Rescued star tortoises to fly back to Karnataka today

Some of the rescued star tortoises that will be heading to Karnataka

The 285 star tortoises rescued over the past year by various NGOs and government bodies from Mumbai will finally go back to their natural habitat. This morning, they are scheduled to head to Karnataka on a flight.

Fostered for a year
In the last one year, various agencies, including NGOs rescued these star tortoises while they were being smuggled. They were being cared for since the rescue so that they could be healthy enough to be released back safely.

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Of the 285 tortoises, 205 were with the Wildlife Crime Control Bureau (WCCB), 60 were with Thane SPCA, being fostered on behalf of the Thane Territorial Wing. NGO RAWW was fostering the remaining for the anti-poaching unit of the Thane Forest Department. M Moranko, regional deputy director of WCCB said, "The star tortoises will be released in the Banerghatta National Park, which is their natural habitat."

Understand illegality
"All the species of star tortoise are protected under schedule 4 of the Wildlife Protection Act, 1972 and it is thus illegal to keep them as pets. We initiated a DNA sampling to determine their native origin state with the help of Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology (CCMB). We appeal to people to understand the cruelty and illegality behind this wildlife trade, which might be funding anti-national activities," said Pawan Sharma, honorary wildlife warden of Mumbai's eastern suburbs and president of RAWW.

Also read: What a knock! Tortoise burns down home