CHENNAI: As the summer settles in and the temperature keeps rising, all police stations in the state will keep a water bowl on their premises to quench the thirst of winged visitors. DGP C Sylendra Babu has appealed and also volunteered to keep a water bowl in his office on Monday.
This was following a request from animal rights activist Sai Vignesh, 22, who runs Almighty Animal Sanctuary in Tiruvallur which takes care of abandoned and destitute animals. Sylendra Babu often visits the sanctuary and renders his support.
The DGP told TNIE it was important to offer every possible support to all living beings. “During Covid, the water bowl initiative was undertaken in all the fire stations and it was satisfactory. Most of the police stations have some tree cover and home to different kinds of birds. We can do our bit to help them beat the heat.”
Sai Vignesh has also appealed to the general public to keep water bowls in public places and outside their homes. “If anyone from Tiruvallur and surrounding places wants water bowls, they can contact me on 8939320846. I am distributing it free of cost.” The water bowl initiative is also supported by State Animal Welfare Board member Shruti Vinodh Raj.
April - May is the time when the return migration of birds happens on the central asian flyway. This includes waterfowl like shovellers, godwits, stints, gulls, terns, etc and also forest birds like Indian Pitta, orange headed thrush and forest wagtail.