Chennai Air Customs officials have arrested three persons who tried to smuggle 778 Indian Star Tortoises at Chennai airport.
Kadhir Iburahim, Makkan Mohamed and Seyyathu Mahthoom arrived on August 16 at the city airport from Kuala Lumpur. Since customs officials received a tip off from AI Airport Services Limited that they saw bags with suspicious objects, they intercepted these three passengers. When the bags were examined, 778 Indian Star Tortoises wrapped within adult diapers and the customs officials informed the Wildlife Crime Control Bureau, according to a press release.
The wildlife exotic species was identified by Doki Adimallaiah, Wildlife Inspector, WCCB, Southern Region. The Export Policy mandates that without a valid permit of Convention on International Trade on Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) Licence, NOCs from Chief Wildlife Warden and Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change and also an Animal Quarantine Certificate, export of live animals listed under the Wildlife (Protection) act, 1972 and CITES are banned.
Moreover, possession, sale, transportation of Wild Animals as defined in the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972 and their parts and products are prohibited. Also, commercial trade of species listed in CITES Appendix-I is also prohibited, the release said.
Customs officials seized the rescued star tortoises under the Customs Act, 1962 and handed them over to the WCCB officials. The three passengers, Kadhir Iburahim, Makkan Mohamed and Seyyathu Mahthoom, were arrested and remanded in judicial custody. Investigations will further go on in this case.
In the IUCN List, since 2016, the Indian Star Tortoises have been mentioned ‘vulnerable’ as the population of this species are decreasing. It is threatened by habitat loss and poaching for the illegal wildlife trade. It was upgraded to CITES Appendix I in 2019 by full consensus among all member states, giving it the highest level of international protection from commercial trade, the release said.
