Mumbai, July 5 -- A day after industries minister Uday Samant said that the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) would be instructed to shut all 51 kabutarkhanas (pigeon feeding spots) in Mumbai over health hazards, BMC officials on Friday demolished illegal portions of the Dadar kabutarkhana, including the netting fence around the traffic island where pigeons flock and a covered plastic shed. The officials removed sacks of pigeon feed and cleaned the circle, but feeders returned within a few hours, bringing the pigeons back with them. "For now, we have only removed the illegal portions of Dadar kabutarkhana," an official from the BMC's G North ward told Hindustan Times. "While the fountain on the traffic island is a heritage structure and will not be demolished, the challenge will be to stop people from feeding the pigeons there. The issue is intertwined with sensitive sentiments." The BMC's public health department plans to conduct awareness campaigns regarding the health hazards posed by pigeons including increased risk of interstitial lung disease (ILD) which damages the lungs irreversibly and makes breathing difficult, civic officials said. Dr Amita Athavale, professor and head of pulmonary medicine at KEM Hospital in Parel said uncontrolled pigeon populations in urban areas posed significant public health risks. Prolonged exposure to pigeon droppings could cause hypersensitivity pneumonitis - commonly known as 'pigeon breeder's lung' - which leads to chronic cough, breathlessness and progressive lung fibrosis, she said. "In immunocompromised individuals, organisms like Cryptococcus neoformans present in droppings can trigger severe, even life-threatening infections," Dr Athavale mentioned. Many Dadar residents supported the state's directive to stop pigeon feeding in the city. "For years, local residents have suffered respiratory illnesses, eye infections, and daily traffic gridlock because of this unhygienic mess in the heart of Mumbai," said Chetan Kamble, a resident of Dadar and founder of the civic group, Chakachak Dadar. "Feeding pigeons in congested public spaces is not an act of kindness but it's a public health disaster." Many residents and passersby at Dadar kabutarkhana, however, rallied in support of pigeon feeding. "The fence was put up to stop pigeons from going onto the road and dying," said Sandeep Doshi, a trustee of Dadar kabutarkhana. "Everyone around here wants the kabutarkhana to continue, and people come from far away to see it. Just because a few people complain of health issues doesn't mean we should stop feeding the innocent pigeons."...