Watch: Coimbatore cop rescues and feeds this parched sparrow

In a heartening video that has emerged on social media, a police officer from Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu was seen rescuing and feeding a thirsty baby sparrow believed to have fallen off its nest.

The video, which has gone viral after a fellow police officer uploaded it on YouTube, shows a baby sparrow croaking for water, even as the Ukkadam Sub Inspector Chandrashekaran gently feeds it.

Chandrashekaran, who is seen gently holding the hatchling in one hand, lowers a bottle cap full of water, gently into the hatchling’s eager mouth, even as bustling traffic can be heard in the background.

As soon as the hatchling takes its first sip of water, the Sub Inspector remarks with happiness, “That’s it!”

Not wanting to overfeed the baby bird, Chandrashekaran lets the sparrow take a breather even as it spreads its tiny wings and croaks.

Speaking to TNM, Sub Inspector Chandrashekaran shares, “A crow had pushed them off the nest which was perched on top of the outpost. The baby sparrow seems to have fallen from there. I was about to leave duty and paid the outpost a visit and saw it was lying in the outpost. The other sparrows had also been removed from the nest so the crow doesn’t bite them or push them. The sparrow looked very exhausted so I fed it some water. Before we used to see a lot of sparrows, but now their count has reduced.”

"If we don’t disturb animals, they won’t disturb us,” he adds.

In May this year, the Coimbatore Corporation had begun its drive to install nesting boxes for sparrows at its offices and bus stands across the city.

The initiative, titled 'Project Sparrow', is aimed at creating awareness regarding the conservation of sparrows in the city.

Sparrows serve as an indicator species that serve as a reflection of the environment in which they thrive. Conservationists in India have sounded the alarm over the decline in numbers of the species, which serves as an important part of the ecosystem.