The ambitious plan to develop a waterway from Marine Drive to Kadambrayar, via Infopark, to promote eco-tourism in Kadambrayar has now become a bit of a challenge for the district administration.
While the Rs 10-crore project to develop the 14-km waterway for speedboats is now awaiting government’s sanction, proposed dredging of the 30-metre-wide river as part of the venture has drawn the ire of a section of green lobby.
“Why can’t they confine dredging to just the boat-lane and leave remaining parts of the river to birds? It can then be developed as an ideal eco-tourism location,” noted ornithologist Dr R. Sugathan suggested.
Mr Baby John, managing council member and in charge of Kadambrayar eco-tourism destination and boat club, seems to agree. “Foreign tourists are amazed at the diversity of bird species (at Kadambrayar). Conserving this will do good to tourism here,” he said.
Dr Sugathan, who has conducted a study on birds in the river, said he found 62 species of wetland birds in the area. “As Kochi is developing fast, birds are losing their habitat at an increasing pace,” he said. “So preserving what is left now is essential. “This should now be a part of town planning.” He also suggested that Kadambrayar should be developed as a community reserve of birds.
Kadambrayar has become a natural habitat of birds over the years primarily for the presence of water hyacinth and other water plants there. Some of the rare birds found in the river are Purple Heron, Red Wattled Lapwin, Green Bee Eater, Bronze Winged Jacana, Pied King Fisher and Purple Moorhen.
Then there are the more common Pond Heron, Common King Fisher, Black-capped Kingfisher, Great Egret, Cattle Egret, Little Cormorant, Little Grebe, Black Dronko and Darter (or Snake Bird) in large numbers.