School students celebrate Bird Nest Protection Day on February 14, 2026. | Photo credit: Special arrangement
Guwahati
An initiative by students of a school in eastern Assam near National Highway 37 to protect bird nests in urban areas has failed.
Chorai Bandhob (Friend of Birds), a group led by students of Bongaon Chola High School in Golaghat district, launched Bird Nest Conservation Day on February 14, 2025. Compliance was relatively low-key and focused on the local distribution of terracotta nesting platforms.
A year later, the initiative took off and spread beyond Golaghat. Two NGOs in the district – GRASS and Asharay – have joined hands with the Chorai Bandhob to increase efforts to protect the birds’ nests. Students from 16 schools in the district celebrated Bird Nest Conservation Day on Saturday (February 14, 2026), while a parallel event attracted students from 40 schools to a centralized venue in the adjoining Majuli district.
Girimallika Saikia, principal of Bongaon Chola High School and principal of Chorai Bandhob, said the group has launched a first-of-its-kind initiative in India to motivate people in urban areas to build and protect nests. “The motto this time was ‘nest space, future for birds’, emphasizing long-term sustainable solutions. This included planting saplings of local fruit trees that provide nesting space for birds,” she told The Hindu on Sunday (February 15, 2026).
Ms. Saikia said the group decided to expand the initiative across Assam and beyond after realizing that many specialized bird species were declining due to urbanization and habitat loss, leading to the homogenization of generalist species adaptable to urban conditions.
A terracotta bird’s nest hung on a tree by members of the Chorai Bandhob in Golaghat district of eastern Assam. | Photo credit: Special arrangement
It didn’t take long for the students — mostly from economically disadvantaged Adivasi families in the nearby tea gardens — to embrace the cause enthusiastically. They believed that effective bird conservation required allowing birds – especially the 20% of the world’s bird species found in human-dominated landscapes – to breed in safe nesting habitats.
The program featured dance dramas, exhibitions and seminars on bird and nest conservation. Organizers clarified that the February 14 election had no connection with Valentine’s Day.
“The initiative was inspired by the nesting week observed by the British Trust for Ornithology since 1997 on February 14. This day also suited us as mid-February is ideal for awareness campaigns ahead of the breeding season for most birds in India, which usually starts in March and ends in July,” Saikia said.
Published – 15 Feb 2026 22:55 IST