Chupi Char Oxbow Lake

Some twenty kilometres north-east of Kalna, the Bhagirathi has over recent decades dramatically changed course, cutting off a loop of its former channel and leaving behind one of the most ecologically rich freshwater oxbow lakes in West Bengal. The lake is known as Chupi Char (or Chupir Char), named after the village of Chupi on its shore. With the adjacent village of Kasthashali, it forms a small island of three communities enclosed by the lake loop and the river. The channel of water extends in a closed loop of approximately 10-11 kilometres, enclosing a lake area of approximately 3.5 square kilometres. 
A boat ride is the only way to properly experience Chupi Char. The lake’s water hyacinth coverage (a growing ecological problem that is slowly narrowing navigable channels) means that two persons per boat rather than four is advisable for ease of navigation through the swamp sections. The boatmen are skilled at finding the bird concentrations and, in the case of the most experienced guides, deeply knowledgeable about the individual species.