(IN): Rescued turtles go missing from zoo

[Guest guest]

So the next time you find/ recover/ seize any wildlife please remember to

follow some of the points mentioned below so that NONE of the products/

animals seized mysteriously disappear.

And in case of any such disappearance it would become very easy to prosecute

the official under whose supervision that offense may have occurred.

 

1. Keep a set of media/ press phone numbers handy. In any such incident

always remember to dial a few numbers of press guys. Once things get

reported in the media or attract media attention, there is a very low chance

of any foul play.

Try giving the issue as much publicity as possible.

 

2. Take pictures of the animals at the site of recovery (if possible).

 

 

3. Call the Police/ Animal Shelter/ Forest People and take pictures of them

along with police officials while they take the animals/ products in

custody.

 

4. Draft a letter to the authorities concerned with details of exactly the

number of animals/ products submitted. Also get a few eye witness to sign

the document and get a copy counter signed by the forest/ police official.

 

5. If the media/ press people report the incident next day in the

newspapers/ tv try collecting the paper cuttings/ reports and keep them with

you.

 

Well these are some of the steps that I have tried to follow and I must say,

it helps.

 

Azam

 

 

 

http://www.telegraphindia.com/1090417/jsp/calcutta/story_10832977.jsp

 

 

SANJAY MANDAL

 

Two turtles, rescued from a city market and gifted to the zoo by a teenager,

have gone missing from their enclosure and the authorities have no clue how.

 

Asish Chowdhury, who appeared for the ISC from La Martiniere for Boys this

year, bought the turtles for Rs 70 from a market off the EM Bypass and

deposited them at the zoo in end-2007.

 

The 18-year-old from New Alipore recently visited the zoo to check on the

turtles and found only ducks and birds in their enclosure. “The water was

transparent and the enclosure was well-guarded so the turtles could not have

escaped,” said Asish.

 

When he approached zoo officials, he was asked to check whether the turtles

were in the aquarium. The teenager could not find them there and went back

to the officials. This time he was asked to mind his own business.

 

“It was shocking how indifferent they are towards the animals,” said Asish,

who filed a complaint with the Central Zoo Authority.

 

“It is difficult for me to keep track of a pair of turtles. I don’t know

where they are,” said Subir Chowdhury, the director of Alipore zoo.

 

According to forest department officials, turtles, along with tigers,

leopards and elephants, are Schedule I endangered species under the Wildlife

Act.

 

“The turtle population is diminishing fast and hence, trade in the animal

has been banned. However, despite raids, the illegal trade continues,” said

a senior forest department official.

 

Turtles are prized for their meat. The two that have gone missing would have

been slaughtered if Asish had not come to their rescue.

 

“I knew it was illegal to keep them at home and so went to the Alipore zoo

and deposited the pair,” he said. Zoo officials made an entry in their

register and released the turtles in the enclosure.

 

The forest department official alleged the zoo authorities rarely filed the

monthly status report. “They are supposed to submit a list of animals and

their particulars to us. It should mention if an animal had been procured or

if an animal had died. The process is not followed regularly,” he said.

 

 

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