Ranjan Das
Patkai Campus, Chümukedima- Seithekema
The pristine and serene topography mesmerizes any nature lover who visits Nagaland from outside. The cordial hospitality of the ever welcoming Naga people will elevate them even more. However, one weird thing would always stick into the minds of those : the uneasy silence of the vast hilly greenery. Yes, till the recent past, bird calls were scarcely heard in the dark & deep jungles here. All the wildlife including the birds had been disappearing sharply from the jungles of Nagaland due to the rampant, uncontrolled hunting and poaching. No wildlife protection act had been capable to keep them alive. Even some sophisticated people are still seen arguably justifying hunting in the name of customary tradition till today.
But of course, to our good fortune, the situation is changing otherwise slowly, underway. A handful of young, educated Nagas are coming out desperately to save the wildlife. Some village councils are also prohibiting hunting in their jurisdiction in support of them. Community conservation is consolidating gradually. Visible results are in progression. The iconic conservation story of amur red falcon of Doyang, Wokha and bat conservation of Mimi village, Kiphire are the proud testimony of such developments.
At this juncture, I must appreciate personally the relentless, silent but lone efforts of Dr. Chijamo Kikon at Patkai Christian College campus, Chumukedima, who is a die heart naturalist. Due to his persistent care, a visible fraction of the new Campus, Patkai has been turning into a naturally unbounded aviary where birds can be seen flocking and singing freely in good numbers. I myself have witnessed birds like spotted dove, common myna, tree pie, drongo, cuckoo, golden oriole, shrike, chestnut-tailed starling, Barbets etc., during the last few months in Patkai campus. These birds could be hardly seen before. Already, a significant number of tree sparrows, warblers, tits, munias, red vented bulbuls, wagtails, water hens, magpie robins, sunbirds, pond heron, kingfishers etc., are proliferating here in the campus for quite some time. The lucky one can even hear the calls of the mountain eagles and red jungle-fowls also sometimes on the hilltop adjacent to the campus.
I was a proficient bird shooter during my early young-hood which eventually turned me into a bird-lover in the course of time. My personal experience taught me that bird-watching (Ornithology) is an enormously fantastic hobby which inculcates in one’s mind, a lasting sense of jubilation. However difficult to resist, everyone should avoid bush-meat on the other hand, as it is a well-known career of the germs of many diseases. Moreover, birds are the indispensable parts of the mother nature whose healthy population signifies the well being of the environment too.
I appeal to the government of Nagaland to impose an umbrella ban on air-gun and gaming culture at the earliest. If requires, stringent laws should be enforced. The civil society organizations including the church bodies also have a lot to do in this regard collectively. The student community should also get involved into, to spread the consciousness among the masses. I hope all the wildlife and birds will reappear soon in this beautiful paradise.
