There is no denying that there’s an urgent need for increasing the awareness about birds, especially among the younger generation. Thankfully there’s a very heartening development here in our city.

You may remember that the members of a little known organisation called the Jeeva Daya Jain Charity, comprising mostly ladies, has been conducting a spirited but quiet campaign to rejuvenate the fast dwindling house sparrow population in and around the city.

Star of Mysore has carried news about them and their activities in the past too a few times. They have been holding early morning public awareness meetings, especially near places where people go for their morning walks, like our Kukkarahalli and Karanji Lakes.

At these gatherings they have not only been spreading awareness about the urgent need to help the humble and once abundant house sparrow but also been giving away eco-friendly nesting boxes and even bird feed, free of cost to anyone interested in helping this tiny denizen that is fast exiting our cities, perhaps for want of proper nesting places, thanks to the design of our modern buildings.

Having done this good deed, now, instead of just giving away these nesting boxes to a good many people who may just be eagerly collecting them because they have been free hand-outs and then only tossing them away in their car garages, without putting them to proper use, some sparrow campaigners have decided to give them only to members of the public who are really interested in participating in their mission.

So if anyone is interested in joining hands with them, they may please send a WhatsApp message to +91 94490 66118 and await a response, which will come surprisingly fast. But no disturbing voice calls please!

— Dr. K. Javeed Nayeem