KOCHI: The Forest Department has registered a case against the owner of a toddy shop at Udayamperoor, near here, for selling dishes made from the meat of animals included in the wildlife’s protected list.
The Erumeli Forest Range office has booked the toddy shop owner under provisions of the Wildlife Protection Act, 1972.Acting on a tip-off, the Udayamperoor police on Saturday seized a dead monitor lizard and around 20 kg of meat, supposedly of a sambar deer, from the Padippura Toddy Shop at Patham Mile. The police later handed over the case to the Forest Department.
The seized meat will be sent for examination to confirm whether it belongs to animals in the wildlife’s protected list, said a forest officer. Preliminary investigation suggests the meat was procured from a Munnar-based poaching racket, which allegedly supplied meat of endangered species to toddy shops at various locations as there is a huge demand for the meat of wild animals among tipplers. Forest Department officers have identified a Chambakkara native, who allegedly supplied the meat to the toddy shop.