Sardarpur (Madhya Pradesh): Twelve parrots were found dead and eight were injured when forest officials caught two men smuggling 135 wild parrots on a passenger bus heading to Gujarat from Dhar in MP.
Acting on tip off, the Forest Department team seized a vehicle during Wildlife Week at Bhopawar Chowkdi near Sardarpur along the Indore-Ahmedabad highway.
Officers found the birds crammed inside a small cage covered with green netting and hidden in the bus trunk. The parrots belonged to four types: Alexandrine, Plum-headed, Grey-headed and Rose-ringed. The birds were packed so tightly that some died during transport.
Under Divisional Forest Officer Vijayanantham TR's direction, the team brought both suspects to Sardarpur Range Office for questioning. A veterinary doctor, Dilip Gamrad, treated the injured birds immediately. Dead parrots underwent examination before officials moved the surviving birds to a larger, safer cage.
During questioning, both men admitted they picked up the cage in Bhopal and planned to deliver it to Ahmedabad. Forest officials registered a case under the Wildlife Protection Act, 1972, and presented the suspects in Sardarpur court on Monday. After getting court approval, authorities released all healthy parrots into thick forest areas.
Forest Range officer Dr Shailendra Solanki believes an organised group is behind this trade. "Some people trap parrots and other animals because of greed and false beliefs, then sell them illegally," said sub-divisional forest officer Santosh Ranchhod.
