DECCAN HERALD (Decca, India) 16 April 05 Police recover rare ‘tsunami sensing’ tortoise
Varanasi (UNI): While the world works on building a global tsunami warning system, back here in the religious city police have recovered a rare rainbow coloured tortoise, which wildlife officials claim could sense impending natural calamities like undersea quakes.
The tortoise was recovered from a merchant navy employee, Ram Kewal Chauhan, in Dawshashamedh area of the city, who was planning to sell it for Rs Five Lakh, police said. Chauhan, along with two other persons, has been arrested, they added.
On being interrogated, Chauhan revealed that he caught the tortoise from the seaside near Mudra Adani off the Gujarat coast while on board travelling from Karachi.
Wildlife warden (Varanasi) P N Pandey claimed that wildlife conservationists had declared this species of tortoise as extinct and its recovery was a major breakthrough.
Department sources claimed it was also possible that the tortoise might have left West Asia for a safer destination sensing a prospective tsunami that devastated South East Asia in December.
This tortoise possessed a rare strength of sensing earthquakes and other natural calamities, the sources claimed.
Police recover rare ‘tsunami sensing’ tortoise


