Manglajodi is located in the Khurda district in Odisha, along the northern edge of Chilika Lagoon. The nearest railway station is Khurda Junction, and the nearest airport is at Bhuvaneshwar, 75 km away.
The area comprises of a vast marshland which is connected with Chilka via channels cut through the reedbeds. The fresh-water zone is home to thousands of water birds. The region is blessed with enough fish for both the birds, as well as the local people, as fish is an integral part of the daily diet of the locals. Fishing is the main livelihood of most of the local villagers. They go on overnight fishing trips, and sell their fresh haul to the local markets.
Along with fishing, tourism is also an alternative source of income for the local people. Thousands of tourists, including a rich mix of photographers and ornithologists, visit Manglajodi every year, mostly between the cooler months of October to March, to observe a wide variety of birds preying in the shallow waters of Manglajodi. The place is best explored by a country boat rowed manually by villagers which enables the viewer to experience the birds from a close proximity. It is indeed a treat for the eyes to watch the congregation of 2 to 3 lakhs of birds, some of whom fly thousands of kilometres all the way from central Asia and Europe, across the mighty Himalayas to spend their winter here, and return to their northerly homes for the summer.
Most commonly found species include whistling duck, ruddy shelduck, Northern pintail, Northern shoveler , Gadwall, Grebe, Garganey in large numbers during the winter months. You can also find many other birds like Godwit, Stint, whiskered tern , ruff, sand piper , purple heron , grey heron , Black headed and gloss Ibis, open bill stork etc.
The situation was, however, not as ideal a few years back. In an attempt to introduce some diversity, the nearby restaurants started adding bird’s meat in their menu. While locals have had hunted birds for generations here, this sudden surge in demand dramatically increased the number of birds being killed, and people started to resort to illegal means to hunt birds. Poachers emerged, who started using poison for killing the birds with an aim to make some quick money. Mangalajodi soon became infamous as the “poachers village”. The alarming situation was reflected in the bird census of 2000, where the number of aquatic birds came down to 5000 from the usual count of 1 to 2 lakhs.
Fortunately, the Chilika development authority, the Department of Forest and environment, and other private agencies came forward to address the issue on an urgent basis. They enforced strict anti-poaching laws and hunting regulations, and also raised awareness amongst the locals and provided with alternative livelihoods. Eventually, they managed to put an end to the poaching. The villagers realised the damaging impact on the ecosystem. The governing bodies formed bird protection committee comprising of the villagers. They have now transformed into naturalists, who actively patrol and protect the marshes from potential bird poachers, monitor bird population, coordinate with forest department, assist in research and take tourists around on birding trips.
Mangalajodi has come a long way since then, and its conservation story of poachers turned to protectors is well known.
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