Three more flamingoes died after crashing into CIDCO sign board at Nerul Jetty

Navi Mumbai: Nearly sixteen days after four flamingoes died after crashing into the CIDCO signboard at Nerul Jetty, three more birds on Friday succumbed to injuries after hitting the deadly board. After repeated demands from environmentalists owing to back-to-back fatal incidents, Kailash Shinde, joint managing director of CIDCO announced that the signboard will be removed today.

Despite attempts made by NGOs like the Resqink Association for Wildlife Welfare (RAWW) and Wildlife Welfare Association (WWA) to rescue the injured birds, all three died due to grievous injuries. “The forest department referred us to one bird which was critical and needed surgery. The bird didn’t make it as it had multiple fractures,” said the founder of RAWW, Pawan Sharma.

A WWA representative confirmed that two birds under their custody also succumbed by afternoon. “A morning walker posted a picture of an injured flamingo lying on the road leading to the jetty on our WhatsApp group. The forest department was informed and they in turn alerted an NGO to assist. After some time, there were sightings of two more birds with severe injuries. The birds are losing their lives due to the wrongly placed signboards,” said an activist Shruti Agarwal.

“The signboard has to be removed because it is coming in the pathway of the birds. There is also a need for clear guidance on what needs to be done after one finds injured flamingos,” said Rotary Club Flamingo City president, Rekha Sankhala. The activists’ concerns were based on the confusion that prevailed with the multiple sightings of more injured birds in the same area.

The second injured flamingo was found a little further to the jetty and the third bird was found wading through the water adjacent to Delhi Public School (DPS). “There is little awareness among residents on what to do when they come across injured flamingos,” said Sankhala.The need for quick action and point of help was stated to be a necessity by other activists as well. “Last time when the birds were found dead, in the absence of any clarity of what needs to be done, their bodies were simply thrown into the lake. There needs to be a system in place and awareness about it as well,” said Kharghar-based activist Jyoti Nadkarni.

Forest officials were asked to seek CCTV footage to ascertain the exact cause of the birds getting injured. Divisional forest officer, Mumbai Mangrove Conservation Unit Adarsh Reddy said, “Forest officers have visited the spot to verify the reason for the accidents and accordingly a letter will be sent to CIDCO.”