Shut over avian flu, Pong Wetland Wildlife Sanctuary opens for tourists
Rajiv Mahajan
Nurpur, February 23
The Pong Wetland Wildlife Sanctuary was reopened for tourists on Tuesday. It was closed last month following an outbreak of bird flu that killed thousands of exotic migratory birds.
The wetland was declared a wildlife sanctuary by the Himachal Pradesh Government in 1983. The Central Government has declared it a ‘Wetland of National Importance’.
Archana Sharma, Principal Chief Conservator of Forests (Wildlife) and Chief Wildlife Warden, told The Tribune that no bird mortality had been reported in the sanctuary for the past seven to 10 days. She said the avian flu was already over. As many as 5,006 birds died of the flu, she added.
After the outbreak of bird flu in December, the Kangra district administration had restricted the movement of people and domestic livestock around the Pong wetland. It had also prohibited fishing in the wetland and the sale and purchase of poultry products, fish and meat in Dehra, Jawali, Fatehpur and Indora subdivisions of Kangra district. The ban was revoked in a phased manner while the ban on fishing in the wetland was lifted on February 9.
