By Rohan Agarwal

New Delhi, Aug 29 (IANS): Rise in flying kites and use of corrosive Chinese thread (manja) caused about three-fold increase in bird rescue by Delhi Fire Service (DFS) personnel this month. The firemen saved 717 birds till August 28.

According to officials, more birds were injured this month, due to extensive use of Chinese manja. The number of cases increased to 717 from 222 in July. In the first five months, around 200 cases were reported.

According to DFS Chief Atul Garg, the cases of birds getting entangled in the strings and critically injured increased in August as more people fly kites around the Independence Day.

"We try to attend every bird rescue call," Garg told IANS. The actual number of injuries to birds could be much more as various other agencies too rescue the birds and other animals, he added.

The Charity Bird Hospital at Chandni Chowk, one of the oldest bird hospitals in the city, received over 700 such cases between August 13 and August 15. Of this, over 200 could not be saved.

"We received around 750 injured birds. Of this, more than 700 were injured due to Chinese manjha or manjha laced with glass and metal specks. Around 20-25 birds had other kinds of injuries. More than 200 birds injured by manjhas died because they had grievous injuries," said a senior official in the hospital told IANS.