The shelters and feeders will be located in lakes and public gardens and the TMC’s pollution control dept will oversee the process of installation by the end of this month. Simultaneously, these will also be distributed to housing societies free of cost
Thane: Thane city is set to become an avian sanctuary of sorts, with shelters and bird-feeders being planned for its winged inhabitants, who have been rapidly vanishing from its concrete confines. To save the smaller members of the species, the Thane Municipal Corporation (TMC) has decided to implement a project that entails bird shelters in various parts of the city.
More than 150 housing societies and citizens have registered to participate in this project. The shelters and feeders will be located in lakes and public gardens and the TMC’s pollution control department will oversee the process of installation by the end of this month. Simultaneously, these will also be distributed to housing societies free of cost.
“The models of shelters were kept on display for the citizens, during an exhibition organised recently by the corporation. We have received 150 registrations from those willing to install these shelters in their societies, gardens or balconies,” said Manisha Pradhan, head of the TMC pollution control department.
Last year, having noted with concern the falling number of sparrows in Thane, the corporation had announced sparrow shelters on World Sparrow Day on March 20, following it up by installing shelters at Panchpakhadi and Kachrali Lake. The project was to have been completed by March 2018, but was delayed. “There are few manufacturers available in the city, which delayed the process of installation. However, these shelters, made of bamboo and coconut shells, are now ready to install. Around Rs 8 lakh has been spent on these sparrow shelters by TMC, which will be cared for the contractor for a year,” Pradhan said.
“Definitely this is a good initiative, as it will not only shelter sparrows, but also other bird species similar in size, like mynas, munias and robins. But at the same time, the civic body must also take care of the green cover, which will help in conserve the decreasing number of bird species,” said naturalist Kaustubh Darves.
In the past, NGOs had taken the initiative to spread the awareness about the decreasing numbers of small birds and had arranged tutorials on how to install shelters in schools and societies. This initiative attracted a limited number of people but now, with civic outreach, birds will actually have more places to fly home.