A barn owl got a new lease of life on Monday, when a Good Samaritan rescued it from kite manja in the city.

The hapless bird was noticed by Anil Kumar, owner of a workshop in Ramnagar, when he arrived there to open the shutters of his shop. He, along with the local residents, rescued the bird and removed the plastic manja knotted around its body.

“We heard an unusual commotion of birds, and went out to check what was wrong. This owl was lying there in a pathetic condition, while all other birds around it were panicking. We thought the bird was dying, yet painstakingly removed the manja crisscrossing its body,” shared Mr.Anil Kumar.

Later, the bird was put in a box, and given water, while it refused food. The Forest department was duly informed, and the bird was shifted by locals to the headquarters at Aranya Bhavan.

“We found the bird extremely dehydrated due to summer heat. We immediately shifted it to the Nehru Zoological Park. The bird’s condition is stable now,” informed an official from the Anti-Poaching Squad which received the bird.