A 28-year-old labourer and his uncle were caught for poaching migratory birds in the Kelambakkam Lake near Kovalam and were imposed a heavy fine on Monday, even as forest officials are cracking the whip against poachers. More watchers have been deployed to curb poaching near water bodies, keeping in mind the upcoming monsoon.
Forest officials said they caught M Parthiban and his uncle S Hari (31) from Pillaiyar Koil Street, Kelambakkam, when they were poaching Little Stints in the lake near Koot Road, Kovalam. Residents noticed the two men laying large nets to trap the waders and quickly informed forest officials, they said.
Thiruporur forest ranger Sivaraman was alerted as he was closest to the spot, officials said and added that another team from the Velachery Forest Range office also rushed to the lake. The teams caught hold of the poachers and found that they had hunted about 52 Little Stints. When questioned, the duo said that they were labourers and were involved in hunting birds during their free time. Since the birds they hunted down were protected species under Schedule IV of the Wildlife Protection Act 1972, the poachers were fined Rs 50,000. “They said they would sell each bird for `25 in the rural areas for its meat. Other than crows, the hunting of any other bird is an offence,” said S Davidraj, Forest Ranger, Velachery Forest Range Office.
According to forest officials, this is the second incident in the past few weeks. In September, four labourers Gemini Ganesan (30), Sankar (45), Gundumani (28) and Vignesh (29) from Ambedkar Nagar, Poonamallee, were arrested and lodged in Vellore Central Prison for poaching 38 Little Egrets and Large Egrets, also protected under Schedule IV of the Act. A few months ago, a Vandalur Zoo labourer was arrested for hunting Little Egrets and was lodged in the Madurantakam sub-jail.
With the upcoming monsoon season, Forest officials are being extra careful in areas near water bodies in and around Chennai, as more migratory birds are expected to arrive. “Watchers are deployed throughout day and night near water bodies and we have even chased away people who come to poach,” a forest official said.
Poachers can be reported to the Velachery forest range office on 22200335.
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