Gujarat's Nalsarovar full but dry spell for birdwatchers

AHMEDABAD: Nalsarovar lake which had gone completely dry in December 2018 is brimming with abundance now.
The lake is Gujarat’s only Ramsar site. Unesco’s Ramsar convention, named after the Iranian city where the convention was inked in 1971, seeks to protect wetlands of international importance.
The cheer brought by the full lake this year has been somewhat diluted by the fact that the approach road is under 7 feet of water.
This is the second consecutive year in which the lake has recorded high water level. Because of heavy rain in Surendranagar, the lake’s water gauge has been submerged. A senior forest department officer said that usually migratory birds start arriving with the onset of rains or in August. But this year, only a few have flown in so far.
Officials worry that heavy rain in the catchment areas could push water onto the roads near the interpretation zone. The officer said that even wader birds will take at least another month to visit Nalsarovar or nearby areas.
Officials said that the bank near the interpretation zone seems to present the view of an ocean shore. The officer said that normally flamingoes and other birds start arriving by the end of November.
But now it appears that they might come only by January-end next year. The migratory birds are comfortable when the water level is about 3 feet.
The officials said that the approach road has water on both banks and on Saturday water flowed from a check post to the interpretation zone. A senior officer in Gandhinagar said that heavy rain in Saurashtra and the release of water from Narmada dam have made Nalsarovar’s levels surge.
“None of the Narmada canal branches passes anywhere near Nalsarovar or its catchment areas,” a senior officer said. “But a forest department study had found that Narmada water released into Bhogavo river and distributary canals of Narmada overflow into small rivulets which empty into Nalsarovar.” This leads to a rise in the water level of the lake, the officer said.
The officer said that in 1987, monsoon had remained elusive till the end of August. In 2019, the lake was dry till the end of July. This was the longest dry spell at Nalsarovar since 1987. Although the lake had also dried up in 2002, water had flowed in by the last week of June 2003. However in 2019, when monsoon ended, the lake had nearly 6 feet of water.