Return of the Sparrow

I first thought of writing on this subject last year after reading an article in TOI about the disappearance of sparrows from the city. I kept an eye out for the little birds for a few days after that, and it looked like they had indeed gone away. That was till two months later. My exams were on and I had taken a break from studies to take a look around when I noticed a sparrow on the parapet. The tiny creature was soon joined by her mate and then they both flew away. I have hardly ever seen a sparrow in Thane since then.

I have been living in Talegaon for the past few days, enjoying my vacations in the midst of the scenic beauty and the cool weather. What is interesting is the abundance of sparrows here, along with healthy populations of at least five other kinds of bird(Don't ask me what they’re called, I don't know!). What's more, the birds look chubby and happy, chirping away all the time. So why is there a difference? Why are the birds leaving the city?

Now it is well known that amphibians are the most sensitive to environmental changes, as they depend on both the land and water to survive. Any change, like the salt concentration of the water or fluctuating temperatures, shows up directly in the change in the amphibian population of a particular region. Judging by the disappearance of the sparrows, small birds also seem to be strongly influenced by changes in their habitat. Environmentalists have already pointed out to us several of the factors responsible for this habitat change. They are, pollution of air and water, noise, temperature rise, telecomm tower radiation, and the sheer lack of space and food. Let's see how these correlate with the given scenario.

Thane is a crowded city, densely populated and highly polluted, just like every other place in and around Mumbai. Plus there’s the rising heat. The increase in the number of vehicles is primarily responsible for this, which in turn is due to the large human population. Talegaon is a village about 120 kms away from Mumbai. It is a clean, cool, and silent place. In terms of human habitation, it is still very young. There is a lot of greenery everywhere and only a small number of vehicles and industries The buildings are located far from one another, unlike in the city. This allows for free flow of air and easy dispersal of smoke as well as heat. Because the roads are narrow and surrounded by trees, local ‘hot spots’ are almost non-existent Thus the air remains cool and free of pollution. The abundance of plants and trees absorbs excessive noise to a certain extent. The number of telecomm towers is much smaller.

I think it is obvious why the sparrows have chosen the villages over the city. But this post is about the return of the sparrow. So how do we make that happen? We can’t move the buildings apart and make the roads narrow. We cannot reduce the number of factories. Yet there are many things that we can do. We can eliminate hot spots by planting trees in a planned manner in carefully selected locations, along roads and at important junctions. We can reduce the number of vehicles on the roads, by carpooling and cycling. In India, many people consider cycling as old fashioned and cheap, saying that you only use a bicycle if you can’t afford a motorbike or car. This mentality has to change. An excellent example of the implementation of this idea can be seen in Montreal, Canada, where they have used high-end technology to put in place a community bicycle renting system. Now we can’t afford that kind of technology here in Mumbai, but the good thing is that we don’t need to. Investing in a simple bicycle is a win-win choice for all, considering the benefits in health, economy, and environment protection. A bicycle is thrice as efficient as a car, causes zero pollution, and keeps you fit without spending a penny. It will be socially beneficial as well, since people will interact more openly as opposed to sitting in air-conditioned cars without sparing as much as a glance at each other or the world around them. The government can arrange for special bicycle lanes along main roads and encourage people to ride bikes, as is being done in Pune, another city where pollution is a major problem. Maybe they can tie up with a bicycle manufacturer to provide bikes to school- and college students at subsidised rates.

As far as noise pollution is concerned, the government is already taking many measures, though the authorities still seem too cowardly to accost political parties that organise fancy programs that play on late into the night and block all the traffic.

The number of telecomm towers must be strictly regulated. With the kind of competition that exists today between service providers, this problem is seldom accepted, let alone addressed. The density of these towers in an area must be kept below a limit. This limit in turn should be based on careful studies, undertaken not in the city, but in the villages, where the demand for connectivity is not so high as to compromise on the environment and yet not so low that you’d need to walk a mile to get network coverage.
But we can’t depend on the government to make changes; we know how slow those people work. There are so many things we can do at the individual level. I think if we make the city clean and cool again, the sparrows will come back.