Thane Forest Division Seizes Indian Soft-Shelled Turtle from Colony Clubhouse in Navi Mumbai, As Result of PETA India Complaint

For Immediate Release:

02 January 2025

Contact:

Hiraj Laljani; [email protected]

Meet Ashar; [email protected]

Navi Mumbai – Acting on a tip from a concerned citizen, People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) India worked with the Thane Forest Division of the Maharashtra Forest Department to rescue an Indian soft-shelled turtle – a species protected under Schedule I of the Wild Life (Protection) Act (WPA), 1972 (as amended in 2022) – who was being kept in a messy aquarium in the clubhouse of Seawoods estate colony in blatant violation of the WPA. The seized turtle is being kept under observation in the custody of the forest department and is being medically examined and provided with appropriate care before being released.

Possessing a species protected under Schedule I is an offense punishable by a minimum three-year prison sentence, which may extend to seven years, and a minimum fine of Rs 25,000.

“PETA India is grateful to the Thane Forest Division, especially Shri Sachin Talpade, Round Forest Officer, Navi Mumbai, for promptly rescuing this captive turtle,” says PETA India Cruelty Response Coordinator Sinchana Subramanyan. “This incident is exactly why laws exist to keep wild animals where they belong – in nature.”

Indian soft-shelled turtles are classified as “Endangered” on the International Union for Conservation of Nature Red List of Threatened Species. Because turtles are wild animals, when kept in homes, they typically are fed an unnatural or inappropriate diet and relegated to dingy tanks without any enrichment.

PETA India – whose motto reads, in part, that “animals are not ours to abuse in any way” – opposes speciesism, a human-supremacist worldview. For more information, please visit PETAIndia.com or follow the group on X, Facebook, or Instagram.

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