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Birds are back at Najafgarh Lake

The birding season at the Najafgarh Lake, near Dwarka seems promising this time around. A number of winter migrant bird species have already flocked to this wetland.
Their numbers will only increase in the coming months.
Sajit Mohanan, a keen bird watcher and member of the Delhi Birders Group has been constantly monitoring the devel- opment at the Najafgarh Lake.
“There were some good though late rains in Delhi. There was a lot of water when I visited the site in late September. Groups of comb duck are already there,“ says he.
Another good news is that a number of fisheries that were operating on the fields near the lake have also closed shop. These fisheries drew a lot of kites and crows, which disturbed the migrant bird population.
As of now, birds such as the yellow wagtail, white wagtail, northern shoveler, gadwall, wood sandpiper, spotted sandpiper, Eurasian wigeon, comb ducks, common coot and marsh har- riers have been spotted. Shortly, flocks of bar headed geese are also expected, which also favour this marsh land.
The place is also known to attract greater flamingoes, which are expected to arrive in late January.
Environmentalists from the area are trying to press upon the Delhi government the need to turn these marshes into a bird sanctuary. The Delhi gov- ernment has shown some interest in the direction with a min- ister visiting the lake. As of now, it is a proposed bird sanctuary.
“Given the right protection and development, this place has the potential to grow bigger than the world heritage birding site of Bharatpur. All we need is for the government to wake up to its potential.
Otherwise, it will be lost to the real estate developers many of whom are already here,“ says Suresh Nath, a birder from Dwarka.
In the 1950s, a much larger lake (as much as 300 sq km) existed here. But in the 1960s, it was drained by the flood con- trol department through the Najafgarh drain. This destroyed the rich wetland ecosystem and wildlife habitat of the lake, its ecological value and its value as a water reservoir, echarging the local water table in the dry months.
Even now, the fact that a vast lake ever existed here in the region and the current needs, resurrecting remains largely an unknown and little discussed issue.
The lake can be reached from Najafgarh through Dhansa Road.
Another way is to reach through Chawala Camp, near Najafgarh.
This road can be taken from behind Sector 19 Dwarka, and goes along Kangenheri, the site of the coming up nature camp.

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