THREE THOUSAND TURTLES IMPOUNDED IN BIHAR

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*Jan 12, 2006*

 

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*3000 live turtles seized in Bihar*

Thursday January 12 2006 00:00 IST

 

*ANI*

 

AURANGABAD: Police in Bihar have impounded a vehicle that was found to be

carrying at least 3000 endangered turtles through the state's Aurangabad

region.

 

The live turtles were found in gunny bags and were being smuggled to Uttar

Pradesh. However, no arrests were made as the driver of the vehicle managed

to escape from the scene.

 

According to S K Suman, the officer in-charge of the Aurangabad police

station, the police is investigating whether a foreign gang was involved in

the crime.

 

" After receiving information we intercepted one vehicle. Around 3000 turtles

have been recovered. We are probing the angle of the involvement of an

international gang.

 

" The turtles were being sent to other countries like Bangladesh from Uttar

Pradesh...the turtles are worth hundreds of thousands of rupees, " Suman

said.

 

Police in India's eastern Bihar on Tuesday (January 10) seized a vehicle

carrying at least 3000 endangered turtles in the state's Aurangabad region.

 

The live turtles were found in gunny bags and were being smuggled to

northern Uttar Pradesh.

 

However, no arrests were made as the driver of the vehicle fled the scene.

 

S.K.Suman, officer in-charge of the Aurangabad Police station said they were

investigating whether a foreign gang was involved in the crime.

 

" After receiving information we intercepted one vehicle. Around 3000 turtles

have been recovered.

 

" We are probing the angle of the involvement of an international gang. The

turtles were being sent to other countries like Bangladesh from Uttar

Pradesh...the turtles are worth hundreds of thousands of rupees, " Suman

said.

 

Turtles are often hunted for their skin, which is used for making leather

products, and their meat, considered a delicacy, is sold at a premium at

local fish kiosks.

 

Turtles, both fresh water and sea-based, are protected under India's

Wildlife Protection Act. But like other protected animals, they too are

hunted with impunity due to lax laws.

 

Five of the seven species of marine turtles are found in Indian coastal

waters and at least four have significant nesting beaches and/or feeding

areas.

 

Among the five species of sea turtles distributed in the Indian region, four

of them, the Olive ridleys (Lepidochelys olivacea), Green turtle (Chelonia

mydas), Leatherback (Dermochelys coriacea) and Hawksbill (Eretmochelys

imbricata) nest within the Indian limits.

 

All of them are distributed in Tamil Nadu and at least four species are

found within the coastal areas of Kerala. Many turtle populations in Indian

coastal waters are seriously affected by incidental catch in fisheries,

coastal development, habitat loss and depredation of eggs.

 

All these species are listed as endangered under Schedule 1 of the Indian

Wildlife Act (1972) and in Appendix 1 of CITES. All sea turtles have

declined in recent times, but leatherback (Dermochelys coriacea) and

hawksbill turtles (Eretmochelys imbricata) are considered to be globally

endangered species.

 

As a part of this collaborative project, monitoring programs and networking

have been initiated in Gujarat, Maharastra, Goa, Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil

Nadu on the mainland coast of India and in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.

 

These programs are being carried out by four partners including the Andaman

and Nicobar Environmental Team, Bombay Natural History Society, Gujarat

Institute of Desert Ecology and the Salim Ali Centre for Ornithology and

Natural History.

 

A Students Sea Turtle Conservation Network (SSTCN) was formed and

established its first hatchery in December 1988 when the forest department

decided to close down its sea turtle programme.

 

The SSTCN is perhaps the oldest students network involved in sea turtle

conservation in India. Students from schools, colleges and other educational

institutes are members of this network.

 

The activity of SSTCN includes beach monitoring, hatchery management, and

protection of wild nests, education and awareness.

 

Field survey Nesting season of olive ridley starts in June and ends about

early November while green turtle do nesting between July to January.

 

Experts say turtles are particularly vulnerable because of high mortality

rates. According to studies, only one out of every 1,000 hatchlings normally

reaches adulthood.

 

The reptiles are mangled by fishing trawler propellers, or suffocated in

fishermen's gill nets. They are also killed by pollution, and by poachers,

who hunt them for their meat.

 

Turtles are often hunted for their skin, which is used for making leather

products, and their meat, considered a delicacy, is sold at a premium at

local fish kiosks. Turtles, both fresh water and sea-based, are protected

under India's Wildlife Protection Act.

 

But like other protected animals, they too are hunted with impunity due to

lax laws.