Statement by Mr. Randeep Hooda on World Migratory Bird Day 2020

Even while the Earth sleeps, we travel. We are the seeds of the tenacious plant, and it is in our ripeness and our fullness of heart that we are given to the wind and are scattered. -  Khalil Gibran 

 

Our planet is one singular organism. We humans have made borders that we guard and protect often with our lives. We have passports, visas, nationalities and heavy modes of transport to carry us through these imaginary lines drawn in sand. But there are higher beings, quite literally, that know not our triviality. These birds, migratory birds, have the world as their oyster. Travelling thousands of miles in the quest to fulfil their destinies accorded to them from time immemorial. A destiny so intertwined with ours that we know not what we lose by not protecting these travellers. To protect them is to protect ourselves by making sure our lakes, rivers, reservoirs and forests are flourishing.  

 

I took this picture at Corbett Tiger Reserve where there was a pair of these beautiful creatures (they pair for a lifetime) chilling in the lake. They travel thousands of miles over the mighty Himalayas at 6,800 metres from Central Europe through western China for wintering in the Indian Subcontinent. It had a loud honking call perhaps to wake us up to the wonders that surround us.

There are 1,800 other unique and beautiful bird species that travel across the world with little importance to man-made lines. Let’s look at ourselves in the mirror like this beauty gazed at itself in the water and self-examine. We have come together to fight Covid-19 as a species, so should we come together to protect these blessings that come to our homes. अतिथि देवो भवा - Guest is God.