Panvel girl wins awards in Sparrow Fest 2014

Aishwarya Sridhar, a class XII student of Pillai Global Academy, Panvel, bagged two awards in the Sparrow Fest competition, organised by the Plant and Animals Welfare Society (PAWS), Mumbai. Sridhar won awards in two categories, namely poetry and photography. More than 1,000 entries were received for the competition, from Mumbai, Navi Mumbai, Thane and neighbouring states like Gujarat and Karnataka.

Sridhar was the youngest participant to win an award in the photography competition. Last year too, the lass had secured the third place in the same competition.
To mark World Sparrow Day in India, PAWS-Mumbai organised the fest and invited nominations for the Sparrow Friend Award, sparrow drawing, poems and stories from students and sparrow photographs from the citizens, which included photojournalists as well.

Sridhar's photograph which won the second prize depicts the love between mother and child. The sparrow mother is feeding her chick in the photograph. "The picture shows how much a mother loves her children," said Sridhar, adding that the same equation does not exist in our lives and we should understand the importance of existence of animals.

Sridhar's poem 'Love's Nest' was based on the sparrow's nest which she wrote after seeing the nest in her vicinity. "Though the nest was shabby, it was made of the mother's love towards her expecting child," added Sridhar.

Sridhar also said, "I hope to work harder to spread the message of conservation of the nature's wonders among youngsters who live in our concrete jungles. I also hope they realise that the existence of these tiny feathered friends is vital for our survival as well as they act as indicators of a healthy ecosystem."

The third prize in photography competition went to Yadnyesh R Asodekar, a Nerul resident. In the individual category, the Sparrow Friend Award was given to Arati A Chauhan, another Nerul resident.

"We believe that such events will sensitise children about sparrows and their fight for survival. When a student will draw the image or write a story/poem on the sparrows, they will be prompted to research on the bird. Along with them, their parents and teachers will also understand about the gravity of the issue," said Sunish Subramanian Kunju, a senior member of PAWS.