Bird Lovers Throng New Tumbung Village near Umrangso

A Correspondent

Haflong: Hundreds of bird lovers from various parts of the State have started to throng New Tumbung village located near the NEEPCO reservoir at Umrangso, 112 km from Haflong, as the Amur Falcons have started to arrive there since October 7.

The Amur Falcon (Falco amurensis) is a small raptor (a bird of prey) of the falcon family. It breeds in south-eastern Siberia and Northern China before migrating in large flocks across India and over the Arabian Sea to spend the winter in Southern Africa. These migratory birds from Siberia and China stop over at Umrangso in central Assam district on their route to Africa.

Earlier, these small raptors were reportedly killed for meat but after organizing awareness campaigns to provide safe passage to Amur Falcons by the forest department, NGOs and social activists, nowadays killing of Amur Falcons has stopped.

Moreover, the forest department has undertaken protection duties round-the-clock during the period of their migration through Dima Hasao. Joitholal Hojai, Range Officer, said that during the period of migration, more than 10 forest personnel are engaged day and night to protect these birds and a series of awareness campaigns has been organized among the people to protect these raptors.

Meanwhile, the NC Hills Autonomous Council has organized Falcon Festival from November 15 to November 17 to be held at Golf Course in order to create awareness among the masses for protection and preservation of Amur Falcon.

Golongjo Thaosen, Executive Member of NC Hills Autonomous Council, along with MACs Nojit Kemprai and Ratan Jarambusa, has been camping there to supervize the preparation for the Falcon Festival.

Thaosen said the festival was being organized to create awareness among the masses regarding the protection of Falcon, to promote tourism and to generate income for the youths while showcasing tradition, culture and ethnic food of various communities living in Dima Hasao. He added that preparation for the festival was going on in full swing and road communication had been restored so there would be no problem in reaching Umrangso by road.

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