Endangered Hargila rescued, set free by Aaranyak team

An endangered Greater Adjutant Stork (locally referred to as Hargila) which was rescued by a team from biodiversity organisation Aaranyak in November last year, was released into the wilderness on May 14.

On November 18, 2022, ‘Tiku’, the rescued ‘Hargila’ was only a 10-day-old, when she and her sibling fell from a nest atop a 70-feet tall tree in Dadara village of Kamrup district in Assam.

Fortunately, Kandarpa Medhi, a local resident, spotted the two birds and contacted the Greater Adjutant Conservation Programme (GACP) team of the regions leading biodiversity conservation organisation, Aaranyak.

The GACP team is headed by well-known conservationist Dr Purnima Devi Barman.

Dr Barman and her team members Manab Das and Dipankar Das came to rescue and take care of the distressed chicks.

The chicks were handed over to Dr Rathin Barman, Joint Director of the Centre for Wildlife Rehabilitation and Conservation (CWRC) and they were taken to the Centre for rehabilitation.

They both looked weak, dehydrated and injured, so they needed the best possible care., Dr Purnima Devi Barman said.

CWRC is a rescue and rehabilitation centre run by the Wildlife Trust of India (WTI) in collaboration with the Assam Forest Department.

CWRC’s veterinarian, Dr Samshul Ali, though took the utmost care to save these birds, but one of the chicks died from its injuries after a few days at the centre.

Meanwhile, the condition of the other chick has gradually improved after receiving care and treatment. After a seven-month stay at the CWRC, this bird was released into the wilderness on May 14.

This bird-release event held near Deepor Beel was graced by Partha Sarathi Mahanta, DIG (Admin) and Indrani Baruah, DIG (CID) of Assam Police. Both police officers have been closely associated with the Greater Adjutant Conservation Programme of Aaranyak for years.

Pramod Kalita, a well-known conservationist from the Deepor Beel area was also there in the bird-release event.

His three-year-old daughter Bhuyoshi Kalita alias Tiku is very enthusiastic about birds and hence the released Hargila has been named after her.

“As we set the recuperated Hargila free on May 14, Mother’s Day, we honoured all the mothers who always go all out to nurture and protect their young,” he said.

This stork’s flight serves as a symbol of hope and resilience for all those who have lost their mothers, and a reminder that love and compassion can come from unexpected sources, Dr Purnima Devi Barman said.

More than 400 such birds have been rescued and rehabilitated by Dr Purnima and her team in the past 15 years and hand raising them at the Assam State Zoo, Assam Forest Department facilities, CWRC, as well as in the villages of Dadara, Pachariya, and Singimari in Kamrup District, with support from local people.