24 July,2017 01:55 PM IST | Mumbai | A Correspondent
An auto driver's alertness saved the life of a red sand boa at Aarey Colony, an endangered snake that can fetch Rs 3 lakh in the black market for use in tantrik rituals
Activist Sunish Subramaniam Kunju with the red sand boa
An auto driver's alertness saved the life of a red sand boa, an endangered snake that can fetch Rs 3 lakh in the black market for use in tantrik rituals.
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The auto driver, Yogesh Lokhande, was driving through Aarey Colony on Saturday, when he spotted the snake on the road. He called Sunish Subramaniam Kunju, honorary wildlife warden of Mumbai and president of the NGO PAWS.
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"We informed the Forest Department about it and immediately released the snake in the nearby forest," said Sunish, adding, "It is good to see alert citizens like Yogesh, who not only alerted us but stood guard at the spot till we arrived."
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Red sand boas are protected under Schedule 4 of the Wildlife Protection Act.