Srirangapatna: Heavy rainfall and huge discharge from the Krishna Raja Sagar since a couple of days has flooded the bird sanctuary at Ranganathittu and boating has been cancelled as a precautionary measure. However, entry of visitors to the bird sanctuary has not been banned and they are allowed to go up to Dr. Salim Ali Interpretation Centre.
The staff manning the sanctuary said that the Forest Department is worried that the existing migratory birds and their nests will be washed away due to rising water level. Though there are not many nestlings, except of the local variety and there were only 30 percent of the Painted Storks left in the sanctuary, the rising waters have washed away hundreds of nests as most of the trees are half inside water, said Deputy Conservator of Forests (DCF) Mysuru Wildlife Siddaramappa Chalkapure.
