Jurgaon Village In Assam Is A Silent Sanctuary Where Birds Are Family, Not Visitors
In Jurgaon, every villager, including children, is a bird lover; honking is prohibited, and high-decibel sound is forbidden.
Published : December 5, 2025 at 6:03 PM IST
Morigaon (Assam): In an age of blaring horns and bursting firecrackers, a small village in Assam has quietly chosen a different path. Jurgaon, a picturesque settlement in Morigaon district in Assam, has turned itself into a sanctuary where birds are treated not as visitors, but as family.
Located about 55 km from Nagaon and 65 km from Guwahati, Jurgaon is predominantly inhabited by the Tiwa community. Around 121 families live here, and virtually every villager is a self-declared bird lover. Their collective affection for birds has shaped an extraordinary set of unwritten rules.
In Jurgaon, high-decibel sound is practically forbidden. Honking by two-wheelers and four-wheelers is avoided unless absolutely unavoidable. Firecrackers and loud festivities are completely banned. The idea is simple: nothing should disturb the birds that rest, feed and breed here.
Adding to this, Jurgaon is surrounded by lush bamboo groves, but the villagers refuse to cut and sell bamboo. The tall bamboo clumps double up as nesting sites and safe shelters for countless birds. Hunters and people with harmful intentions are not welcome here - residents actively prevent their entry.
With several wetlands and water bodies, Jurgaon has gradually become a favoured destination for both local and migratory birds. Every evening, the village comes alive with the calls of birds returning in flocks, turning dusk into a natural symphony.
Speaking to ETV Bharat, villager Harshwar Bordoloi explained how deep this bond runs, “Birds arrive here during the Assamese month of Chot (March-April) and build their nests. For generations, they have been coming here to breed, and we never harm them. Even if predators come, we chase them away. We cut bamboo only when it is necessary.”
He adds that the villagers see the birds as fellow families, “The birds get love from our people. There are wetlands and ponds here, and they feed on the fish and sleep safely at night. Just as we live with our families, the birds, too, come here to raise theirs. Since childhood, we have seen them coming - maynas, sparrows, egrets, cormorants, water hens and many more. Earlier even vultures and hornbills used to visit.”
What makes Jurgaon truly special is that even the children of the village have absorbed these values. A resident explains, “Our children also understand the love for birds. They do nothing that could harm them. No one in our village troubles the birds. If anyone from outside tries to harm them, we drive them away. People have now understood that this is not a place where birds can be hunted.”
Though Jurgaon has only one Lower Primary school and no high school yet, the literacy level is relatively high, and people are deeply aware of environmental issues. Most residents are engaged in agriculture and live a simple life, but their outlook on conservation is remarkably advanced.
In this quiet corner of Morigaon, Assam, one can hear and rejoice in the flutter of a thousand wings.
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