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Poacher caught for selling endangered lizard’s oil

 

 

 

The four young animal activists took ‘medicine man’ Shama Singh to the

Thane forest officials, but were refused help since it was a Saturday;

they later turned to the Kalwa police for help

 

 

 

Bapu Deedwania

 

 

 

Three youngsters and an Animal Welfare Officer (AWO) caught an animal

poacher selling oil extracted from Monitor lizards at Kalwa railway

station, near Thane on Saturday. The reptile is protected under the Wild

Life Protection Act, and products made using its body parts are illegal.

 

Friends of animal activists Kishore Sawade ( 21), Richard Mascarenas (22)

and John Ballivan ( 20) told the trio about Shama Singh who would carry

out his trade out side the station.

 

The three volunteer for an NGO called the Plant and Animal Welfare

Society (PAWS).

 

“We contacted Anuradha Ramaswamy, who is an AWO to guide us,” said Sawade.

 

The team reached the spot on Saturday afternoon. “We had no problems in

locating him — he was sitting with around fifty dead monitor lizards on

display on a sheet in front of him. He was also using a live lizard to

attract attention of the people,” said Ramaswamy.

 

“After people gathered to watch him, Singh would hold up a bottle of

‘Sanda ka tel (Sanda’s oil)’ and extol its virtues,” said Mascarenas.

 

“We were surprised to see that the live lizard did not run away. When we

asked him how that was so, he told us that he had broken its spine using

his thumb,” adds Ballivan.

 

The group first took Singh — along with his container of dead lizards, the

oil extracted from them and the live one — to the Wild Life department in

Thane. They were told that it being a Saturday, nothing could be done.

 

Disappointed, the group headed to Kalwa Police Station. “We knew we could

not keep the live lizard with us, and it was important to get Singh

arrested. P J Thakur, a senior inspector at the station assisted us and

Singh was booked under sections 9, 39, 40 of the Wild Life Protection Act,

1972,” said Ramaswamy.

 

 

* HOW THE OIL IS EXTRACTED

 

Singh purchased live monitor lizards from the Kutch boarder and broke

their spinal cords so that they could not escape. He then immersed them in

boiling water, while they were still alive. The film of oil that rose to

the surface of the water was collected into small vials, and sold for Rs

50 each.