Indore
Due to coronavirus second wave, city zoo was shut down, but to celebrate World Sparrow Day, World Forest Day and World Water Day over the weekend, Indore city zoo conducted different activities online.
About 1,500 entries were received from all over India for various competitions. World Sparrow Day, World Forest Day and World Water Day are celebrated on March 20-21-22 respectively.
Quiz based on these topics was conducted online in which about 600 people participated. Along with this, nest making workshop was conducted in which participants were told about how to make a nest for birds and to attract them. Nest boxes were made from old plywood for small birds. About 200 people participated in this activity.
Third was T-shirt painting competition in which students and elders participated. Save Sparrows was the subject of competition. After this, all the T-shirts will be distributed among needy by volunteers. "We got 200 T-shirts," Aishani Jain, NGO ARPF, coordinator, said.
The fourth competition was Selfie with Nest Box, in which people took selfies with their nest boxes. About 100 people participated in this competition.
The aim of celebrations was to create awareness about sparrows and small birds. "Many people think that sparrows are getting extinct whereas sparrows are actually migrating from city to villages," Jain said.
The cause and discussion during the online event by environmentalists
Sparrow population has declined due to rapid urbanisation, degradation of ecological resources for livelihood and high pollution level. In homes, ventilators have been replaced with AC. Decorative plants and flowering shrubs have replaced local trees, making it impossible for birds to build nests.
Another reason is replacement by other avian species. The growing and aggressive nature of pigeons has reduced the number of sparrows. Sparrows eat insects. Before urbanisation, sparrows were considered farmer's best friend, eating all the insects in farmland. In first 15 days after birth, sparrow baby is dependent on the fresh insect larvae.
The results of these events will be announced on World Water Day, which is March 22, 2021.
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