India to play major role in protecting migratory birds along Central Asian Flyway

India is set to play a major role in protecting migratory birds in the Central Asian Flyway (CAF). CAF is a major migratory route for birds, covering 30 countries from the Arctic Ocean to the Indian Ocean.

As part of the initiative, the Bombay Natural History Society (BNHS) and BirdLife International jointly organized a capacity enhancement workshop bringing all stakeholders together in one platform.

More than 45 participants from 13 different countries attended the workshop held in New Delhi.

The delegates from these 13 countries are working to understand how they can assess ecosystem services provided by important bird habitats, manage those sites using nature-based solutions, consider nature-safe energy infrastructures and support governments with monitoring and enforcement of wildlife laws to reduce hunting/poaching of migratory birds, said the BNHS upon the conclusion of the five-day meeting.

Rajeev Mital, Director General of National Mission for Clean Ganga, Ministry of Jal Shakti and Praveen Pardeshi, Chief Economic Advisor to Chief Minister of Maharashtra and CEO of Maharashtra Institute for Transformation interacted with the delegates and explained how Ministry of Jalshakti of Indian Government and the Maharashtra Government respectively have taken special projects to protect the indicator bird species and their habitats.

Kishor Rithe, Director of BNHS explained the Bird Migration studies conducted by BNHS in India over the past 142 years. 

Vinayagan Dharmarajah, Regional Director, Birdlife Asia talked about the objectives behind the workshop and expected that it will bring a big positive change in 30 countries situated in the Central Asian Flyways extending from the Maldives and Sri Lanka in south of Siberia in the north. 

Dr. P. Sathiyaselvam, Deputy Director of BNHS also gave his insights. 

It is to be noted that the Government of India is taking the lead in conserving the migratory species of this flyway. 

During the Conference of the Parties to the Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals (CMS COP14) at Samarkand, Uzbekistan, the Government of India introduced and championed the initiative for the CAF. India was awarded the ‘Champion Plus’  status by the CMS for its leadership role in conserving migratory birds in the CAF.

Among the outcomes include increased capacity of partners to assess ecosystem services of habitats and sites crucial for migratory bird species, for a better understanding of how those sites support the livelihoods of nearby communities, help in mitigating climate-related disasters such as floods and droughts, and benefit birds and other biodiversity.

Increased capacity of partners to sustainably manage and restore natural systems such as wetlands to address multiple societal ( food security, climate mitigation) and biodiversity conservation challenges for win-win solutions is also a key area.

On the outcomes, BNHS further said: “Increased capacity of partners to sensitise and advocate for nature-safe energy development to support governments and energy companies meet the energy demands and at the same time ensure that energy infrastructures are safe for migratory birds."

It added, "Increased capacity of partners to monitor, inform, and support governments to enforce existing wildlife crime laws to help reduce Illegal killing and unsustainable take of migratory birds. Increased capacity of partners to monitor birds using tagging methodology to better understand their habitat use and migratory journeys.”