No water at Okhla sanctuary, UP irrigation dept under fire

As spring turns into summer, migratory birds from central Asia and beyond that flew south to India in order to escape the harsh winter chill of their northern homelands return to their countries, making short pitstops along the way to rest and recuperate.

One of these havens is the Okhla Bird Sanctuary in Gautam Budh Nagar — spread across 400 hectares along the Yamuna, the park is designated an IBA (important bird area) site. It was notified as a bird sanctuary in 1990, and is part of the Central Asian Flyway. According to birders, more than 20,000 birds of over 70 native and migratory species can be spotted at the site.

However, this year, the Uttar Pradesh irrigation department has drained out water from the Okhla Bird Sanctuary to repair the gates of the Okhla barrage — a move that has baffled birders and experts alike, who have pointed out that the decision has jeopardised the lives of thousands upon thousands of birds that rely on this park and its water body as a crucial refuge for what is a very, very long journey home.

Gillian Wright, a birder who visited the bird sanctuary on Sunday morning, said large tracts of the park were completely dry during her visit. “It was both shocking and horrifying. Migratory species like wigeons, garganey, common pochards, tufted duck — all present here a week ago — were missing,” said Wright.

Irrigation department officials said they have drained the water out of the sanctuary to repair the gates of Okhla Barrage so that wildlife in the area does not face water shortage in the harsh summer of the National Capital Region.

“We want to supply adequate water to this sanctuary so that the wildlife stays protected. And repairing the barrage gates is an effort to supply the adequate water. The repair work will be completed in next two days and we will restore the supply on March 26,” said irrigation department executive engineer DK Singh.

Birders are less than impressed by the timing of the move.

Nikhil Devasar, who organises the annual Big Bird Day count across NCR, said the period of March to early April is crucial for migratory birds, and a dry Okhla Bird Sanctuary is bound to impact them.

“It significantly impacts them as they are preparing to head back to breed, and even resident birds start breeding soon. They depend on this water for insects and food and so in such a scenario, they have to suddenly either start migration, or find a new area to feed in the vicinity,” he said.

The irrigation department’s decision has also caught the state forest department flat-footed, with officials insisting that they were not consulted before the sanctuary’s water was emptied out.

“We will issue a notice and demand an inquiry as to why they emptied the water completely, without even seeking our suggestions in the interest of wildlife. The irrigation department has made the water body look like a cricket ground, affecting the health of this wildlife here. Migratory birds flock into this destination October onwards, and leave this place in March. The right thing for irrigation to do is that they must leave some water for the birds to survive during the barrage cleaning or repair work,” said Gautam Budh Nagar district forest officer PK Srivastava.

Ashok Kumar, former GB Nagar divisional forest officer, agreed.

“The gates of the Okhla barrage must be repaired in September or August — when it rains, and birds don’t depend only on water in this sanctuary. The irrigation department officials must be sensitive to the life of the birds in this sanctuary,” he said.

Birders, however, say that this is not the first time that the irrigation department has drained water from the sanctuary at a questionable time.

“Such instances of the water being drained has been impacting the overall population and numbers of species at Okhla Bird Sanctuary over the years. The immediate impact is that the returning waterfowl as well as waders like curlew sandpipers need to feed well before starting their migration,” said birder Jaswinder Waraich.