TAUSEEF AHMAD
BANDIPORA, Feb 09:
The five-day Wular Bird Festival commenced on Monday along the banks of Asia’s largest freshwater lake in north Kashmir’s Bandipora district, with authorities projecting the event as a flagship initiative to promote bird conservation, ecological awareness, and eco-tourism in the fragile Wular wetland ecosystem.
While the festival has drawn visitors, students, officials, and environmental enthusiasts, it has also triggered resentment among local stakeholders—particularly trained bird watchers, fishermen, and youth volunteers—who allege that the very community that has lived with, protected, and depended on Wular Lake for generations continues to be sidelined by the Wular Conservation and Management Authority (WUCUMA).
The festival was inaugurated by Deputy Commissioner Bandipora, Indu Kanwal Chib, JKAS, in the presence of WUCUMA officials, environmental experts, tourism stakeholders, and students. Officials described the event as an effort to sensitise people about migratory birds that visit Wular every winter, encourage conservation of the wetland’s fragile biodiversity, and generate sustainable livelihood opportunities through eco-tourism.
Speaking at the inauguration ceremony, DC Indu Kanwal Chib termed Wular Lake a vital ecological asset not only for Bandipora but for the entire Kashmir Valley. She emphasised the importance of community participation in preserving the lake and said that conservation efforts could not succeed without local involvement. WUCUMA officials, on the occasion, highlighted that the festival includes bird walks, awareness campaigns, exhibitions, cultural programmes, and expert interactions aimed at connecting people—especially the younger generation—with conservation initiatives.
However, on the ground, local fishermen, trained bird watchers, and youth volunteers tell a different story.
Several trained bird watchers alleged that despite being trained under WUCUMA-sponsored programmes, they are routinely ignored when surveys, monitoring exercises, or festival-related activities are conducted. Instead, they claim, outsiders are brought in for surveys and documentation, leaving locals unemployed and disillusioned.
“Every year, festivals and surveys are conducted in the name of Wular, but locals are pushed to the wall. Outsiders are brought in while trained youths from Wular villages are completely ignored,” said Showket Ahmad, a trained bird watcher who was trained by WUCUMA, while speaking to Kashmir Despatch.
Showket said he was among nearly 20 local youths trained by the Wular Conservation and Management Authority in 2020 with assurances that they would be engaged in bird monitoring, awareness drives, and conservation-related fieldwork. “Since our training, not once have we been given an opportunity to work on the ground. Our skills are simply being wasted,” he added.
Another youth from Zurimanz village in Bandipora, Manzoor Ahmad, echoed similar concerns. He said that despite volunteering for years and being trained in birdwatching and conservation awareness, he and many others continue to be overlooked.
“We are the people who spent our childhood on the banks of Wular. We know its birds, its fish, its seasons, and its problems better than anyone else. But instead of giving us a chance, priority is being given to people who don’t even know Wular,” Manzoor said.
He warned that the lake is slowly deteriorating due to pollution, encroachments, and unregulated activities. “Everyone contributes to the damage—from urban areas to rural settlements—but it is the fishing community that suffers the most because our survival is directly linked to Wular,” he added.
Another trained bird watcher, Rayees Ahmad, said that after receiving training, there has been no communication or follow-up from the authorities. “We were trained, but then forgotten. The authorities have forgotten those who breathe in Wular every day and those who continuously write and speak about saving the lake to sound a wake-up call,” he said.
Rayees alleged that locals are reduced to mere props during official events. “We were promised work in every project when authorities start work, but nothing happened. We are useful only for photo opportunities,” he added.
Several other local youths trained under earlier conservation and awareness projects said they remain unemployed despite repeated assurances. They claimed they were promised involvement in eco-tourism initiatives, bird monitoring programmes, and awareness campaigns, especially during dredging and restoration works at Wular Lake.
“We were told that employment opportunities would be created for Wular stakeholders once eco-tourism and conservation projects take off. Today, employment generation for local stakeholders is zero. The claims are tall, but nothing exists on the ground,” said another stakeholder.
Fishermen from nearby villages such as Saderkoot Bala also voiced similar grievances, alleging that they are invited to programmes only for optics and excluded from decision-making processes. “We depend on Wular Lake for our survival. Policies are framed without consulting us, even though we are the most affected,” said a local fisherman.
Meanwhile, WUCUMA Coordinator Altaf Ahmad rejected the allegations, stating that community participation remains a priority for the authority. He said WUCUMA is gradually expanding eco-tourism initiatives and training programmes and that local involvement will increase in the coming months.
Responding to questions regarding the bird watchers trained by WUCUMA in 2020, Altaf Ahmad said he was not aware of the specific programme. However, he assured that if such training had been conducted earlier, the authority would ensure the participation of trained local youths in future programmes.
As thousands of migratory birds return to Wular Lake every winter, residents and local stakeholders insist that conservation efforts will remain incomplete unless the communities living around the lake are meaningfully involved—not just during festivals, but through permanent livelihood planning, decision-making roles, and sustained engagement linked directly to the protection and revival of the Wular ecosystem.
