Pic by Imteyaz Ahmed : Sarottar Lake)
Satish Aditya
Motihari : Divisional Forest Officer (DFO), East Champaran, Prabhakar Jha, has launched a special drive against poaching, trapping, killing , and marketing of migratory birds in the district this winter season. DFO Jha and asked the social workers and bird lovers
to protect these winged visitors in water bodies. He also said no case of Bird Flu has been found reported in the district till date. The East Champaran District Administration taken effective steps to stop trapping and marketing of the migratory birds. All the blocks officers and the SHOs of all the police stations have been directed to keep vigil on lakes, rivers, and other water bodies, to ensure safety of migratory birds,
DFO Jha said that the Environment and Forest Department has taken a serious note of poaching and trapping of migratory birds in the district on a complaint lodged by some bird lovers of the district and has directed the administration to take all possible measures to
stop it. The DFO said he has constituted a vigilance team to keep vigil on water bodies and take action with the support of police against anti -social elements involved in poaching racket. For the first time, this Wildlife Protection Act is being implemented strictly in the district and no migratory bird is being sold by any one at any place, Jha claimed.
.DFO Jha said, ” We are trying to create awareness among locals about the importance of migratory birds and its conservation
for better environment. This year due to lockdown, the air and noise pollution level has dropped and the people stay indoor so the
birds are free to fly and one can hear chirping of birds in all rivers, lakes, and ponds in the district. Sarottar Lake is a birds paradise since long.”
More than 50,000 have migratory birds entered East Champaran Distric in November 2020 from European coasts, Central Asian, and Himalayan region to escape the freezing cold there with large number of them flocking to big Sarottar Lake under Kesariya police station. Sarottar Lake is around 60 km away from Motihari Town. These birds breed here in warmer environment. They return to their
homes with the onset of summer in March and April months with their off-springs.
Large flocks of these birds including common Teal, Siberian Cranes, Tufled Duck, Blacktail GodWit, Black head, Lalsar ,Pin-tailed, Spoon-billed and white necked Sstork collect fly to Sarrottar Lake. .Around 30,000 migratory birds have taken shelter at this lake this year. The lake is spread over an area of 262 acre adjoining NH28 near Dhangarha
Noted social activist Sanjay Satyarthi said,” The migratory birds are being sold here by poachers at Rs 2,000 each pair on personal contact basis due to fear of police.”
Several shopkeepers of Dhangadha Chowk on NH28 while talking to this reporter said that poaching of migratory birds is quite
rampant in this lake by dozen of poachers in night hours but no action has been taken by police against then in last two months.