About 60 species of birds were spotted during a bird watching camp organised by the Ecotourism Wing of the Uttarakhand Forest Department with support from Institute of Hotel Management, Dehradun and sponsored by Uttarakhand State Council of Science and Technology (UCOST) which concluded on the weekend in Jhajra reserve forest.
“Jhajra Reserve Forest was a fitting location for this training camp, as it is very rich in avifauna. Despite the inclement weather during the camp, 60 species of bird were spotted, including Oriental Pied Hornbill, Red-billed Blue Magpie, Red-billed leiothrix, Himalayan Flameback, Velvet-fronted Nuthatch, Drongo-Cuckoo and Maroon Oriole,” said Suniti Bhushan Datta.
Jhajhara Forest Rest House established in 1885 and situated in Dehradun Forest Division near Chakrata road was the venue for the bird watching camp which was the fourteenth in the series. The camp was conducted by additional principal chief conservator of forests Pratap Singh, Dr Raman Kumar from the Nature Science Initiative and expert Suniti Bhushan Datta.
The programme consisted of a combination of lecture and field trips to nearby forests and Forest Research Institute. In all there were 25 participants including six faculty members, two staff and 16 trainees from various courses being
conducted by IHM and one range officer.
Income Tax commissioner MK Singhania, the chief guest at the closing ceremony briefed the participants about the various tax incentives being given by the Central Government in Uttarakhand for promotion of ecotourism and exhorted them to take up ecotourism as a potential career.