Migratory birds continue to skip Tanguar Haor

SYLHET, Feb 05: Although the winter is about to end this year, migratory birds have almost not seen at all in Tanguar Haor, Sunamganj district, locals say. The situation has been the same for the past few years.
Known as the country's second largest freshwater wetland, it is a World Ramsar Heritage Site -- a sanctuary for various species of fish, migratory birds and aquatic plants. The haor spans across portions of Tahirpur and Madhyanagar upazilas of Sunamganj.
At the beginning of the winter season every year, migratory birds used to flock Tanguar Haor, which came back to life with the noise of birds.
Local residents say that bird hunting has largely stopped for the past two years and now it is "virtually non-existent."
Years ago the then deputy commissioner of Sunamganj gave special importance to the conservation of Tanguar Haor and the development of the tourism industry. Under his guidance, bird hunters were fined and imprisoned through mobile courts with the help of the upazila administration and police.
Locals said that a few years ago, migratory birds used to be sold openly or secretly in various markets and district headquarters of Tahirpur Upazila. By now, that scene is no longer seen. Once upon a time, despite the difficult communication system and housing crisis, biodiversity-loving tourists from home and abroad used to come to see birds in Tanguar Haor.
But in recent years, due to the decline in the number of birds, the presence of foreign tourists, let alone domestic tourists, is very limited.
Spread over an area of about 126 square kilometers, Tanguar Haor was home for migratory birds from different parts of the world, including Siberia and other regions every year. This food-rich haor provided them with new vitality after their long flights.
According to Bangladesh Poribesh Andolon sources, the number of migratory birds to the renowned tanguar haor has been on decline for years for various reasons. A Tk 450 million project taken by the environment department for the Tanguar Haor development has been ongoing for over a year, but the organisation failed to provide any information on the matter.
Experts said out of the world's 10,000 species of birds, 1,855 are migratory. At one time, there were about 219 species of birds in Tanguar Haor. Of these, 98 species are migratory, 121 are endemic, and 22 are ducks. Notable species included the rare Palace Fishing Eagle, Maulvi Duck, Peari, Kaim, Ramkura, Matharanga, Balihans, Lenja, Chokhachokhi, and Beguni Kalem.
Saiful Alam, a resident of Tanguar Haorpar, said that these birds are almost non-existent today.
Ahmed Sayeed said that for the last two years, the arrival of foreign tourists to Tanguar Haor has been completely stopped during the winter season. The number of domestic tourists is also very low.
Journalist Alam Sabbir said that four-five years ago, due to a section of unscrupulous bird hunters and traders, the number of birds in the haor decreased drastically. At the same time, the Hijal-Karach, Nalkhagra and Chailya forests are also almost on the verge of extinction.
However, the district administration recently banned the movement of all types of motorised boats in the core and buffer zones of Tanguar Haor since last year. If this surveillance continues, the arrival of birds will increase again in the future. In this regard, Sunamganj Deputy Commissioner Dr. Mohammad Ilias Mia said that the government has formulated special policies for the conservation of haors and wetlands. The district administration is in a strict position to implement these policies. Maximum surveillance will continue to protect biodiversity and develop the tourism industry, he added.

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