- A 1stof its kind rehabilitation centre for freshwater turtles is to be inaugurated in January 2020 in the Bhagalpur forest division of Bihar. This centre spread over half a hectare will be able to shelter 500 turtles at a time. The centre will also treat turtles that are sick, severely injured or smuggled, and then be returned safely into its natural habitat.
Key Points:
- The turtles will be properly monitored before being released back.
- NMCG & WII report: According to a report by the National Mission for Clean Ganga (NMCG) and Wildlife Institute of India (WII), the turtle species are under threat due to loss through dams and barrages, pollution, illegal poaching, accidental drowning through fishing nets and threats to their nesting habitats etc.
- Traffic India study: According to a recent study conducted by Traffic India, nearly 11,000 turtles are being smuggled in India annually which makes 1,10,000 turtles in the past 10 years.
