Over 40 million students from both government and private schools in India's northern state of Uttar Pradesh on Monday pledged to save the dwindling population of sparrows, officials said.

The event was organised on the instructions of the local government as part of its efforts to create awareness about the bird.

"The pledge ceremony was organised in all the schools in the morning," a senior government official said. "Students up to 12th class took part in the ceremony and pledged to help sparrow population increase."

The aim of the event was to create awareness that would help save and conserve environment for sparrows.

The ceremony is part of celebrations in the state, which began on Feb. 7 and would culminate on the World Sparrow Day on April 20.

Over the past several years steep decline has been recorded in the population of tiny house sparrow, which once was a common sight in Indian cities and townships.

Ornithologists blame mass urbanization for the bird's dwindling population.

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