Records of the Zoological Survey of India: Mammalian and Avian Faunal Diversity in Damodar Valley Under DVC Project Area

From the introduction: The Damodar is a shallow wide seasonal and flashy river. It originates near Chandwa village, Palamau District, Chotanagpur Plateau in Jharkhand State, and flows eastwards 592 km up to the estuary of river Hugli in West Bengal. Area of Damodar Valley under DVC Project covers nearly 24235 km2 across Hazaribagh, Koderma, Giridih, Dhanbad, Dumka, Bokaro, Chatra Districts of Jharkhand and Bardhaman, Hugli, Puruliya and Haora districts of West Bengal. Even in the near past up to the middle of the 20th century, the upper reaches of the valley was a paradise for the wild beasts and the whole valley was tuned with the song of an enormous number of birds. At present the area is an industrial belt. During rain its flow is torrential and in the hot summer barely a trickle. Its destructive propensities have earned the Damodar the sobriquet of River of sorrow.