RailEnquiry

NOIDA: An illegal consignment of more than 350 birds and rabbits was seized by the government railway police (GRP) in Ghaziabad on Tuesday evening. The GRP conducted raids on the Delhi-Kalka Mail at the Old Ghaziabad railway station after receiving a tip-off from activists of the NGO, People for Animals (PFA).An FIR in the matter has been lodged by PFA with the Ghaziabad GRP under Sections 428 and 429 of the IPC along with various other sections of Wildlife Protection Act and the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act. The animals have been sent for treatment to the Sanjay Gandhi Animal Care Centre in New Delhi.The NGO activists had rushed to intercept the train at Ghaziabad after receiving news that an illegal consignment of animals had been loaded onto the train destined for Delhi. Activists informed that it took the intervention of animal rights' activist and Lok Sabha MP, Maneka Gandhi, to convince railway officials for rescuing the animals."A wire-mesh cage tightly stuffed with the birds and rabbits had been loaded into the luggage van after putting it into a gunny bag. Several of them had died due to asphyxiation," said Aasima Sunil, president of PFA (Ghaziabad).Caretaking of the remaining animals has for the time being been handed over to the NGO. Initial investigations have revealed that the consignment had been booked from Kanpur by one Mohammed Fareed to a place called Bardhvan.

The animal rights' activists said that the birds belong to a species called Zebra Finch and are normally found in regions of Central Australia apart from a few other places with similar climates. "We are seeing to it that the animals get proper treatment. We will decide upon a place to send them to when they get completely healthy," added Sunil.