MYSURU: A compassionate businessman is spending time and money on treating injured birds at a little clinic in Vidyaranyapuram.
He takes care of sick, injured and orphaned birds with the intention of returning them to the wild after they recover.
It all began when Ajay Kumar Jain (37), entrepreneur and member of the NGO Pragathi Prathistan, saw an injured crow on the road. He took it to many vets but they said they did not treat birds. That was when he thought of setting up a clinic for birds. His dream took concrete shape in April 2015.
Ajay, as he is called by his friends, is the proprietor of a company manufacturing mementos, awards and gifts in Mysuru. Dr V Madan Kompal, veterinary surgeon and radiologist who works for the Mysuru zoo, is part of the healing mission. He treats birds for free at Ajay’s clinic.
Over the past year, the two have treated about 80 birds, including eagles, pigeons, owls, and crows. The clinic has also seen migratory birds, such as the green barbet and green-tailed grackle.
Ajay believes birds should not be caged. He frequently receives calls from people who spot birds that have suffered electric shocks or have had their wings cut by the manja thread used by kite-flyers.
If the injuries are minor, he treats them. For anything major, he calls Dr Kompal.
He recently received a call from Bengaluru about an injured bat rescued from predators. The caller had taken it to various vets but none had been able to treat it. The bone in one of its wings was broken. It was moved to Mysuru, where it was treated at the clinic.
Ajay records the medical history of each bird. While in the clinic, the birds are given medicine, vegetarian food, vitamins, fruits and water. All recovered birds are released in the wild.
The clinic is small and can do with more space, Ajay says. He plans to build a hospital and research centre with an ICU, x-ray machine and an emergency care unit.
He has recently been joined by Shriha Bhat and Suma Rajkumar in rescuing and treating birds.