STF rescues 6400 Turtles in Amethi – UP – Biggest in Indian Wildlife History

Amethi, 6400 Turtles – It has become historic for wildlife rescue team in India. In the early morning hours (3 AM) of 10^th Jan, poachers were carrying innocent lives in gunny bags to be transported, so that they can be converted into tasty and aromatic food. All thanks to Special Task Forces (SFT) who were extremely active on nabbing them and rescuing all 6400 turtles.

It was told that the weight of 6400 turtles was around 5 tonnes and the smugglers were waiting to load them into the truck. The raids were made at the tributary of Indira Gandhi Canal in the morning. The leader of this task was Raj Bhadur Singh and he was immediately arrested. STF executed this task under the sharp guidance of Arvind Chaturvedi (additional superintendent of Police).

These Gangetic turtles are also known as “Sundari” and are the most widely found turtles in India. Being Sundari (English - Beautiful), doesn’t guarantee their lives by these poachers. Due to them they are now endangered species. These turtles are sent throughout the country so that they can used as a meat. Their shells are then sent to countries like Bangladesh and China, where it is used in soups and for medicines.

As per the superintendent, each year almost 20,000 turtles are smuggled out of Uttar Pradesh from the Ganges tributary. He said that “This is indeed bad news for Ganga's purity and ecological balance too as these turtles feed on crabs, snails, dead fish and fragments of dead animals. Without these turtles, cleaning of Ganga would be even more difficult. Further, their popularity in Southeast Asian countries like Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam is growing rapidly.”

A senior Wildlife Officer said that “There is a belief from Feng Shui traditions that a turtle with all 20 nails -- 5 on each leg -- brings good luck”.

It is clear that, we human beings have been killing any form of life just to increase our test buds or to satisfy our superstition. Such kind of activities should be immediately stopped to protect the mother earth. Ganga is known as mother in India, but after watching this incidence it can be said that she is mother only in books and people in real life do not respect anyone.