Tensions erupt at Dadar's Kabutarkhana over BMC action on pigeon feeding site

The Hindu

5 days ago

Tensions flared at Dadar's Kabutarkhana on Wednesday (August 6, 2025) morning after a group of protesters, primarily from the Jain community, forcibly removed a tarpaulin sheet placed by the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) over the pigeon feeding site, leading to clashes with police personnel.
The tarpaulin cover had been erected as part of the BMC's compliance with a recent Bombay High Court order, which called for the closure of pigeon feeding zones, or kabutarkhanas, across Mumbai due to concerns over public health risks posed by bird droppings, including respiratory illnesses.
Despite police presence, demonstrators dismantled the bamboo-supported plastic cover, triggering a brief but tense confrontation with law enforcement officers. Several women entered the feeding zone, climbing the barricade and attempting to cut the ropes tied to the bamboos using sharp knives and blades, in a bid to resume feeding the pigeons.
'I have been feeding these pigeons all my life and my children and their children now feed them. We have never had any health concerns from these pigeons. We want medical proof to corroborate the High Court's order. None of us have taken law in hand, all we wanted is to feed these pigeons who depend on us and if we don't, we fear they will die of starvation,' one of the protestors, a Dadar resident who declined to be named, said.
Another protester said, 'The government can arrange a Vantara for one elephant but for these living pigeons, the government can be heartless that they are restricting us to feed them.'
Mumbai has 51 such kabutarkhanas. On July 3, the Maharashtra government directed the civic body to shut down all such feeding sites.
Maharashtra's Minister of Skill, Employment, Entrepreneurship and Innovation and co-Guardian Minister of Mumbai suburban district, Mangal Prabhat Lodha, visited the site shortly after the protest and denounced the forceful removal of the civic barricade. He said police would take appropriate action and added that the Jain temple trust located nearby had distanced itself from the agitation, claiming that outsiders were responsible.
'The incident that occurred this morning at Kabutarkhana is extremely unfortunate. It has left me distressed. On the issue of Kabutarkhana, Hon. Chief Minister Sri. Devendraji Fadnavis has taken a balanced and sensitive decision. By giving clear instructions to implement alternative measures, he has struck a golden mean in this matter. I humbly appeal to all citizens to maintain restraint and peace, and no one should take the law into their own hands,' Mr. Lodha said on social media platform X.
Speaking to reporters, Mr. Lodha added, 'I spoke to the Jain temple trust in Dadar, but they denied their participation in the protest and claimed that the protestors are outsiders who staged the protest. Police will take the right decision on this. On Thursday, a report will be submitted to the Bombay High Court on the issue.'
Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar said, 'In a meeting held with the CM, BMC, and the members of Jain temple from Dadar, a few suggestions are proposed that will be submitted in the High Court tomorrow. Both citizens and animals have rights to live in their own areas. Mumbai has had kabutarkhanas for years and some are saying now there are health concerns because of them, but we can't get rid of them over a night, people's sentiments are attached, we have to come to common ground.'
On Tuesday, Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis had instructed the BMC to allow pigeon feeding in a regulated manner to prevent starvation of the birds. Maharashtra Cultural Affairs Minister Ashish Shelar also supported the move, stating that feeding should be allowed under regulated conditions so as not to inconvenience the public.