Chicken in the air to keep skies clear on R-Day

AS fighter jets slice low across Delhi's winter sky this Republic Day, a quieter operation will be underway on the ground — one involving 1,275 kilograms of boneless chicken and a calculated effort to keep black kites fed and away.

- ANUP VERMA @ New Delhi

To prevent bird hits during the Republic Day air show, the Delhi Government's Department of Forests and Wildlife has planned a meat-feeding exercise to manage the movement of black kites, birds known to circle open spaces and food sources that sometimes overlap with flight paths.