The Guests who are welcome now!!
‘We don’t do it for money'. Everyone must be accustomed or rather tired listening to this cliché from bird guides across the country. But coming from this young lad of not more than 20 years, I was forced to believe. We are at Kumbhargaon bird sanctuary, one that is created and maintained by local group called Agnipankh (Flamingo in Marathi) without any visible support from the government. Enjoying early morning’s crisp and cool air, we are going in our motorised boat with Shailesh, our bird guide for the trip. The ride: our humble but sturdy boat ‘Aren’t the bird scared of the sound of boat?’ I asked apprehensively. He paused for effect and informed that all boats will switch off and run on manual near the habitats. His knowledge about birds was satisfactory given the fact that it was all self-acquired with no professional training. But his belief and conviction was more than adequate to overcome occasional lapses. Kumbhargaon was a usual sto