GD in police station case of killing 13 vultures in Moulvibazar
Published: 27 March 2023, 10:14:35
Recently 13 endangered vultures were killed by poison in Barakapan village of Ekatuna UP, Moulvibazar Sadar. In this incident, the Forest Department has made a General Diary (GD) at Moulvibazar Sadar Model Police Station. Initially the vultures were said to have been killed by poisoning. 13 vultures spread 9 dogs, several foxes and cats also died from the poison.
On Thursday (March 23) night, Moulvibazar’s Barshijora Park Beat Officer Abu Naeem Mohammad Nurunnabi made this GDT as the plaintiff.
According to a survey by the Forest Department and the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), there are only 260 vultures in the country. Sylhet, Moulvibazar and Habiganj together have 100 vultures. But experts working on vultures believe that 13 of these vultures have died, resulting in a significant decline in the total vulture population.
Those accused of killing 13 vultures
Assistant Conservator of Forests (ACF) of Wildlife Management and Nature Conservation Department Shyamal Kumar Mitra said that a general diary has been kept at Sadar police station in the case of vulture killing. Md. Rokon Mia and Kachnu Mia have been accused.
The forest department has recovered a bottle of poison from the spot near the dead body of the vulture. The poison bottles have been submitted to two police stations as evidence along with the diary.
What is said about the incident in GD
According to the GD made by Barshijora Park Beat Officer Abu Naeem Mohammad Nurunnabir, a fox from the forest bit a goat belonging to the two accused and it died. The owner got angry and poured poison on the dead goat and left it on the ground. And it eats those dogs and foxes. Dead bodies of dogs and foxes were found lying on the spot.
Abu Naeem Mohammad Nurunnabi said on Friday afternoon, “I got the names of the two accused in the incident from the people of the local area. I didn’t get any more information. Local people said that goats die from fox bites. Later, the owner of the goat mixed poison with the goat’s body and left it on the ground.
The Chief Researcher of IUCN’s Vulture Conservation Project Shimanda Dipu said on Friday afternoon, “The autopsy of the dead vulture has not been completed. Sent to Microbiology Department of Sylhet Agricultural University. Maybe the autopsy will be completed in a day or two.
When asked about this, Rezaul Karim Chowdhury, Divisional Forest Officer of Wildlife Management and Nature Conservation Department of Forest Department said, “We are shocked by the death of 13 vultures. Last Thursday, the bodies of the vultures were collected twice and sent to the microbiology department of Sylhet Agricultural University for testing under the supervision of IUCN.
He also said about the endangered vulture that died, ‘In 2015, those vultures used to sit on a high tree in the Deorachhra tea garden. The vultures were no longer seen due to the cutting of that tree. Again in 2021, the vulture is seen. The public should be made more aware of vulture protection.
Moulvibazar Model Police Station OC Mohammad Harunur Rashid Chowdhury said, “Forest department has filed a written complaint. It has been established as GD. The investigation report will be submitted to the court after investigation.
How the vulture killing incident was caught
An IUCN satellite tag was attached to the body of a vulture for movement monitoring under the IUCN Bangladesh Vulture Conservation Project. That vulture is seen going to and fro different places. But the vulture remained fixed in the same place for several days. No signal was found. While investigating the reason for this stubbornness, the death of the vulture was discovered.
IUCN’s vulture conservation project chief researcher Shimanda Dipu said, “We identified the location of the vulture on Wednesday (March 22). The IUCN and the Forest Department recovered a total of 13 dead Bengal vultures from the place adjacent to the house of Faisal Ahmad, a resident of Rasulpur, Ekatuna Union of Moulvibazar Sadar Upazila. At this time, the remains of dead goats and dogs-foxes were also found.
The forest department has already buried the carcasses of dead foxes, dogs and goats and cow bones in the ground, so that no other vultures die from eating the meat. A campaign is being carried out locally to make the public aware so that such cases of poisoning do not happen again.
