10 reptiles rescued in city in just one week

City . Monday , July 6, 2008 . Page 11
Flooding forces cobras, Russells vipers and rat snakes to emerge from burrows in Mulund, Powai; NGO says citizens have nothing to fear

Flooding , due to heavy rain in parts of the city, has forced reptiles to emerge from their burrows. In the last one week, an NGO, Plants and Animal Welfare Society (PAWS), that works for animal welfare has rescued 10 snakes from residential areas in Bhabha Atomic Research Centres (BARC), Bhandup (east), Mulund Colony and Powai. The 10 snakes that were rescued, include four cobras, four Russells vipers and two rat snakes.

PAWS secretary and snake rescuer Sunish Subramanian said, The BARC area is perfect for snakes. In the monsoon , when the burrows they live in get flooded, they begin to stray near buildings and end up entering homes. But people should not panic or try to play with them and should call a snake rescuer when they spot one. It would be better if they keep an eye on it from a distance till the rescuer arrives.
Snake rescuers feel that with the breeding season over and monsoon setting in, baby snakes (snakelets) and snakes are straying into residential areas that offer them hiding places. Snakes need places to hide as they dont like to come out in the open. With more constructions coming up in the city, they are fast losing their natural habitat. Unattended debris, garbage and unkempt bushes offer hiding places to them. People should keep their surroundings clean, dispose debris and close these burrows, said Sunish.

Last week, PAWS volunteers had a scare when they received a call about snakes and on arriving at the spot in Powai, saw a few teenagers handling three snakelets. When we saw the snakelets, we got worried as they were Russells vipers, one of the most deadly reptiles. One bite from it is enough to kill an elephant and these children had handled them and put them in containers to prevent them from escaping. The snakelets were very agitated by this, said Sunish.

Also, two rat snakes were rescued, one from Mulund colony a few days ago and another from Bhandup. Besides , PAWS also came across injured squirrels, cuckoos and other birds that were injured during tree-felling in the same area. The snakes and other rescued wildlife will be released in the forest with the assistance of the forest department on Monday.

Fishing for trouble

Sunday, May 03, 2009
Irla aquarium, built with funds from former MLA Vinayak Raut, pulled up for allegedly keeping wild birds and animals without relevant permissions
The Dolphin Aquarium at Irla near Vile Parle, built with money from former MLA Vinayak Raut’s area development fund scheme, is once again under the scanner of the forest conservator. Wild birds, squirrels, jungle cats and even turtles have been kept there, allegedly without securing relevant permissions from authorities.

The premises was raided once before by the forest department - soon after its inauguration in 2005 - following a complaint from animal activists. Then, a hill myna and some caged parakeets, which are protected under the Wildlife Protection Act, were confiscated by the officials.

This time around, the Plant and Animal Welfare Society (PAWS) has lodged a complaint with the Forest Department, asking them to take action against the aquarium’s management yet again - and confiscate wild birds such as parakeets, a hill myna and a cuckoo kept on its premises.
About Pics : The Dolphin Aquarium at Vile Parle
“The place had kept a low profile after the raid in 2005,” said Sunish Subramaniam, secretary of PAWS. “Recently, a local resident wrote a letter informing us about wild birds such as parakeets and cuckoos being kept there. We therefore decided to lodge a complaint. The only place that has permissions from the Central Zoo Authority, or holds the licence to keep such species on display in the city, is the Veermata Jijabai Udyan at Byculla.”

When contacted, Raut said, “This place was earlier treated as a dumping ground. We beautified it. And yes, we have kept the birds again, but this time, we have applied for the necessary permissions. The application is still under process.”

The dome-shaped aquarium - situated in the middle of a lake at Irla - is a spot frequented by locals, who come to the place to relax or for boating. The premises also boasts of a few local varieties of fish and a jogging track. The birds were kept caged around the jogging track that winds around the lake.

Satish Phale, assistant conservator of forests, confirmed that PAWS had filed a complaint, and said that the matter would be looked into immediately after his staff was relieved of election duties.