The only Ramsar site in Tamil Nadu, Point Calimere Wildlife and Bird Sanctuary, a mix of salt swamps, mangroves, backwaters, mudflats, grasslands and tropical dry evergreen forest, presents a picture of concern for bird lovers.
The site is spread over 38,500 hectares. With habitats ranging from swamp to dry evergreen forests, it is a haven for migratory birds and resident species. A total of 257 species of birds have been recorded, including 119 water birds. During peak season, it is home to over four lakh birds.
“In reality, the few thousand acres at Kodiakarai that actually constitute the core bird habitat do not belong to the Forest Department,” K. Balachandran, senior scientist, Bombay Natural History Society, says with concern.
Set up in 1982, the Vijayaraghavan Committee recommended handing over of 25,544.47 acres, including unsurveyed swamp and land leased to a private chemical industry, to the Forest Department so that it could be maintained as an exclusive water birds habitat.
But the Forest Department is yet to be entrusted with 20,000 acres. The Revenue Department has 5,544.47 acres. It will soon hand this parcel over to the Defence Ministry for setting up an airbase, sources said.
The Forest Department has objected to the proposal since an airbase at the Ramsar site will obstruct the flyway of the migratory birds to the wetlands. “The birds return to places as far as Siberia after the breeding season,” says Naga Sathish Gidijala, Wildlife Warden.
