A pair of Indian Star Tortoise’ kept as pets were seized by the Police from a house at Hiran Magri, Sector-4, today morning and the home owners were booked under Section 39 & 51 of the Wildlife Act, 1972.

The owner Ms. Prem Kashyap, who teaches at a private school, was detained by the Police team led by Senior Officer Divya Mittal.

“We raided the house after receiving the information on 2 tortoises being kept there and when we inspected, we found the tortoise in the backyard of the house,” said Divya Mittal.

One of the tortoises weighed 3.8kg and other was 3kg; both are Indian Start Tortoise. According to sources, the Indian Star Tortoise species are frequently being traded as an exotic pet in India, which is illegal.

The tortoises will be handed over to the Department of Wild Life, Udaipur, says the officer.

Reported by Sohail Khan