Gharana wetland plays host to migratory guests

Migratory birds have starting arriving at the Gharana wetland in the RS Pura sector. It becomes habitat for the birds from Siberia and Central Asia during the winter months.
The wetland is 27 km away from Jammu and close to the international border (IB) with Pakistan. It attracts thousands of birds from Central Asia, China, Siberian Tundra, East Europe and New Zealand.
Normally, birds arrive here in December and stay till February end.
Though, the government has failed to save the area from encroachment despite Gharana becoming a conservation reserve through a notification issued in 1986, the place is still attracting the birds which make it as their winter habitat.
Several species of endangered bar-headed geese fly over the Himalayas from their breeding grounds in Central Asia and other parts of the world to escape the cold weather and breed in the warm weather of Jammu.
However, local people make every effort to kill and drive away the birds as the wetland is surrounded by farmlands and people complain that the birds damage their crops.