Whether injured by a whirling ceiling fan or by a speeding vehicle, hurt by razor edged kite threads or by the sharp claws of a predator, every single bird that is admitted here is treated with utmost care and kindness. On an average almost 30 to 40 birds arrive here every day – sometimes carried in plastic bags or gingerly held in hands. Many a times, the birds are deposited in a special collection box placed right outside the building. In summers many birds are brought here suffering from dehydration and in winters ailing from pneumonia. They seek remedy for everything – from paralysis and pigeon pox to common cold, and this is what keeps the hospital almost full to capacity all the year round. However, in keeping with Jainism’s central tenet of aversion to killing, the hospital has reservations about admitting carnivorous birds. In very rare and special cases, the predatory birds like eagle, hawk are falcons are taken in. In such cases, these birds are housed in separate enclosures and are fed the same vegetarian diet of vegetables, fruits and cheese, which is given to the other resident birds.
The efficiency and dedication with which this hospital functions leaves one amazed. There are well defined areas not just for the serious patients and those which are recuperating, but also for further research on the birds’ many illnesses. In the research laboratory, besides research on birds’ diseases, medical record of the birds and their recovery progress is also maintained. In the both the wards, small cages line one side of the wall whereas large cages enclosures cover the other side. The birds are first held in the intensive care unit and are eventually transferred to the general wards, where they regain their wings.
Once the birds recover, a section of the roof is opened from where they fly off. While silence reigns inside the hospital building, its terrace is a witness to a maddening frenzy, since many of the birds treated here hover over, preferring to live around the place which bestowed such mercy and compassion on them. Here they are all around, flying overhead, sitting on specially erected stands, sitting on quaint little bird fountains and the many railings, and yes, bent over the many huge bowls of grains and water. And somehow they all look quite at home here.
