Bhubaneswar: In a first, Wildlife Reserve officials here have seized rare species of turtles from a hotel in Nayapalli area of Odisha capital.
According to sources, 3 among them are red-eared slider turtles, an exotic animal, while two are flap shell turtles, a vulnerable species protected under the Wildlife (Protection) Act of 1972. Keeping these Schedule-I animals is a punishable offence under the Wildlife Protection Act, an official said.
He further said that a case has been registered and notice has been issued to hotel manger and staff for questioning. “We are probing the source from where these turtles were procured and those responsible for it,” he said, adding that this is first such case reported in Chandaka wildlife range.
