1000's of migratory birds poached in Brahmapuri

1000's of migratory birds poached in Brahmapuri

Thousands of migratory birds swallows, ducks, shikras and plovers have been poached from Aher-Navargaon village on the banks of Wainganga in Brahmapuri forest division, Chandrapur, Nagpur.

According to Bombay Natural History Society (BNHS) volunteer working in Brahmapuri, Satish Charthal "The birds are trapped by laying nets near the river and killed brutally by piercing sharp-edged feathers in eyes. After the birds are dead, their feathers are removed and roasted and sold to customers from Nagpur, Gadchiroli and Chandrapur," said Charthal. Around 150 fishermen families in the village are involved in hunting as per the report.

Some bird watchers said "Recently when we visited the spot the scene was pathetic with many birds being killed openly. Around 20 birds are sold for 100."

The poaching is been going on for years and starts with the advent of winter in October when the migratory birds start arriving. The Brahmapuri division office is quite close to the village just around the distance of 6 km, still no action is taken by the Forest Department. Indicating involvement of the Forest Staff.
Deputy conservator of forests (DyCF) Ashish Thakre was not available to provide a comment on this report.