Gwalior, Aug 31 (IANS): A vast fresh water body close to Gwalior, very rich in bird life, is getting slowly choked thanks to man.

A stone plaque says the Tigara reservoir is home to the Great Indian Bustard. But it is near impossible to see even one. However, there are plenty of kingfishers, pied wagtails, cormorants, doves, Indian jay, mynas and ducks.

Although bathing is banned and violators are threatened with fine, young men from nearby areas have fun in the waters every single day. At the state-run Waves and Waves restaurant, executives say they tell people to throw used bottles and bags in the dustbin but people don't listen.

But the restaurant itself seems to dump its daily garbage on its outside wall. There are heaps of discarded bottles, empty bags of potato chips and poly bags close to the water body.

The restaurant has a nice lawn but it is not maintained well.

A large part of the Tigara area is pristine. But immediate intervention is needed to save this water body, so full of nature, flora and funa.

For reasons that are not clear, the water body is not well known.
Even tourism literature which dwell at length on the Gwalior Fort and its envrions never or barely mentions it.

Youngsters and families mostly visit this place in evenings but it can be as soothing in morning too. Visiting Tigara in the winter or rains can be a pleasant experience.

On one side of the road to the site is a pipeline that supplies water to Gwalior from Tigara dam. Tigara is about 20 km from Gwalior.

At two places water oozes out of the pipeline. That provides a shower to motorbike owners and others.

The land across the dam is muddy, something which Madhya Pradesh Tourism needs to develop.

Enjoyable to sight were butterflies fluttering over flowers and plants like common emigrant, common grass yellow butterflies, and crimson roses.

The water at the dam, surrounded by hills at three sides, forms a picturesque scene.

The morning sun rays, the chirping of birds and a nice cool breeze soothe your nerves.

The dam area is 2,112 hectares and the average depth of the reservoir is 24 metres. The reservoir is fed by the Sank river and is also rain-fed.

Amid nature's beauty exists poverty. It is a common sight to see women carry logs of woods on their heads from long distances.

These are sold for around Rs.150. For thousands, life is full of hardships -- even amid such scenic beauty.