A painting by an American student

Dec. 12: Cranes are coming to the city to spread the message of love and friendship — literally.

A two-day international art exhibition for children — with the message “Cranes: bird of peace” — will begin at the Assam State Zoo here on December 20.

Thirty paintings on the bird will be displayed at the exhibition held as part of the children’s international art exchange programme, conceived by the International Crane Foundation (ICF), US.

There will be another “simple painting” display in the exhibition which will comprise 30 “picture messages” depicting different species of cranes by American and Chinese children.

The ICF-sponsored programme has been held for the first time in India under the aegis of Indian Cranes and Wetlands Working Group (ICWWG) in 17 different locations including the city.

The International Crane Foundation has nominated Aaranyak, an environmental NGO of the state, as a co-ordinator for the Northeast.

Hillol Jyoti Singha of Aaranyak said the mission is to create awareness among the people, especially children, to save the birds and wetlands in Assam and also to give an exposure to the children to the international arena.

An art competition will also be held for schoolchildren on February 2 — observed as International Wetland Day — and some selected drawings of the schoolchildren will be exhibited later in the US.

“This exchange programme builds a bridge of understanding and sharing of knowledge among the children on cranes across the globe,” Singha said.

Assam witnesses the annual migration of the black-necked cranes to the chaporis in the Brahmaputra mainly from Siberia and their number is estimated to be around 200.

The more magnificent sarus cranes, which used to migrate earlier to Assam, however, are rarely seen these days and bird-watchers attribute this to the loss of wetlands in the state.

According to the International Crane Foundation, cranes are a family of birds that have long been revered by people. In Japan, cranes are honoured as symbols of long life and a happy marriage.

In Vietnam, cranes are believed to be carriers of souls to heaven. In North America, Africa, and Australia, native inhabitants had incorporated the crane’s graceful movements into their own dance forms and regard cranes as an auspicious symbol.

The exchange programme originated in Russia in 1995 when children in the age group of 5 to 7 created literary and artistic impressions of cranes and their habitats in an art competition in Amur region. A year later, this art competition went global when Chinese, Japanese, Korean and American children took part in it.

Taking the cue from it, a few years later the International Crane Foundation initiated the children’s international art exchange programme.

This is the first time that an alliance has been forged between the ICF and the Indian Cranes and Wetland Working Group to bring the programme to India. The ICCWG was revamped in 2001 for conservation of cranes and wetlands.