Mysuru:  Kukkarahalli Lake Watch programme by naturalist U.N. Ravikumar was organised by Wild Mysuru at Kukkarahalli Lake premises in city this morning.

The programme began from the main entrance of the lake with an objective to admire the ecosystem around the lake and exchange knowledge about flora and fauna. The programme started at around 7.15 am and concluded at about 9 PM. The team took a small walk along the lake premises discussing the aspects of the lake and the various flora and fauna present there.

Speaking to Star of Mysore, U.N. Ravikumar said, “People need to develop the habit of appreciating the lake, environment and the ecosystem. I actually fell in love with this lake. This lake is the lungs of Mysuru City and is a living heritage. In this developing city, this Kukkarahalli Lake is an environmental window which makes people come to it to gain peace and feel related to the living organisms.”

He further said that one could feel the climatic changes, enjoy the spring splendour, look at the beautiful Paradise fly catchers, admire the birds and mammals present in the lake premises. With advancement in technology and a greed towards development, people are actually spoiling the natural environment, he added.

“A lake should be left alone. It is not a tank. People have demands like electrifying the premises, introduction of boating etc. If we have such demands, this lake would have any meaning at all. A lake has its own way and property of cleaning itself. Leave it naturally. Many people from various places come to Mysuru and admire this beautiful lake. Those people don’t have such a beautiful ecosystem within their nearby reach. But many people over here dream of going to various other places. Instead, love the place where you live, make Kukkarahalli Lake an example. This lake which has a rich biodiversity is a world for the creatures themselves. We should thus conserve it,” he said.

Speaking about the programme, he said, “I’m very happy to know that so many people are concerned about the lake and have come for this initiative. Only when one starts appreciating the things, will he develop a sense of belongingness.”

The walk around the lake, witnessed people discussing about various trees, birds, plants, flowers, seeds etc. Dr. Sampath Kumar, a renowned Botanist was also present in the programme, who patiently explained the queries and helped in the identification of plants and trees.

Vinay, a M.Sc. Biochemistry student from JSS College, said, “The concept of Conservation programmes is to create awareness about the surrounding. When people get to know about the benefits of trees and plants and other organisms, they tend to develop interest towards these. This interactive session is an exchange of ideas as we have been discussing and sharing our knowledge about various aspects since this morning. If habitat loss is diminished then conservation can be done.”

Bird enthusiast Tanuja, said, “This programmes is a learning process. Being in nature makes us happy and gives us energy to work every week. Once you start appreciating environment, you learn how to conserve it. In classrooms, they teach about monocotyledons, dicotyledons and other things. But when we bring students here and show them about the seeds, the various kinds of birds feet and beaks, they tend to learn better and store the information for a longer term. People are scared of bats. But bats are so helpful in keeping the mosquitoes population under control. More people should learn to appreciate lakes like these. If at all there is any threat to the lake or any sort of development activity that can hamper the ecosystem, we do not have to rush and look for support. The people should feel that this lake is theirs and must stand for its protection.”

Wild Mysuru is a group started by Shylajesh, Chandra and Nisarga. They started a youtube channel ‘Wild Mysuru’ where they upload a short one to two minute videos related to wildlife, birds, lakes, flora, fauna,etc. This group has now evolved into a conservative programme and is creating awareness amongst the masses. Chandra speaking to Star of Mysore, said, “We wanted to show the people how the birds are in the environment, how the flowers bloom by the lake side, etc. People are curious to see those moments. We capture those moments and make short movies and upload it on Youtube.”

The programme covered various aspects of discussion on flora and fauna, identification of trees and birds and conservative practices. Around 50 people belonging to various age groups took part in the programme.