With banners and placards depicting "save house sparrow" - "Helpful to mankind" - "the petty birds need our help to survive", the students of the town marched in a procession yesterday shouting slogans.

Organised by the forest department the function was held in the Raja Dharanidhar High School where the divisional Forest Officer, Arun Kumar Mishra apprised the students about the relation between house sparrow and human being and how they need each other.

Presided over by the Head Master of the High School, Subhendra Nath Mullick, students spoke on the lovely bird. Attending as the Chief Speaker, Lingaraj Mishra, Advocate and bird lover, spoke on how to save the sparrow of whose strength had been reducing day by day. Prizes were also distributed on the occasion to the winners of different events conducted on the subject--human, animal and birds.