PINAKI MAJUMDAR
Jamshedpur, July 23: Acting on a complaint by People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) India, the Dhalbhum forest division on Tuesday rescued 30 parakeets, including plum-headed and Alexandrine parakeets, from an illegal, makeshift pet shop functioning from the footpath of Karim City College Road in Sakchi.
Shop owner booked, birds sent for health check
After receiving a tip-off from a concerned citizen, PETA India fired off a formal complaint to the forest division requesting that the birds be rescued and the pet shop owner booked.
A preliminary offence report was registered against the alleged perpetrator under relevant sections of the Wild Life (Protection) Act (WPA), 1972.
Following their rescue, the birds were sent for a health check, treatment, and temporary rehabilitation.
Parakeets are protected species under WPA 1972
They will be released in nature once their recovery is complete. Both plum-headed and Alexandrine parakeets are protected under Schedule II of the WPA, 1972.
Buying, selling, or possessing these species is an offence punishable by a fine of up to Rs 1 lakh, a jail term of up to three years, or both.
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Endangered wildlife are also protected internationally under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES). Endangered species protected under CITES are also protected under Schedule IV of the WPA, 1972.
PETA India thanks Jharkhand forest dept
“Birds are social beings, and they’re born to fly in the open sky, not to spend their lives lonely and miserable in cages,” says PETA India Cruelty Response Coordinator Sunayana Basu.
“PETA India is grateful to the forest division of the Jharkhand forest department, particularly Chief Conservator of Forest Wildlife Natesh S R, IFS, and Divisional Forest Officer for Dhalbhum Shaba Alam Ansari, IFS, for promptly rescuing the parakeets and taking punitive action against the shop owner.”
Illegal bird trade causes severe harm to birds and violates laws
In the illegal bird trade, countless birds are taken from their families and denied everything natural and important to them so that they can be sold as “pets” or used as bogus fortune-tellers.
Fledglings are often snatched from their nests, and others panic as they’re caught in traps or nets that can seriously injure or kill them as they struggle to break free.
Captured birds are packed into small boxes, and an estimated 60 % of them die in transit from broken wings and legs, thirst, or sheer panic. Those who survive face a bleak life in captivity, suffering from malnutrition, loneliness, depression, and stress.
PETA India – whose motto reads, in part, that “Animals are not ours to use for entertainment or abuse in any other way” – points out that the WPA, 1972, bans the capture, caging, and trading of indigenous birds and that non-compliance can result in imprisonment, a fine, or both.
In addition, caging birds violates The Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, 1960, which stipulates that it’s illegal to keep or confine any animal in any cage or other receptacle that doesn’t provide them with a reasonable opportunity for movement – and for an aerial bird, that includes flight.
