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Kapra lake may become bird sanctuary

An official of the forest department confirmed that bird sanctuary was a part of the wetland conversion activity.

Hyderabad: In what could be a fillip for the now dewatered Kapra lake, civic officials are mulling over making it into a bird sanctuary once it is cleaned and filled with fresh water.

“We have set aside `60 crore for sprucing up Kapra lake. We are looking to develop a bird sanctuary there. Right now we are focused on providing bunds around the lake. The next part would be to improve plantation and get clean water in the lake. We are diverting the sewage,” said a senior official of the GHMC.

An official of the forest department confirmed that bird sanctuary was a part of the wetland conversion activity.

However, bird-watchers and the city’s environmentalists are critical of the plans. “We do not see birds coming close to the lakes that are supposedly restored. If it is close to human habitats, then the chances of viewing birds are much less. The water mustn’t be too deep as birds like flamingos prefer shallow waters. The birds must have adequate feed,” Sriram Reddy, a photographer and member of the Hyderabad Birding Pals, told Deccan Chronicle.

He pointed out that at Hussainsagar, birds are seen only on the Sanjeeva-iah Park side, where there is minimal human activity. “Basically, a sanctuary requires an environment that is congenial for bird life. We welcome the idea of a sanctuary, but the loc-ation is tricky, as it is surrounded by polluting indu-stries,” said Prof Purus-hottam Reddy, a city-based environmentalist.

B.V. Subba Rao, a member of the State Board for Wildlife, rues that the Kapra Lake is not an ideal spot for birds to visit. However, the residents of Sainikpuri are happy to have a bird sanctuary.

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