By Ashutosh Mishra
Bhubaneswar: Bird census in Bhitarkanika national park and Athgarh forest division has shown a jump in the number of winged guests. This is great news primarily because it confirms that feathered beauties have now begun to favour many more water bodies in the state in addition to Chilika, Asia’s largest brackish water lake which is invariably the centre of attention during the winter.
While the news from Athgarh is that bird count has gone up by 5,152 there has been a much bigger increase in the number of winged arrivals in Bhitarkanika. The park this year is playing host to 11,8326 migratory birds of 105 species compared to 10,9059 last year.
Athagarh and Mahanadi bird counts are important because the area has never received the kind of attention that wetlands like Chilika and Bhitarkanika have been getting. In fact, excessive focus on Chilika has effectively killed the tourism potential of this region which has some fascinating sites.
Forest officials have attributed the rise in the number of birds to good weather and the availability of ample food. The food stock factor is very important. Environmentalists maintain that the most important reason behind Chilika turning into a major attraction for migratory birds is its ability to sustain a bewildering variety of aquatic flora and fauna that the visitors can feed on. Even the insects found in its swamps are preyed upon by certain species of migratory avians.
Chilika scores over other water bodies of the state because of two specific reasons—one its vast expanse and the other being its brackish water character. It is a beautiful lagoon created by the backwaters of the sea. While several rivers empty into Chilika its continuous interaction with the sea helps it maintain a certain level of salinity that sustains certain plant and animal species that cannot be seen in any other part of the state. This is the reason it has been designated as a Ramsar site.
However, while it is true that Chilika has certain natural advantages over other water bodies of the state it should not result in the neglect of these bodies. For example, Ansupa, perhaps the only sweet water lake of the state in Cuttack district, has never received the kind of attention that it deserves. Neglect over the years resulted in this beautiful expanse of water getting choked with weeds. Efforts for its revival began much later with a lot of work yet to be done.
With the government now turning its focus on eco-tourism development, there should be a concerted effort to revive dead waterbodies and to improve the ones that exist but are not in a good shape. Even the banks of Mahanadi can be developed and beautified to attract tourists. The authorities in Odisha should learn from the way the UK government has turned the Thames into a major tourist draw in London. The banks of the river almost throughout its course in the city are thronged during the weekends by hordes of tourists and picnickers. There are huge walkways and beautified open green spaces along the river that offers a fantastic view of the city with some of its most iconic sites. We have more beautiful rivers than the Thames but we either lack ideas or the necessary will power to transform these natural assets into tourist attractions.
(DISCLAIMER: This is an opinion piece. The views expressed are the author’s own and have nothing to do with OTV’s charter or views. OTV does not assume any responsibility or liability for the same)