Overview

• The July 4 operation targeted Narpatgiri Chowk and a storage site in Somwar Peth under the direction of Assistant Conservator Mangesh Tate.
• Enforcement teams uncovered a stockpile of 400–500 kg of feathers reportedly destined for decorative and ritual markets in Pune.
• All 11 detainees—who hail from Uttar Pradesh—have been formally charged with wildlife trafficking and remanded by a magistrate.
• Under Schedule I of the 1972 act, peacock feathers are classified as protected wildlife articles, making their trade a criminal offence.
• Officials have sent the seized feathers to a forensic laboratory for authentication as part of ongoing legal proceedings.