House Sparrows are disappearing dramatically with the upsurge in urbanization since over a decade globally, especially in the South Asian countries. The bird, closely associated with human life, needs immediate conservation, which a district like Bankura urged on World Sparrow Day.

“We’ve shared our environment with these birds for thousands of years, and it’s important to protect them,” said Jharna Ganguly of My Dear Trees & Wilds – a nature-loving foundation, operating in south Bengal. The foundation observed World Sparrow Day at two places – Mankanali and Beliatore in the district today aiming to spread awareness about conservation of sparrows. It organised dance drama with themes of sparrow conservation.

Advertisement

‘I love sparrows’ was the theme for World Sparrow Day 2024 emphasizing the special connection between humans and sparrows. The idea of World Sparrow Day came initially from an informal discussion at the Nature Forever Society of India that was founded by Mohammed Dilawar and the Eco-Sys Action Foundation of France. Dilawar was inspired by the Save Sparrow campaign, kicked off in Rajasthan in the 1960’s. The first World Sparrow Day was observed in March, 2010. Currently, more than 50 countries celebrate the day for the cause of the small domestic birds.