Endangered soft-shell turtles seized in Bengal

Kolkata  :   West Bengal's CID on Saturday seized a consignment of endangered Indian soft-shell turtles having market value of almost Rs 20 lakh from the state's Howrah district, according to an official statement.

Acting on a tip off that the turtles - smuggled from Bhubaneswar - were being taken to North 24 Parganas district via National Highway 6, the CID organised a raid in communication with WildLife Crime Control Bureau and the state Forest Department.

The joint team raided Birati in North 24 Parganas and the Dhulagarh toll tax area in Hooghly district and apprehended a truck at the latter spot and found the reptiles, the CID release said.

Four persons - two businessmen, the truck driver and a labourer - have been detained and the vehicle seized.

The team has unloaded over 90 boxes of turtles. The counting process was on.

"This is probably the highest recovery of turtles in West Bengal and second biggest in India, as reported by WCCB," said the release.