Custom authorities at India’s Tiruchirappalli International Airport (TRZ) have actually taken 47 pythons and 2 lizards from a traveler’s travel luggage.
The traveler, recognized as a regional man, was returning from Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. He handled to smuggle unique reptiles in the hidden boxes and take a trip on board the four-hour Batik Air Flight.
However, after the airplane landed, a visible motion in the traveler’s bags drew the attention of airport authorities at Tiruchirappalli. Upon assessment, they found live snakes of numerous types and sizes and a number of lizards.
The authorities apprehended the traveler for additional questioning.
Meanwhile, the taken reptiles were seized and are set for a return journey to Malaysia, as reported by the regional media outlet, India Today.
A comparable event happened in April 2023, when a female traveler showing up from Kuala Lumpur was captured with 22 snakes concealed in her travel luggage and apprehended at Chennai International Airport (IATA) in India.
According to a report by the UN Environment Program (UNEP) more than 70,000 native and unique animals or parts were trafficked through 18 Indian airports in between 2011 and 2020.
“India is among the top ten countries in terms of using the airline sector for wildlife trafficking,” said Atul Bagai, head of the UNEP in India. “This is an unwanted accolade.”
Furthermore, weak charges for legal infractions have actually made wildlife smuggling simpler in India.
The present trade of unique animals is not controlled by India’s 1972 Wildlife Protection Act, developing a legal loophole. When it was at first presented, the focus was on securing native biodiversity instead of handling intrusive or presented types.
