Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation moves 500 pigeons to Srisailam forest
Hyderabad: In order to protect the Moazzam Jahi Market, a heritage structure, the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation has captured about 500 pigeons from here and let them off in the Srisailam forest. This follows repeated complaints from shopkeepers that pigeons are multiplying rapidly and their excreta has an unbearable stench.
The civic body said that since the pigeon droppings were creating health problems (breathing dust or water droplets containing contaminated bird droppings can lead to several diseases, including a flu-like illness called psittacosis), and was damaging the restored area in the Moazzam Jahi Market, the veterinary wing caught about 500 of them and handed them over to the forest department.
It was claimed that the pigeons are damaging the clock tower and repairs now have to be carried out regularly. The corporation strictly prohibits feeding of pigeons by walkers or visitors in public parks and boards will soon be put up in all parks informing the public of this.
The drive will be extended to other areas of the city too, civic officials say.
Animal rights activists said that relocating the pigeons won’t serve as a solution as other pigeons will take their place.
They say the pigeons are also part of the Moazzam Jahi Market’s beauty. “If the pigeons are taken away from the structure, the beauty is also lost,” said Panneru Teja, an animal rights activist. Pigeons have adapted well to urban life and living alongside humans and are dependent on humans for food. They have now lost their capacity to hunt for food. If they are left in the forest, they will not survive for long, said V. Suresh of People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA).
Moreover, if a relocated pigeon has an infection, it could infect other animals in the wild and this could be devastating for wildlife.
Khairatabad zonal commissioner, Musharraf Faruqui, said that shopkeepers have been advised not to feed pigeons if they make a comeback. He said this would prevent the pigeons from coming back.
