Monday, December 15, 2008

Gen X eco-savvy

Our Town Team

November 17 – 23, 2006

It’s heartening to note that the young generation is aware of their responsibilities towards the nature. A youth school going girl from Bhandup showed concern towards nature and went all the way to save a turtle that had strayed in a drain in Nahur.

It all began when Rupa Gupta a student of Standard VII of NES high school in Bhandup West was travelling from Thane to Bhandup by train when she spotted a turtle lying in a drain along the tracks. Gupta immediately called up her friend Nisha Kunju, who is an animal welfare activist. Kunju also information the activists of Plant & Animals Welfare Society – Mumbai (PAWS-Mumbai) who also reached the site.

The entire team including the member of PAWS-Mumbai along with Gupta and Kunju searched the entire span of the drain along the railway track number one. Finally, after looking around for pretty long tree and half hours, the team finally succeeded in tracking down the turtle that was flowing along the current.

According to the members of PAWS-Mumbai, the rescued turtle belonged to the flattened, round – shelled turtles of the family Trionychidate that are known commonly as soft-shelled turtles. These flat-shelled turtles are well adopted to a life of concealment on the bottoms of lakes and rivers. The PAWS-Mumbai team promptly took the reptile in its care and released it in the well at the compound of forest range office at Amar Nagar in Mulund Colony. A resident of Patkar Compound, Bhandup West, Gupta and her friend Kunju were relived after the turtle was released back in the nature. When asked what prompted her to act in this situation, she said that she was inspired by her friend Kunju. “I have always been seeing Kunju working for highly inspired by her works”, said Gupta.

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