Noida: Discarded waste can pose a serious threat to birds and animals. However, if recycled and repurposed, it can offer them shelter and succour.A bird was found entangled in roadside garbage when a resident of Greater Noida West, Annu Khan, rescued it. Annu was on his way from a meeting when he stopped the car near a roundabout in front of Surajpur village to get a bottle of water. He heard a screeching voice coming from nearby and noticed a bird struggling as its wings were stuck to a glue-covered cardboard, lying among a pile of garbage alongside the road.Hurt by the bird’s agony, he looked around to find a way to help it. “I went to a nearby pit, which was filled with rainwater, and cleaned the bird thoroughly with water. I then placed the bird on a tree. It looked as if this baby bird was a quail or a partridge,” Khan said.Environmentalist Vikrant Tongad identified the bird as a jungle babbler, usually found in residential areas across the Indian subcontinent. It is a long-tailed bird, known for its social behaviour, and is often seen moving in noisy groups, giving it the nickname “Seven Sisters.”Tongad further added how waste disposed of on roadsides or in parks poses a grave threat to birds and stray animals. “We often rescue cats, cattle and dogs that get injured by glass shards, medical waste, rat traps or wires dumped in open areas,” he said.
Students placed the eco-friendly bird shelters-cum-feeders in trees across Noida
Students at Challengers Group Trust made eco-friendly bird shelters-cum-feeders
Meanwhile, a group of underprivileged students from the Challengers Group Trust have turned discarded waste into 250 eco-friendly bird shelters-cum-feeders as part of the “Waste to Best” programme.The shelters have been installed in sectors 71, 58, 12 and Gaur City.The students used MDF sheets, plastic bottles, jute and cardboard, which were collected through the “Plastic Lao, Shiksha Pao” initiative.The president of Challengers Group, Prince Sharma, said, “Such initiatives nurture kindness, responsibility and environmental awareness among children. They allow students to learn how everyday waste can provide valuable solutions for wildlife conservation.”Students also expressed enthusiasm about how what they once considered garbage was now helping in nature conservation. One of the students, Sourav Kumar, 16, said, “More people should make bird feeders and keep water outside their homes.”
