Journalism of Courage
15 peacocks poisoned to death in Tiruchirapalli farm, owner arrested
During the course of the investigation, Pichai reportedly told the police that he kept rice mixed with poison to kill rats but peacocks ate it instead.
Fifteen peacocks were found dead in a farm in Vaiyampatti block near Manapparai in Tamil Nadu’s Tiruchirapalli district Tuesday. The police said that farm owner Daniel Pichai, 80, has been arrested on charges of poisoning the birds.
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The police noted that eight female and seven male peacocks were found dead at the groundnut farm in Tiruchirapalli. A team of forest officials led by forest ranger Maheshwaran reached the spot to conduct further inquiry. They found that rice laced with rat poison was scattered across the farm. The carcasses have been sent to the local hospital for autopsy.
During the course of the investigation, Pichai reportedly told the police that he kept rice mixed with poison to kill rats but peacocks ate it instead.
Speaking to Indianexpress.com, a police officer said that “despite several awareness campaigns and meetings, incidents like these continue to happen.”
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“He (Pichai) confessed that he mixed poison with rice. His intention was to prevent rats from entering the field but that has now killed a whole bunch of peacocks. We have booked a case under Section 9 of the Wildlife Protection Act. He was arrested Tuesday and later remanded,” the officer said.
The arrested farmer was a retired primary school teacher.