Ring-necked parakeet prepairing to roost. Image by Jon ArdernOver 400 parrots were left homeless after an old banyan tree fell in heavy rains that lashed Sevalia village in Kheda district of Central Gujarat on Wednesday night. Over 60 of them died on the spot, 115 were injured and 250 others were rescued and freed on Thursday morning by officials of the state forest department and an NGO.

“The incident happened at night, when an old banyan tree near the state transport bus stand in the village collapsed following heavy rains. While we managed to rescue and free over 250 of the parrots, over 60 of them we crushed under the tree’s weight. Meanwhile, 115 of the injured birds were taken to the Asha Foundation in Ahmedabad,” said MK Parmar, range forest officer of Thasra taluka of the district.

According to officials, it was largely the local villagers who helped save the birds most of whom got trapped in the foliage of the tree.
“About 115 of these birds were brought to our hospital-cum-shelter in two ambulances at 4 am. These birds have broken wings and legs, and are currently unfit to fly,” said Harmesh Bhatt, of Asha Foundation.

“We are currently treating them. Once they recover, we plan to release them in the same village from where they were rescued,” Bhatt added.