Videos of Unique Friendship Between Man and Bird Go Viral
A rare Sarus crane has been confiscated from the Indian man who nursed it back to health from injury after the story of their bond made headlines.
Last year, 35 year old Mohammad Arif, brought home an injured Sarus Crane that he found in his village of Mandhka in Uttar Pradesh’s Amethi district. The Sarus crane is the state bird of Uttar Pradesh and protected under the Wildlife Protection Act of 1972. They are the world’s tallest flying birds, standing around 4.5 feet tall. It is not endangered but is vulnerable to be endangered in the future. Arif took care of it over the next thirteen months. During this time, an unlikely human-bird friendship had unfolded. Arif said, “I found the male crane with a broken leg in a field. I brought it home and started caring for it. I put turmeric and mustard oil paste on its wound and tied a stick to the leg to give it support. We do the same for our hens,” He said, “Within weeks, the bird started recovering, and soon it started flying too. It stayed in the courtyard outside the house. But it never returned to the wild for good. It would follow me around when I went on motorcycle rides in the village. It would stay in the jungle when it wanted. Then, in the evenings it would come to my house and eat with me. I never held it captive.”
Arif says, "I fed it “dal, rice and bread… Whatever I would eat”. Sarus cranes usually survive on small insects and roots.” Nazma, Arif’s sister, “Someone uploaded a video online and since then, we started having visitors — journalists, locals and other people. People would come to see how a bird that lives in the wild was living with a family,” The duo became local celebrities and made headlines. Videos of the two “friends” together went viral on social media. On 5th March 2023, former UP Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav visited Arif and the Sarus crane. He tweeted photographs of the bird, Arif and himself.
Ranveer Mishra, Assistant Forest Conservator and Forest Officer said, “We have asked him to record his statement regarding the sarus bird. About when, how he got it… We will take further action after analysing his statement.” Later the wildlife authorities moved the crane from Arif’s house to a Samaspur Bird Sanctuary, Raebareli sanctuary. After the officials took away the bird, Akhilesh Yadav claimed this was done because he had visited the duo. He invited Arif to the Samajwadi Party headquarters in Lucknow and addressed a press conference slamming the BJP for capturing the bird. Officials say the move had nothing to do with Akhilesh’s visit. “There is no connection. We took the bird away under the provisions of the Wildlife Protection Act,”
BJP spokesperson Rakesh Tripathi said: “He tries to make non-issues into issues. What happened with regard to the bird is as per rules and regulations.” The bird was left at Samaspur Bird Sanctuary in Raebareli, however after that the bird suddenly disappeared. On 22nd March 2023, the bird was found around half-a-kilometre away from the sanctuary by Dileep Kumar.
He said that he saved the bird from a pack of dogs who had surrounded it. “I chased the dogs away and brought the bird home. It was super friendly,” Dileep added, “We informed the officials and some people came from the sanctuary and took the bird away in an e-rickshaw. But before it left, it ate with us. We took videos and photos,” They shifted it to the Kanpur Zoo as they realized that the bird cannot stay in the wild as now because it is used to domestic comforts as it has been staying with humans since a year. Forest officials felt that it would be better if it is kept at the zoo where it can get the best facilities and remain healthy. At the Kanpur Zoological Park, the crane underwent certain tests to ascertain if it was healthy and it also underwent a 15 day quarantine. However, in April 2023, Arif found himself booked under the Wildlife Protection Act.
In his defense, Arif said that he did not deserve a legal notice for rescuing the bird. “I didn’t chain the bird. It lived with me. What’s my fault? The forest department notice says there is a case lodged against me. I treated the Sarus bird and wanted it to go back to the jungle. It became my friend and did not leave,” Arif, however, isn’t convinced. “Mujhe lagta hai usko azaad rakhna chahiye,” Now, after almost a month of being taken away, Arif went to Kanpur zoo to meet the bird. A heartwarming video of the bird's reaction on seeing Arif after a long time is again gaining traction on Twitter and other social media platforms. The bird has been kept in the cage. Netizens were moved by the video and demanded that the bird must be freed. BJP MP Varun Gandhi too pitched for the release of the bird and said it should be reunited with the man who had rescued the bird and taken care of it for over a year. However, zoo officials said things will improve and said the eventual aim is to release it in the wild. What a unique friendship between a man and a bird.
