As a young boy in the early 1970s, I stood in Keoladeo National Park on a winter morning, and watched the sky literally darken as birds in their thousands took flight from the water on sight of an eagle.

Today, such breathtaking sights at the park, 200km south of New Delhi, are hard to come by; there are just not that many birds left any more. And for subsequent generations, I am afraid they will not be able to relate to my experience. It would be like a tale out of a story book, not something they can see for themselves.