Hunting turtles is illegal. (Representational image)THE FOREST department has arrested four persons for allegedly hunting turtles for cooking its meat in Pune district.
The accused have been identified as Dada Savant, Nana Savant, Bhimrao Savant and Shankar Savant, all residents of Varvand in Pune district.
In a statement, Deputy Conservator of Forests (DCF), Pune stated that turtles are protected species under Schedule 2 of the Wildlife Protection Act. Hunting turtles is illegal.
On Tuesday, acting on a tip-off, the forest department staff went to Nana Savant’s house as per the instructions of the range forest officer Kalyani Godse. The officials found pieces of turtles in a cooking utensil near Savant’s house.
An investigation revealed that Nana Savant and other accused wanted to cook the turtle pieces and eat it. They were arrested under different sections of the Wildlife Protection Act.
A court in Daund remanded the accused to custody of forest officials till October 25 for further investigation.
Assistant conservator of forests Deepak Pawar is investigating the case.