COIMBATORE: A day after TNIE carried an article on poaching of Madras Hedgehogs or South Indian Hedgehogs for ‘medicinal purposes’, Coimbatore District Forest Officer (DFO) TK Ashok Kumar on Saturday said there was no scientific evidence that any part of the animal possessed medicinal properties.
In a statement, he said, “There is no scientific evidence that the quills of hedgehogs can cure cough. Anyone who traps and kills or uses the body parts of the hedgehog is liable for legal action under Wildlife Protection Act 1972.” The DFO warned people against harming the hedgehog.
However, Dr Brawin Kumar of IISER Tirupati who has been doing research in this regard, said, “There are three kinds of hedgehogs in India. Only Indian Hedgehog (hemichinus micropus), which is found in the parts of Gujarat and Rajasthan, has been listed under Schedule IV of Wildlife Protection Act 1972 (WPA), while the other two — Madras Hedgehogs and Hemichinus Collaris — are not in the list.” The DFO said that he would take the issue forward for listing the other two species under WPA.
A grab of the TNIE story on the killings of South Indian Hedgehogs for medicinal purposes