M A I N   N E W S

Villager cages 40 peacocks
By Sarbjit Singh
Tribune News Service

CHANDIGARH, June 9 — Over 40 peacocks are awaiting to be released from a human “captivity” at Lohgarh village, at a short distance from Zirakpur.

Senior officials of the Wild Life Department visited the place on June 7 and found the birds being bred in the captivity. But no action was taken on the spot.

Under the Wild Life Protection Act 1972, retention of peacocks in human captivity is a crime. Neither it can be sold nor gifted. It falls in the purview of the schedule I of the Act. It being a national bird its breeding in the captivity becomes more serious crime.

Officials of the Wild Life Department can seize such birds and declare those as government property.

Mr V. Mohindra, Principal Chief Conservator and Chief Wild Life Warden, confirmed the retention of over 40 peacocks in a private house near Lohgarh village. He said that he had asked the Divisional Forest Officer (wild life), Mr P.C. Antalia, to submit a report in this connection for taking necessary action against the person concerned.

When asked what action he proposed to take, Mr Mohindra said that the law was very clear in this connection and the case would be registered against the person. He said that the captor of peacocks had come out with the plea that he was ignored that the retention of the peacocks was a crime.

However, the officials of the Department say that such a large number of peacocks can’t be kept as pet birds. They suspect the breeding of peacocks was being done for commercial purposes. “ We are trying to find out for what purpose these have been kept at a private house”, Mr Mohindra said. It is very difficult to feed such a large number of pet birds, he adds. Even, the Minister for Forests and Wild Life, Mr Surjit Kumar Jyani, knows that peacocks had been kept in a private house. He also says that the action would be taken as per provisions of the Act and there will be no reason to spare the violator of the Act.

As per provisions of the Act, neither peacock can be sold, gifted or exported. Its status under law is as high as of a tiger or lion. There can be imprisonment up to three years and a fine up to Rs 25,000 in case of violation of this Act.

When Wild Life Department officials visited the place, they found big enclosures, incubators and also a large number of servants, supposedly kept for supervising the breeding. Besides, they also found some little birds. Mr Mohindra said that there was no resistance on the part of the owner of the house when the officials went there. Under the Act, Wild Life Department officials can search any premises to check the violation of the Act. 

WB okays $ 516m loan

WASHINGTON, June 9 (UNI) — The World Bank has sanctioned a loan of $ 516 million to India to upgrade its long-neglected national highways in Uttar Pradesh and Bihar and improve the management of its road networks.

This is a major loan that the World Bank has granted for India’s infrastructure project after its May, 1998, nuclear tests which led to economic sanctions. The bank, because of sanctions, has been giving loans only for human need projects.

Total project costs are $ 650 million to which the Government of India will contribute $ 134 million and the bank will provide $ 516 million variable spread and rate single-currency loan with a grace period of five years and 20 years to maturity.

The loan, sanctioned yesterday, would finance the India third national highways project, covering some of the most underdeveloped regions of India in the states of Uttar Pradesh and Bihar that have almost completely missed out on the recent economic growth in other parts of the country, in part because of poor infrastructure, says Mr Chris Hoban, Project Task Leader and Operations Adviser for India at the World Bank.

“By improving access to economic opportunities and social development, we expect this project to have a direct impact on poverty in the surrounding regions, which are home to many millions of India’s poor,” he said.