Bhandup- Ranak Shah found an injured star tortoise on Bhandup’s service road near the Eastern Express Highway. The tortoise's legs had been eaten away by rats and so was unable to walk. Shah immediately contacted animal lovers Vivek Sethiya and Hiren Chudasma and handed it over them to the injured tortoise. The two admitted the tortoise to Thane’s SPCA hospital.
The star tortoise is widely found in South India and Gujarat and is known by the star symbol which is seen on its back. “These are mostly seen in the fish tanks and are illegally sold at Crawford market. Owning this tortoise can land one in jail for three to seven years and has to pay a fine of Rs 25,000. And this is the major reason people abandon this breed on streets, which in turn proves harmful to these tortoises,” said NGO Pranimitra president Pawan Sharma.
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