Bhubaneswar, Jan. 16: If you are an ardent bird lover and want to hear the chirping sounds of migratory species somewhere close to you, within city limits, then you don’t have to look beyond Ekamrakanan. Here, you can spot birds crowding the lake, gliding towards the blue sky and again landing in the water, amidst bamboo forests and creek-like waterways.

Apart from migratory birds, the area is home to some of the well-known research projects relating to cactus varieties and propagation and conservation of rare and endangered varieties. So visitors, especially students, can have a fun and the park can provide a learning experience as well.

Ekamrakanan is the name of the campus of the city-based research institute — Regional Plant Research Centre (RPRC) — where bird lovers can spot several species of migratory, seasonal migratory and rare birds. But, the Lesser Whistling Teals are the most common and they have been coming in large numbers for several years now.

Apart from the teals, migratory birds like Gadwal, Pin Tail, Common Pochard, Common Sandpiper and Little Stint are also sighted in the lake during winter. Rare birds like pheasant-tailed Jacana and the common migratory bird like River Tern can also be spotted here in the winter months.

A senior forest official said: “Ekamrakanan is an extended part of the Chandaka-Dampara Wildlife Sanctuary and the water body attracts most of those birds that might have been diverted from their common route to reach Chilika. As the city now is restricted with the patch of forests in Chandaka area alone, the presence of such birds in winter inside the city speaks about the quality of environment at Ekamrakanan.”

Akshaya Patnaik, divisional forest officer (DFO) of Chandaka Dampara Wildlife Sanctuary, said the water body inside Ekamrakanan attracted more than 10,000 birds every winter. As per the Waterfowl Census conducted in the sanctuary from other water bodies inside the reserve forest area, the RPRC campus attracted the most number of birds. According to the Waterfowl Census, there were 14,293 birds last year, 8,610 in 2009, 12,927 in 2008 and 13,544 in 2007 at Ekamrakanan while the entire sanctuary counted 36,883 birds last year, 12,229 in 2009, 35,794 in 2008 and 35,615 in 2007. Apart from the lake area of Ekamrakanan, several localities inside the Chandaka-Dampara Wildlife Sanctuary like Mahanadi riverbed, Jaria, Charigharia, Kusapangi, Kujimahal, Kumarkhunti, Jhumka, Deras, Guptapada, Kajalaganda, Langudi and Madua also report sighting of birds in the winter months.

Gahar Abedin, ornithologist and honourary wildlife warden of Puri district, said: “Though the Lesser Whistling Teal is the leading species inside Ekamrakanan lake, it also serves as a host to many migratory birds. The entire sanctuary boasts of 68 species of birds as per last year’s bird census.”

The campus inside the RPRC is full of other attractions as well, which can engage tourists and people taking interest in plants and flowers. But a visit to the area in winter can be a different experience altogether as the lawns and flowering areas are full of new greenery and colourful patches.

In this part of the RPRC there is a huge display of cactii inside a glasshouse, which is the only of its kind in the state and houses one of the largest collection of cactii in the country. Near the cactii house there is also a rose garden housing many exclusive varieties.

“Cactus plants might be popular all over the world, but RPRC has carved a niche for itself among its fellow research institutes in the Asian region with the largest collection of 1,136 thorny varieties. Eighty-six were added to the list last year,” said director Ajay Kumar Mohapatra.

“So far, our scientists and researchers have scientifically evolved more than 200 varieties and hybrids of cacti by breeding, genetic changes through use of chemicals called mutagens and growth manipulation techniques. Research work at the centre pertains to standardisation of culture techniques, propagation methods, breeding including cyto-genetic and molecular characterisation of principal cactus genera. They have also brought out several scientific publications on the subject. The people and students coming to our centre can also interact with our scientists to know more about our work, especially on cacti and conservation,” added Mohapatra.

Another exotic garden of hibiscus has also been developed at RPRC with 52 varieties. “The exotic collection presents many varieties commonly not seen by people. They are collected from across the country so that the genetic material of the particular species can be preserved. Also, research work is in progress to identify its suitable vegetative propagation method so that the plant can be grown on economical aspects by horticulturists,” said Pratap Chandra Panda, RPRC senior scientist of Taxonomy and Conservation Division.

“We have also developed an exclusive garden of wild berries and fruits seen in different remote pockets across the state. On the other hand, the scientists of RPRC have also created a genetic database of the plants available in the state to know their genetic composition, sequence and nature.

As genes determine the characters of a plant species, these data can help the research work of scientists who are working in the fields such as breeding programmes to produce high-yielding, drug resistant and flood resistant varieties of plants to withstand environmental stress,” said Panda.

Apart from the cactus collection, the research centre has also started a collection of rare orchids from across the state.

It has also started a successful tissue culture laboratory to produce quality banana saplings and the farmers have started ordering huge number of saplings from the laboratory to step up raw banana production. Till date, Orissa is importing raw banana from Andhra Pradesh on daily basis.

Bijeeta Tripathy, a public relations consultant and resident of Jayadev Vihar, who has visited the park many times, said: “The boating facility is also a major attraction and we enjoy the ride with friends and families. It could be a well-planned family outing for tourists as the area has all the elements of interest.”