India, Nov. 8 -- Check dams, including the Ramsar wetland of Sukhna lake, have a shelf life due to the silt load deposited in the monsoons from the fragile foothills. At the Siswan dam in Punjab, a desiltation project underway since December 2024 has not only augmented water flows into the dam's eastern flank, but, by design or otherwise, altered the habitat in favour of biodiversity.

A series of ponds has been left in the wake of the silt excavation. These are ringed with tall reeds and bushes. Beyond their cover are mature trees on flanking hillsides affording perches and roosting spots for fish-hunting birds such as egrets, herons and raptors. The redoubtable Siswan habitat is lorded over by leopards.

The blend of shallow water and m...