What was once presented as an exquisite floral souvenir to Queen Victorial during her Calcutta visit,is now spreading as an exotic weed in the various wetlands in Punjab. "Water Hyacinth" now threatens to congest the only Internationally recognised bird sanctuary in Punjba, housed in the Harike wetland. The sanctuary, for its varied avi-fauna, has come to be known as the "Paradise of the bird watcher", with as many as 363 species of birds making its home permanently or seasonally.