Bolangir: Railway Protection Force (RPF) Friday rescued 500 pigeons caged in seven cartons and arrested a man and his son from Samaleswari express here, on charges of smuggling these birds.
RPF later handed over the accused, identified as Nandakishor Durga (70) and his son Dhaniram Durga (40) of Tambachoda village in Kalahandi district, to the Forest Department.
They were produced in a local court Saturday.
Divisional forest officer (DFO) Sameer Satapathy said the accused have been booked under section 51 of Wild Life Protection Act-1972. An investigation would be launched to find out if the birds were being transported for sacrifice.
During interrogation, the accused duo confessed to be involved in the trade for last couple of years. The duo further informed the cops that they purchased these birds from Ulberia market in West Bengal and were bringing them to Titilagarh.
They accused men claimed, they were planning to sell them at famous Manikeswari fair in Kalahandi where it is an age old tradition to fly pigeons during Dasahara festival.
PNN