Raipur: The Forestry Office from Chhattisgarh has released four Monitor lizardswhich is considered the most intelligent of all lizard species, into the jungle. The release of this saved The introduction of wild species into the forests is said to be the first in the history of Chhattisgarh.
On June 30, 2024, Saraswati Nagar police rescued four monitor lizards and informed the forest department, said forester Satish Mishra. These monitor lizards are protected under Schedule 1 of the Wildlife Protection Act. They were being transported in a vehicle when police intercepted the vehicle and rescued the monitor lizards.
These lizards were taken to Nandanvan Jungle Safari in Naya Raipur where experts provided them with necessary treatment, the forest official said. After the health check-up, the director of Jungle Safari wrote a letter to the district forest officer of Raipur on July 23, demanding necessary action to release the four monitor lizards. With the permission of the court, the district forest officer released the monitor lizards in a suitable habitat.
Elaborating on the issue, wildlife activist Nitin Singhvi from Raipur explained that so far, all the wild animals seized in court cases were placed in a zoo after the seizure. Due to the pending court cases, no attempt was made to release them back into the wild, resulting in these animals spending their lives in captivity.
Singhvi had approached the Chief Forest Officer (Wildlife) and requested that as per the Central Zoo Authority guidelines, such seized wild animals should not be released back into the forest until after obtaining judicial permission. Following this, the Chief Forest Officer issued an order in July directing all field officers of the forest department to release seized wild animals back into the forest after obtaining judicial permission.
He explained that the body parts of the lizards are used to make musical instruments and some parts are used to make medicines. The forest department did not disclose the location where the lizards were released due to the risk of illegal trade.
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The Chhattisgarh Forest Department recently released four rescued monitor lizards into the wild, the first such incident in the state. The reptiles, which are protected under the Wildlife Protection Act, were confiscated during a police operation. After professional treatment and court approval, the monitor lizards were finally returned to their natural habitat as per the Central Zoo Authority guidelines.
For the first time in the state’s history, the Chhattisgarh Forest Department has released four rescued monitor lizards back into the wild. The animals were seized by the Raipur police and treated by experts. They were released after obtaining permission from the court. Conservationist Nitin Singhvi is calling for more releases of healthy, seized animals in accordance with the guidelines.
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