By Anil Sharma, IANS
Bikaner : When Chaganlal Mali, 60, reaches the woods near here every evening, there is a crowd eagerly waiting – deer, foxes, pigeons, crows – for the food that he unfailingly brings them.
Chaganlal, who runs a betel nut shop in the city, has been taking grain and leafy vegetables for his bird and animal friends for the past seven years, undeterred by sweltering heat or severe cold.
He arrives at 4 in the evening and spends four to five hours feeding wild animals and birds in the forested area between Murlidhar Vyas Colony and Naal, about four kilometres from Bikaner, in the Indian desert state of Rajasthan.
“I am doing this for over seven years. I began this when this part of Rajasthan was passing through one of the worst droughts in 2000,” Chaganlal told IANS.
“I saw many animals dying because of lack of water and food. So I decided to bring these things for them. And since then, it has become a ritual for me.”
He begins his day arranging for the food and water he has to carry for the animals.
“Three or four people help me. We do this out of our love for these birds and animals,” Chaganlal said. “As soon I reach the forest with food in my hand, the animals and birds, especially the deer and crows, come close to me.
“The animals are able to smell the food and turn up in good numbers.
“I usually take rice, jowar, pearl millet and green vegetables, and they love it. I thank god for giving me the power to do this.
“When I started coming there, a lot of rabbits would come for the food. But now I don’t see any. Only the deer, foxes, wild cats, blue bulls and birds come. Maybe the rabbits have fallen prey to poaching,” Chaganlal said.
“Now my friends and I have started keeping a close vigil on poaching in the area. We try to spend as much time here as possible. We will continue to put in our best to save wildlife,” he said.