NO SPACE FOR SPARROWS (05/05/2017)

THE VANISHING SPARROW

People devise queer ways to propitiate bad luck or adverse phase in their life. One such way devised by Delhiites- rich and poor, is to feed a pigeon. Delhi has places earmarked for such noble practice- a round about at a traffic signal or a road divider at cross-roads. I come across such ‘outlets’ at Inderlok crossing, Anand Parvat crossing and the Gol Market on way to my office, where this Public Display of Affection for Pigeon (PDAP) is quite common. Costly cars come to a screeching halt at such places. The rich occupants of the car take time to feed a feral pigeon, while the signal is red and get back at the wheels before the signal turns green. A few vendors at these places deal in pigeon feed and make a living out of others misfortune. I do not know whether this helps Delhiites overcome their stress and distress, but it often creates traffic snarls at crossings. What is indeed noteworthy is all such places are entirely dominated by a single breed of pigeon and there is a complete absence of birds of any other kind. Apart from pigeons, we observe only few mynahs and crows in the Delhi skyline. Where have all the other birds gone? Not to speak of a kingfisher or a woodpecker, we do not find a single sparrow in Delhi. 20^th March was World Sparrow Day but it was celebrated in absence of the sparrow. I find it quite amazing. I infer the flight of sparrow from Delhi is symbolic of the lifestyle of the city which, I find, is not a place for the sparrow hearted. One who is simple and weak like a sparrow has no scope to survive in Delhi- a city which has been a city of rulers and a place of intrigue and deceit from time ancient? You either pick up the tricks of the trade like the migrating Biharis or simply leave the city, just like the sparrows which is nowhere to be found in Delhi who, I believe, have abdicated their position to the all pervading feral pigeons. The nuisance created by pigeons is an eye sore. Fed sumptuously by distressed Delhiites, these pigeons make a mockery of the “Swachh Bharat Abhiyaan” and pay back the distressed Delhiites by their droppings dirtying public places with impunity- office and residential buildings, metro station and statue of national leaders etc. And in doing so, they have spared no one. So long the planet Saturn continues to control Delhi; these feral pigeons need not worry about their daily food. They keep getting fed and their droppings keep adding to an already polluted Delhi.