Writing for the birds

Varun is a sixth semester Mechanical Engineering student at the College of Engineering Thiruvananthapuram (CET). He is possessed with a love towards the nature ever since his school days. His stanch belief that 'no software in this world can generate water and food', is self-explanatory of his undaunted passion for environment. When his burning passion was ignited under the inspiring guidance of Dr. Thankamony, teacher and patron of the college's environmental club, Varun started waving his pen for the feathered-beauties of the CET.

It was not a common sort of scribbling on ecological thoughts, but was an authentic book on the 56 species of birds that dwell in the sprawling 45 hectors of the CET. Appositely named, 'Feathered Friends of our Campus', the 80-page book gives some magnetic information about the different species of birds. The book carries photos of and facts about the birds that surely instills a love for birds in the minds of readers.

"The book is a joint effort of my friends and me. It's a step towards bringing awareness among the Engineering students and others about the wonderful world of birds", says Varun. The book was also an opening to the nature, he added.

Qualitative and quantitative surveys were carried through four consecutive Sundays. The data from the field was transformed into a tangible statistics. When the college proudly published the book, the amazing information it carried, was simply indigestible to many. About the feedback Varun says, "everybody was surprised to realize that there were 56 species of birds in the our campus."

Varun and his enthusiastic friends who untiringly worked for realizing the book, now receive encouraging gestures from teachers, students. Praise comes even from far away campuses. Yet, more gratifying for them was the token of appreciation they could receive from scientists and veterans in the field. Varun and his friends attribute their success to the unlimited support provided by their gurus, Susanth and Sivakumar. They also thank Dr. Thankamony for offering them such a big canvass of green ideas.

These boys share a common dream of proving before the world that engineers can also enjoy nature, carrying both profession and passion side by side. Environmentally aware groups like the teachers and students of CET can surely offer a new lease of life to the perishing silent members of our ecological system.
- K.P.Sivakumar