Haflong, Oct. 27: A Dima Hasao-based NGO has taken a novel initiative to raise awareness about the need to provide safe passage to Amur falcons, a winged guest from Siberia and China, as they stop over at Umrangso in the central Assam district en route to Africa.

The NGO, Blue Hills Society, in association with the Wildlife Trust of India and Charities Aid Foundation, a non-profit trust, is organising a two-day Falcon Festival (October 31 to November 1) for the first time at Karbi Club Ground in Umrangso, 112km from Haflong, the district headquarters, and 224km from Guwahati, on the Assam-Meghalaya border.

From soothing music to a bike rally and gastronomic delights, there will a lot on offer for tourists at the festival.

The Amur falcon ( Falco amurensis), a small raptor of the falcon family, covers one of the longest migration routes and arrives in Assam from eastern Siberia and northern China en route to Africa.

The winged guests, called daopana in Dimasa dialect and kalengmaha in Karbi, make a stopover in the Umrangso area between October and November every year.

The peak migration period is from October 20 to November 5 and they stay in Assam from early October to mid-November. "The estimated number of falcons during that period in Umrangso is 300,000," a member of the NGO said.

"We have organised the event to make people aware of the need to give safe passage to the migratory bird during the period and not kill them," Joshringdao Phonglo, general secretary of Blue Hills Society, told The Telegraph.

"The event is being supported by the North Cachar Hills Autonomous Council, Dima Hasao forest department, All Dimasa Students Union, Dimasa Students Union and the Karbi Students Association besides various clubs and local organisations," Phonglo added.

For many years, the Amur falcons have been roosting near the Kopili reservoir at Umrangso but the locals traditionally hunt them for consumption and sale. In October last year, nearly 100 Amur falcons were reported killed at Umrangso. This happened at a time when a movement was slowly but steadily taking shape in and around the town to protect the migratory birds.

Blue Hills Society had started a Save Kalengmaha, Save Daopana campaign last year to sensitise villagers on the importance of conserving Amur falcons visiting Umrangso.

Besides Umrangso, Dima Hasao has another area where the migratory birds land every year - Jatinga. A small village about 9km from Haflong, Jatinga is famous for a unique phenomenon where after sunset hundreds of migratory birds are lured towards a light source, plummeting to their deaths. Some die while others are grievously injured and become easy prey for local villagers.