great sight. When they came to know if this, they immediately came over here to see for themselves.”
Another group member, Ramesh Mumukshu, has written a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi requesting him to help save nature and birds. “I have highlighted that how such small things are bigger in the scheme of saving nature and its balance. I am worried about the flora and fauna of the area. Authorities should give attention to this aspect and take action,” he told City Spidey.
