By IANS,
Lucknow : Three men have been held with peacock carcasses in Bahraich district of Uttar Pradesh, police said Tuesday, revealing that the birds were killed for their flesh. The peacock is India’s national bird and its killing is strictly prohibited.
The three were nabbed Monday evening along with two peacock carcasses following a joint operation by the Bahraich district police and the forest officials.
“The main accused involved in the killing of the birds managed to escape during the operation that was conducted after a tip-off by the locals of Shistipur village,” police inspector Chandra Prakash told reporters Tuesday in Bahraich, some 140 km from Lucknow.
According to police, preliminary investigations indicate that those involved in the peacock killings have been in the illegal wildlife trade for nearly three years and used to supply the bird’s meat in the eastern regions of Uttar Pradesh.
The peacock is protected under Section 51 (1-A) of the Wildlife Protection Act (WPA), 1972 and its killing is strictly prohibited.