Acting on a tip off, the MRA Marg police officials raided stalls at Crawford Market in south Mumbai, and rescued 86 endangered turtles and parakeets that were being illegally sold in the market. Of the rescued animals, 59 are turtles and the remaining are parakeets.
Of these, three are keeled back tortoises, two leather back turtles, 51 Indian star tortoises, and three Malaysian baby turtles. The 27 rescued parakeets included rose ring and Alexandrine species.u00a0
Police managed to arrest two people who were present in the shops during the raid. A case under Sections 429 and 34 of the IPC has been registered in the matter, and cops are on the lookout for the owners of the shop who are on the run, following the bust.
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Investigating police officer Mahesh Kale said, “These animals were hidden inside the shops. The turtles were kept in the cash drawer. We searched the entire market to get hold of them.”
“Following the rescue operation, we are trying our level best to rehabilitate these animals. But, it’s a very difficult process, as the animals have undergone a lot of trauma. It becomes very difficult for them to return to their natural habitat,” said Ambika Hiranandani from NGO People for Animals, which assisted the cops in the operation.u00a0
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