Overview

• Customs officials at CSMIA arrested Sharukkhan Mohammed Hassian arriving from Bangkok after discovering two kinkajous, two pygmy marmosets and 50 albino red-eared sliders concealed in his luggage.
• The protected status of kinkajous and pygmy marmosets under CITES and India’s Wildlife Protection Act contrasts with the unlisted status of albino sliders.
• One kinkajou died and the remaining animals showed infections and unhygienic conditions in the transit boxes, prompting emergency veterinary care.
• Resqink Association for Wildlife Welfare and the Wildlife Crime Control Bureau are providing medical support and preparing repatriation while Customs investigates the smuggling network.
• Under the new DGCA rules carriers must immediately deport illegally imported live animals at their own expense after detection.